Starting Your Own Business ? Hints & Tips Entrepreneurial Advice Suzie's Blogs ...

Designing Your Research Instruments _ How To ? ( part 1 ) The most common research instrument is the questionnaire. Keep these tips in mind when designing your market research questionnaire. Keep it simple. Include instructions for answering all questions included on the survey. Begin the survey with general questions and move towards more specific questions. Keep each question brief. If the questionnaire is completed by the respondent and not by an interviewer or survey staff member, remember to design a questionnaire that is graphically pleasing and easy to read. Remember to pre-test the questionnaire. Before taking the survey to the printer, ask a few people-such as regular customers, colleagues, friends or employees-to complete the survey. Ask them for feedback on the survey's style, simplicity and their perception of its purpose. Mix the form of the questions. Use scales, rankings, open-ended questions and closed-ended questions for different sections of the questionnaire. The "form" or way a question is asked may influence the answer given. Basically, there are two question forms: closed-end questions and open-end questions. Tomorrow: Closed end questions. See you here at the Business Blog. Suzie Posted: Friday 11th February 2005, 12:01 AM

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