However, as some of you might know from getting involved with some other do-it-yourself activities, you still need to make sure you know what you are doing, follow instructions and allocate enough time and resources to getting the project done. Otherwise, do-it-yourself projects can sometimes become more costly and time consuming than working with a trained professional in the first place.

In browsing some of the available web survey tools, we found little information on how to ensure your survey efforts are successful. So, we have put together the following guide for those of you considering taking a do-it-yourself approach to gathering feedback from employees or customers. We broke down our guide into three sections - getting usable data, managing expectations and acting on findings.

Getting Usable Data

Getting usable data depends largely upon the questions you ask. If you ask the wrong questions or ask the right questions in the wrong way, you will end up with survey results that may be difficult to use or interpret. Here are some helpful tips to get you usable data:

Less is more, especially the first time you are conducting a survey. The more questions you ask, the more answers you will get and the more time you will spend trying to analyze, interpret and act on the findings.

If you are using a template provided by the web survey company, make sure you can edit those questions to make sure they meet your goals. Using the off-the-shelf survey without reviewing it can lead to survey results that end up sitting on the shelf. So, think about why you need feedback and use these reasons to guide the questions you ask. Some of the templates that your web survey service provides may help you meet these needs but often times you may have unique needs. If you are going to write your own questions, here are a few item writing guidelines to get you started.

• A
  Yes - We Have No Bananas
  I stayed in an Orlando hotel suite for ten days. Breakfast was available in the concierge lounge each morning: oatmeal, bread with butter and jelly and an assortment of sliced melon.Each morning I looked for a banana to top off my oatmeal. Sliced melon, yes. But banana, no.On the third day I spoke to the staff in the lounge.‘You want a banana?’ she asked. ‘No problem. I’ll have one for you tomorrow.’The next morning, and every morning thereafter, she brought me a banana, usually keeping it hidden until I appeared. Occasionally another guest would see my special banana and look for another. But there were no more bananas. Only sliced melon.Days later, I asked the Food & Beverage Manager, ‘Why don’t you provide bananas at breakfast? Other guests seem jealous of my bananas – and I notice the
  ocate enough time and resources to getting the project done. Otherwise, do-it-yourself projects can sometimes become more costly and time consuming than working with a trained professional in the first place.

  In browsing some of the available web survey tools, we found little information on how to ensure your survey efforts are successful. So, we have put together the following guide for those of you considering taking a do-it-yourself approach to gathering feedback from employees or customers. We broke down our guide into three sections - getting usable data, managing expectations and acting on findings.

  Getting Usable Data

  Getting usable data depends largely upon the questions you ask. If you ask the wrong questions or ask the right questions in the wrong way, you will end up with survey results that may be difficult to use or interpret. Here are some helpful tips to get you usable data:

  Less is more, especially the first time you are conducting a survey. The more questions you ask, the more answers you will get and the more time you will spend trying to analyze, interpret and act on the findings.

  If you are using a template provided by the web survey company, make sure you can edit those questions to make sure they meet your goals. Using the off-the-shelf survey without reviewing it can lead to survey results that end up sitting on the shelf. So, think about why you need feedback and use these reasons to guide the questions you ask. Some of the templates that your web survey service provides may help you meet these needs but often times you may have unique needs. If you are going to write your own questions, here are a few item writing guidelines to get you started.

  • What's Your NICHE Market?
    Knowing your NICHE MARKET and where to find your NICHE is more important than the product you sell.Most Netpreneurs take a narrow view of NICHE MARKETING as a limitation on their business, when in fact it is the POWER that provides longevity to their business.The biggest mistake most new netpreneurs make online is that they have no idea where, or what, there NICHE MARKET is and therefore, sell their product to everyone and anyone and in the end sell to no one.A common misconception is that – if you build it they will come. The truth is you have to find your NICHE and get them to come to your site.In talking to new netpreneurs the first question I ask is who are you selling to? The almost instantaneous reply and always the same answer is: ‘everyone and anyone’.The next successions of questi
    rself approach to gathering feedback from employees or customers. We broke down our guide into three sections - getting usable data, managing expectations and acting on findings.

    Getting Usable Data

    Getting usable data depends largely upon the questions you ask. If you ask the wrong questions or ask the right questions in the wrong way, you will end up with survey results that may be difficult to use or interpret. Here are some helpful tips to get you usable data:

    Less is more, especially the first time you are conducting a survey. The more questions you ask, the more answers you will get and the more time you will spend trying to analyze, interpret and act on the findings.

    If you are using a template provided by the web survey company, make sure you can edit those questions to make sure they meet your goals. Using the off-the-shelf survey without reviewing it can lead to survey results that end up sitting on the shelf. So, think about why you need feedback and use these reasons to guide the questions you ask. Some of the templates that your web survey service provides may help you meet these needs but often times you may have unique needs. If you are going to write your own questions, here are a few item writing guidelines to get you started.

    • Telecommuting Job - Internet Research
      Are you good at finding information on the web? Then doing internet research could be the perfect work-from-home job for you. Many companies will pay for freelance research help. It frees up their regular employees for other duties that are handled better in-house.Where to find Internet Research Jobs:There are many job listing sites that have research jobs advertised. Check into the background of the company; see how long they’ve been in business. Do they have a good reputation? Visit work-from-home forums and ask which companies have been fair employers.Another potential source of work is the local university. Professors and grad students often hire help for research, but the competition can be pretty stiff, with all the students looking for extra work. If you are doing research in a
      rpret. Here are some helpful tips to get you usable data:

      Less is more, especially the first time you are conducting a survey. The more questions you ask, the more answers you will get and the more time you will spend trying to analyze, interpret and act on the findings.

      If you are using a template provided by the web survey company, make sure you can edit those questions to make sure they meet your goals. Using the off-the-shelf survey without reviewing it can lead to survey results that end up sitting on the shelf. So, think about why you need feedback and use these reasons to guide the questions you ask. Some of the templates that your web survey service provides may help you meet these needs but often times you may have unique needs. If you are going to write your own questions, here are a few item writing guidelines to get you started.

      • Sad Truth: Career Changers Live In Hope
        As a career coach, workers reveal their souls to me. Not just clients, where the relationship requires and benefits from, deep personal exploration -- but complete strangers send me emails, almost daily, about their work experience, their frustrations and dreams. Always, they ask, “What shall I do?”More often than not, they tell me that they’ve been working on a career shift for a long time – a year, or longer. And it’s clear that they have made little to no progress on their path.Granted, career change does take a long time…and people learn and grow in different ways. But to have worked for a year or two, and be no further ahead in terms of clarity suggests that, despite the yearning, career change may not be an important priority after all. In fact, I’m reminded of a framework put forth some years ago b
        shelf survey without reviewing it can lead to survey results that end up sitting on the shelf. So, think about why you need feedback and use these reasons to guide the questions you ask. Some of the templates that your web survey service provides may help you meet these needs but often times you may have unique needs. If you are going to write your own questions, here are a few item writing guidelines to get you started.
        • Avoid double barreled questions
        • Make sure your questions and scales agree with each other
        • Avoid jargon and make sure your survey is written for your audience (e.g., reading level, language proficiency and educational background)
        • Avoid leading/biased questions
        Make sure the web survey service you use allows you to look at the results in multiple ways and not just by overall results. Important features include being able to conduct cross- tabulations (comparing different groups of respondents' results on the same items), and filtering (looking at results of only one group or a group based on certain criteria). Also, if you can not conduct the analysis that you need using their reporting tool, make sure you can download the results into a spreadsheet or other software program so you can conduct your own analysis.

        Managing Expectations

        Only ask questions that you are willing to act upon. For example, if you can not move the location of the office, do not ask employees to rate their satisfaction with where the office is located. Similarly, if budgetary constraints hamper your ability to enhance employee benefits, try to limit the number of questions you ask about benefits.

        It is also important to manage expectations about confidentiality and anonymity of the survey results. A confidential survey means that somewhere someone will be able to identify individual survey results (e.g., by linking responses to an email address or unique log-in) but individual results are not reported, they are reported at the group level to maintain confidentiality. An anonymous survey means that there is no way to identify who said what, there is no way to identify individual survey res