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Don’t Treat Community Members Like Respondents

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In traditional market research, respondents are considered disposable: just another domino to be knocked down to complete a survey.  The researcher's organization doesn't have any relationship with the respondents.  They are invited to the survey by a third party, who has typically built a panel for just such use.  The researcher doesn't care if the respondent finds the survey to be long, tedious and frustrating, so long as a sufficient number of respondents answer the questions.

In feedback communities, on the other hand, community members are valued partners.  They are customers, prospects, employees, students or investors.  The researcher's organization has a direct relationship with these respondents, and the researcher needs to treat them with respect.  The worst that can happen is for a survey to so antagonize a customer that they wish to take their business elsewhere.  This is rare, but surveys designed for respondents rather than partners can definitely lead to customer dissatisfaction, as with the auto club survey that was so long that it poisoned an otherwise exemplary service experience.

Researchers can't treat community members the way they would treat third-party panelists.  Special requirements:

• Don't survey members too often
• Don't subject members to long or tedious questionnaires (see these tips for shortening questionnaires)
• Don't ask members questions your organization knows the answer to (e.g., profile information)

Above all else: treat survey takers like royalty!