Response Rate vs. Completion Rate: The Difference, Tips, and How to Increase It

If you’re using online surveys to collect data for your business, it’s essential to understand the difference between response rate and completion rate. Both metrics are crucial to measure the success of your survey, but they serve different purposes.

Response rate is the percentage of people who start your survey after receiving an invitation. On the other hand, completion rate is the percentage of people who finish your survey after starting it. Understanding the difference between these two metrics is vital because it can help you identify areas of your survey that may need improvement.

Tips to Increase Response Rate:

1. Make your survey invitation engaging: The invitation email is the first impression that potential respondents will have of your survey. So, it's essential to make it engaging and straightforward. Use a clear and concise subject line and include a short description of the survey's purpose and benefits.

2. Keep it short and sweet: One of the main reasons why people abandon surveys is that they take too long to complete. To improve your response rate, make sure your survey is short and easy to complete.

3. Offer incentives: Offering incentives can be an effective way to increase response rates. Consider offering a small reward, such as a gift card or a discount code, to those who complete your survey.

Tips to Increase Completion Rate:

1. Make it mobile-friendly: With more people accessing the internet on their smartphones, it's essential to ensure that your survey is mobile-friendly. A mobile-friendly survey will have a higher completion rate because it's easy to complete on-the-go.

2. Provide progress indicators: Progress indicators give respondents a sense of accomplishment and show them how much longer they have to complete the survey. This can help keep respondents engaged and motivated to finish the survey.

3. Avoid jargon and complex questions: To ensure a high completion rate, make sure your survey is easy to understand. Avoid using technical jargon or complex questions that could confuse respondents.

In conclusion, response rate and completion rate are two essential metrics to measure the success of your online survey. By understanding the difference between these two metrics and following the tips outlined above, you can improve the overall quality of your survey and increase the number of responses you receive. So, start creating your online survey today with Peakpoll, the online survey maker trusted by businesses of all sizes.