Event surveys are an important aspect of planning and running an event that is often neglected by many event organizers.
We can ask survey questions before the event (pre-event surveys) to identify attendees’ needs, valuable inputs from sponsors, and other important insights that would otherwise get lost in the shuffle. On the other hand, asking post-event survey questions is important to find out about what your sponsors think about your event, whether attendees are satisfied, and other feedback.
However, to ensure you are getting the right information, it’s important to ask the right questions, in the right way, and at the right time, or else your event surveys won’t be very effective.
We understood the challenge of preparing the right event survey questions to ask, and here we’ve compiled some of the best event survey questions to get your survey started.
Without further ado, let us begin.
Different Types of Event Survey Questions
Before we begin with the question ideas, we have to understand that there are several different ways we can post questions in the event survey:
- Binary questions: a simple yes/no question, might or might not be followed by another question (typically an open-ended question)
- Likert scale questions: a type of question we use to measure opinion, where we use a 5 or 7-point satisfaction scale that ranges from “not satisfied at all” to “very satisfied”, or similar sentiments.
- Multiple choice questions: one of the most popular types of survey questions, the stakeholder can choose one or sometimes more options from a list of defined answers.
- Open-ended questions: the stakeholder can answer with their own written answers.
While there are other types of questions we can use, these four are the most common and important ones.
When discussing the question ideas below, we will also discuss which type the question belongs to.
Event Survey Questions for Sponsors
Here are some specific questions you can ask your sponsors and partners:
1. Did this event (or this year’s event if it’s an annual event) meet your expectations? Why?
Pre or post-event: post-event
Type: binary, open-ended
This question helps you understand your sponsor’s expectations from your event, and can also help your partners and sponsors to clearly evaluate their experience once the event is over.
2. How relevant was the audience profile for your business?
Pre or post-event: post-event
Type: Likert scale
This question can help you weigh whether your event’s attendees are relevant to your sponsors. If your audience is not relevant to a sponsor, you might want to adjust your future event’s target audience or aim for another sponsor that will better fit your event.
3. Are you interested in sponsoring our future event (or the same event next year?
Pre or post-event: post-event
Type: binary
It’s okay to be straight and to the point. If a sponsor is disappointed, you can follow up with more information and try to convince them better in future events.
Event Survey Questions for Attendees
4. How did you hear about this event?
Pre or post-event: pre-event
Type: multiple choice, you can add “other…” as an open-ended answer
One of the most important pre-event questions to ask since it will reveal which marketing channels are most effective and which are not performing as desired. You can then adjust your marketing efforts to attract more attendees.
5. Which events/speakers/shows/exhibitions/etc. Are you most interested in?
Pre or post-event: pre-event
Type: multiple choice
Another important pre-event question that will help you adjust your schedule and event management accordingly is to ensure a seamless experience.
6. Do you have special needs or restrictions of which we should be aware?
Pre or post-event: pre-event
Type: binary, followed by open-ended or multiple choice
Ensuring whether the attendee needs special care to ensure a positive guest experience.
7. What did you most enjoy about this event?
Pre or post-event: post-event
Type: open-ended
A general question to gather feedback, if it’s a multi-day event, you can ask a similar question for each day (“what did you most enjoy about today?”).
8. How satisfied are you with the following aspects of the event:
- Venue
- Speakers/talents/exhibitions
- Date(s) of event
- Quality of sessions
Pre or post-event: post-event
Type: Likert scale
Pretty self-explanatory, gathering feedback for high-level elements of the event.
9. How did you feel about the duration of the sessions?
Pre or post-event: post-event
Type: Likert Scale
A great question to ask especially for virtual events where the duration of content is very sensitive. You can gauge whether your sessions are too short or too long for future events.
Event Survey Questions for Volunteers
If your event involves volunteers, then you can ask the following questions:
10. Are you interested in volunteering in our future events?
Pre or post-event: post-event
Type: binary
If they are willing to come back for more, then it’s a good indication that your event is a success.
11. Would you recommend this event as a volunteer opportunity to your network?
Pre or post-event: post-event
Type: binary
Similar to the above.
Event Survey Questions for Speakers/Talents
Don’t forget your speakers and talents, depending on the type of your event. You can ask the following questions before and after the event:
12. Do you have special needs or restrictions of which we should be aware?
Pre or post-event: pre-event
Type: binary, followed by open-ended or multiple choice
Similar to attendees, we should make sure speakers and talents are well attended so they can focus on their show.
13. Did you receive sufficient information to successfully present/perform before the event?
Pre or post-event: post-event
Type: binary
Can help you in assessing your team’s preparation. If a speaker/talent answers no, follow up with them to get more information. This can help you to create a better event next time.
14. Is there anything we could have done to make your delivery/experience more convenient?
Pre or post-event: post-event
Type: open-ended
Especially important for speakers, talents, or VIPs you hope to impress. Can help in building long-term relationships by ensuring you can better cater to their needs in future events.
15. How would you rate the venue and equipment in assisting your keynote/performance/delivery?
Pre or post-event: post-event
Type: Likert scale
A speaker/talent can provide very valuable insights into the effectiveness of your chosen venue and/or available equipment. You can also add similar questions like “how would you rate working with our production team?” and for virtual events, “how would you rate the virtual platform?”
Closing Thoughts
An event survey is a great way to gain valuable insights before you run the event, as well as important feedback that you can use to improve your future events.
With a professional event management platform, you can easily set up both pre and post-event surveys and distribute the surveys to your attendees on a single platform. This way, you can easily find out important insights that you can use to improve your event and guest experience.