- \n
- Acceptability (Not at all acceptable \u2013 Completely acceptable)<\/li>\n
- Agreement (Strongly disagree \u2013 Strongly agree)<\/li>\n
- Concern (Not at all concerned \u2013 Very concerned)<\/li>\n
- Awareness (Not at all aware \u2013 Very aware)<\/li>\n
- Frequency (Never – Always)<\/li>\n
- Importance (Not at all important – Very important)<\/li>\n
- Likelihood (Very unlikely \u2013 Very likely)<\/li>\n
- Quality (Poor – Excellent)<\/li>\n
- Satisfaction (Not at all satisfied \u2013 Very satisfied)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Anatomy of a Good Scale Question<\/h2>\n
What components should you pay particular attention to, to ensure that your scale question meets your objectives?<\/p>\n
How many options should you include in your scale?<\/h3>\n
We have observed that our clients, in 85% of cases, provide 5 options (2 negative, 1 neutral and 2 positive).<\/p>\n
![\"Scale](\"https:\/\/skeepers.io\/app\/uploads\/2022\/10\/survey-system-usability-scale.jpg\")
<\/p>\nDiscover our tips for using Likert scales effectively in your surveys<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n
With the exception of the neutral answer, which we will discuss later, we also recommend this number. 3 answers is a bit simplistic, whereas 7 answers requires more effort and thought on behalf of the respondent, often with little added value.<\/p>\n
Should you add numbers to your scale?<\/h3>\n
Text labels are often used, but numerical values are also generally added <\/strong>to make the text easier to understand and to facilitate reporting. For example, for a 5-option scale, with labels ranging from very bad, bad, fair, good, very good, the value \u201c5\u201d would be attributed to the most positive label (very good) and the value \u201c1\u201d to the most negative (very bad). These values can help in reports and analyses to calculate scores, such as CSAT<\/a>, associated with your text labels.<\/p>\n
![\"Weight](\"https:\/\/skeepers.io\/app\/uploads\/2022\/10\/weight-questions.jpg\")
<\/p>\nHow to write your answer scales?<\/h3>\n
A good scale question is easy to understand<\/strong>, clearly differentiates between the various options and is easy to interpret. We therefore recommend choosing a scale with values that are always the same, for two reasons:<\/p>\n
- \n
- Scale questions that vary very little and that are consistent, are less confusing for respondents<\/strong>. This will save them time!<\/li>\n
- You get consistent data over time<\/strong>. You can easily measure trends week by week, month by month, and year by year with surveys.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
How to balance your scale?<\/h3>\n
The scale of your question also needs to be balanced<\/strong>. Meaning that you should provide as many negative choices as positive ones<\/strong>. Here is an example:<\/p>\n
![\"Scale](\"https:\/\/skeepers.io\/app\/uploads\/2022\/10\/scale-questions-right-example.jpg\")
<\/p>\nIn the left example, the scale only includes one \u201cnot satisfied\u201d answer, and two \u201csatisfied\u201d ones. On the right side, there is the same scale, that has been rebalanced.<\/p>\n
You\u2019ll notice that in this example, there is a neutral choice in 3rd place, between the two extreme options. You don\u2019t always have to provide the respondent with a neutral choice. This is entirely up to you, depending on your objectives.<\/p>\n
Should you Include a Neutral Option in a Scale Question?<\/h2>\n
When writing your scale question, you need to decide whether or not a neutral option is worthwhile<\/strong> to your survey.<\/p>\n
- \n
- Those in favour believe that including a neutral option allows to collect clean data without forcing the respondent <\/strong>to answer on the positive or negative end of the scale. In some cases, respondents simply don\u2019t have an opinion.<\/li>\n
- Those who prefer scales without a neutral option believe that scales requiring a positive or negative choice help make more informed decisions after the survey<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
It is important to note that studies with our clients have shown that when there is no neutral option, the respondent is more likely to be nice<\/strong>, and to therefore answer on the positive end of the scale.<\/p>\n
It is therefore up to you to decide if you want to be as close to reality as possible, even if it means collecting non-committal answers, or if you want easy-to-interpret results, even if there is a slight bias in the choices.<\/p>\n
Writing scale questions may seem trivial, but there are certain rules to follow in order to obtain quality results.<\/p>\n
We have lots of other survey-writing tips to help you improve the quality and quantity of your customer responses. You can find them all in our guide, \u201cHow to Write the Perfect Customer Survey\u201d.<\/p>\n
- Those who prefer scales without a neutral option believe that scales requiring a positive or negative choice help make more informed decisions after the survey<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- You get consistent data over time<\/strong>. You can easily measure trends week by week, month by month, and year by year with surveys.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- Scale questions that vary very little and that are consistent, are less confusing for respondents<\/strong>. This will save them time!<\/li>\n
![\"Download](\"https:\/\/skeepers.io\/app\/uploads\/2022\/10\/f872a7d4-15de-4afd-a4ce-28e373eec588-1.png\")
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