Customers are more likely to give feedback after checkout than at any other time. Instead of sending a post-purchase survey by email, strike while the experience is fresh in their minds and show a survey directly on your checkout page!
Post-purchase surveys are great for learning more about your customers’ experience, shopping habits, likes, and dislikes. Customers who have a bad experience are less likely to shop again, making surveys vital for increasing conversions. Alternatively, you can use post-purchase surveys to measure where to spend your advertising dollars by asking where customers heard about you.
By the way, if you're looking for tips on how to add a post checkout survey on your Shopify site, check out our guide.
Post-Purchase Survey Best Practices
Every eCommerce brand should take advantage of surveys for data capture. But first, here are some basic tips and best practices for setting up your post-purchase survey.
1. Ask for Post-Purchase Feedback at the Right Time
By post-purchase, we really mean immediately after purchase. Adding a survey widget to your website that asks for feedback immediately after checkout catches shoppers while everything is still fresh in their minds. If a shopper doesn’t provide feedback at checkout, you can certainly follow up in email, but don’t wait until customers get back to their inbox for the initial ask.
2. Keep Surveys Short
Customers may be more likely to give feedback right after checkout, but don’t push your luck. A quick survey should really mean quick. One or two questions work best to ensure customers actually complete the survey.
3. Set a Goal
Make sure marketing survey questions align with your goals.
Are you currently evaluating your marketing budget? That’s the perfect time to ask “How did you hear about us?”
Are many customers abandoning during checkout? Ask for feedback about your checkout process.
Seeing dips in traffic? Ask what other brands shoppers are interested in and figure out which competitors to keep your eye on.
4. Choose Page Placement
While there are lots of site placements you can go with, we recommend a fairly unobtrusive sidebar slider on the corner of the order confirmation page after checkout.
5. Check-In Every 3 Months
What good is data if you’re not using it? Remember to check survey results periodically and use the data to improve your site, checkout process, marketing efforts, etc.
6. Ask New Questions
Keep things from getting stale and rotate your questions every few months. Better yet, target repeat buyers with different questions to get new data on those users.
Post-Purchase Survey Questions
The exact questions you want to ask depend on your goals, but here are some example questions and answer choices to get started.
How did you hear about us?
It’s not always easy to track every traffic source—especially with channels like print and radio. One way to see if you’re spending in the right places is to find out where customers come from using a “How Did You Hear About Us” survey (HDYHAU). The bullet points below provide some sample answer choices for a dropdown menu.
- Google search
- Google ad
- Influencer
- Blog Post
- Holiday Gift Guide
- Television ad
- Radio ad
- Podcast ad
- Newspaper/Magazine ad
- Referred by a friend
- I was already a customer
- Don’t remember
- Other
Why did you buy from us?
It’s one thing to do a competitor analysis, but getting one for your own customers is even better. You may guess why customers choose you over other brands, but getting that insight firsthand helps you stay ahead.
- Best Price
- I am a loyal customer
- The item I wanted was in stock
- Free Shipping
- Fast Shipping
- I had a promo code
- Your site came up first in search
- A friend recommended you
- Product reviews
- Other
Who are you shopping for?
Understanding who people are shopping lets you improve your targeted marketing. Jewelry brand Jaxxon was surprised to learn that 80% of their visitors were buying for themselves rather than others. That helped them understand how to market more effectively to their audience.
- Myself
- A friend
- My partner/spouse
- Mom
- Dad
- Sibling
- Grandmother
- Grandfather
- Teacher
- Coworker
- Someone Else
What occasion is this purchase for?
Understanding what occasions drive sales can make a huge impact on how you allocate your marketing budget and resources throughout the year. Knowing which occasions and seasons are most popular—as well as how far in advance shoppers buy for them—will help you plan your upcoming marketing calendar.
- Birthday
- Baby Shower
- Wedding
- Anniversary
- Retirement
- Religious Celebration
- Graduation
- Mother’s Day
- Father’s Day
- Valentine’s Day
- Christmas
- Chanukah
- Just Because
- Other
What 3 factors do you consider most when making a purchase?
Having a solid beat on your audience’s priorities will help you set your own. You can ask for more than 1 choice, but make sure you limit them to a few to focus your efforts.
- Price
- Quality
- Shipping Speed
- Cost of Shipping
- Brand Recognition
- Reviews
- Eco-friendly
- Color
- Size
- Product Description
More Post-Checkout Survey Questions
Here are some more questions you can ask after checkout, sorted by type of question. Be cautious about asking too many open-ended questions. Answers may be insightful, but they’re harder to sort through and require manual monitoring.
Rating Questions:
- How satisfied were you with your shopping experience?
- Overall, how difficult was the checkout process?
- How easy was our website to navigate?
- How likely would you be to recommend us to a friend?
Yes or No Questions:
- Did you contact support at all?
- Was customer service able to answer your questions?
- Did you find everything you were looking for today?
Niche Specific Questions
- What are your favorite brands?
- What other stores did you consider purchasing from?
- What podcasts do you listen to?
Open Ended Questions
- What phrase did you search to find us?
- What products do you wish we offered more of?
- How could we improve?
Post-Purchase Survey Examples and Themes
Post-purchase survey pop-ups can be simple or stunning—depending on the impact you want to make. Depending on your brand’s style, you may keep them relatively minimal or add lifestyle images and on-brand colors.
On-Brand Post-Purchase Surveys
A lifestyle image featuring a happy customer hopefully aligns with how customers feel after checking out.
Surveys for Influencer Attribution
If you’re delving into influencer marketing, surveys can help measure those campaigns. Not only should you list Influencers as an option, but allow users to enter their usernames so you can make sure the referrals receive proper credit.
Exit Survey with Text Input Fields
Adding an input field so users can add their own answers can help customers express themselves. If you get enough similar fill-in answers, you can even use them to improve your survey.
Ratings Survey
Surveys that ask for a 1-5 or a 0-10 rating help you gather data that’s easy to sort and use. While they don’t provide a lot of specific details, you get a quick beat on how customers feel overall.
Even more friendly than numbers, a smiley face is a straightforward way to gauge how customers feel.
Whether you want to know how customers feel about your purchase process or your product itself, these survey templates allow you to get quick feedback without inserting unnecessary friction into the customer experience.
Full-Page Takeover Survey Design
For a big impact, a full-screen takeover pop-up will get attention.
Simple Survey Design
Alternatively, you can use a simple, unobtrusive survey design that uses neutral colors and text only.
Hopefully, you’re ready to add a post-checkout survey to your website—or at least update the one you’ve got with some new questions!
Post-Purchase Surveys for Shopify, Magento, and More
Ready to launch your Magento or Shopify post-purchase surveys? Digioh's conversion rate optimization toolkit allows you to create post-purchase surveys, quizzes, and other interactive content designed to engage your customers and drive revenue. Already using Digioh? Follow these steps to add a post-purchase survey to your store.
