How to write good online poll questions
Lita Currie
Facilitator, Coach, Visual thinker, Speaker, Graphic Recorder, Graphic Facilitator, Instructional Designer
How to write good poll questions for online meetings and conferences
With most of the online meeting platforms having some kind of polling functionality which makes it easy to create and use in online meetings. But although it’s quick and easy to throw a poll together, writing good questions is an art. Here’s my top tips for ensuring that the polling functionality adds value to your meeting.
1.?Define what information you want
Start with the end in mind. Will the question just get your audience engaged, or do you need information that is critical to the content of the conference or meeting. The importance of the outcome should be an indicator of the amount of time that you should spend designing the questions and options.
2.?Choose the right type of question.
Resist the temptation to just create the default multiple choice question. There are many types of questions available that can give rich information.
·????????A multiple-choice question allows respondents to choose one option only.
·????????A multiple response question means that the audience can choose more than one option. This is valid for complex questions where there is no “one right answer” or where you need more nuanced information.
·????????If you just want people’s views on a particular subject, a word cloud could be interesting and dynamic.
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3.?Questions should be clear and unambiguous.
Keep the language simple and avoid jargon.?The stem of the question (the main text of the question) should be short and unambiguous – leaving no room for interpretation. Include enough information in the question to allow respondents to choose well, but not so much that it confuses them.
No double-barrel questions, that is asking two questions in one. It makes it impossible for the audience to answer appropriately.
Avoid biased or leading questions because that will skew the answers. Phrase them as neutrally as you can.
When creating options, ensure that they are not overlapping. If you are 30 or 45 years old, which option should you choose?
Design the detractors (the options of the question) to go flow logically, with 1 being the worst.
4.?Design the questions to follow logically.
When designing a poll, you need to ensure that there is a logical flow. For example, start with more general questions first and then move to more specific questions.
Also, allow for people to opt out if the previous questions don’t apply to them.
5.?Proofread and test on real people.
Proofread your questions beforehand to ensure that the word choices, sentence structure and grammar are not confusing. Even better, test it on some real people and ask them for feedback.