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Surveys

Bundle multiple polls into comprehensive surveys. Collect detailed feedback from your community with multi-question forms, access controls, and response tracking.

What Are Surveys?

Section titled “What Are Surveys?”

Surveys combine multiple polls into a single questionnaire. Instead of posting individual polls, you create one survey with multiple questions:

  • Each question is a separate poll
  • Questions appear one at a time
  • Progress is tracked automatically
  • Responses are stored together
  • Statistics show completion rates

This creates structured data collection — surveys guide respondents through a complete questionnaire with start-to-finish tracking.

For Site Owners

Section titled “For Site Owners”

Creating Surveys

Section titled “Creating Surveys”

Navigate to WP Admin → Surveys → Add New

Survey Edit Screen

Survey Basics

Section titled “Survey Basics”

Survey Title

Section titled “Survey Title”

The main heading displayed when members start your survey. Make it clear and descriptive.

Survey Description

Section titled “Survey Description”

Explain the purpose and what respondents can expect. This appears on the survey start screen.

Adding Questions

Section titled “Adding Questions”

Question List

Section titled “Question List”

Your survey questions appear in the Questions section. Each question is a poll you’ve already created.

To add questions:

  1. Click Add Question
  2. Select a poll from the dropdown
  3. Questions appear in the order you add them
  4. Drag to reorder questions
  5. Click X to remove a question

Requirements:

  • Polls must be published before adding to surveys
  • Each poll appears as one question
  • Minimum 1 question required
  • No maximum limit

Survey Settings

Section titled “Survey Settings”

Access Control

Section titled “Access Control”

Access Level Control who can take your survey.

Option Who Can Access
Public Anyone, including logged-out visitors
Authenticated Only logged-in members
Specific Roles Selected WordPress roles only
Password Protected Anyone with the password

Role Selection: When “Specific Roles” is selected, choose which WordPress roles can access the survey (Subscriber, Contributor, Editor, etc.).

Password: When “Password Protected” is selected, set a password. Respondents must enter this before starting.

Email Collection

Section titled “Email Collection”

Require Email When enabled:

  • Survey asks for email before starting
  • Email is stored with response
  • Used for notifications and follow-up

Lead Gate Show email collection on:

  • Start: Before first question
  • End: After completing all questions

Response Settings

Section titled “Response Settings”

Allow Resubmit

Section titled “Allow Resubmit”

Let respondents take the survey multiple times. When disabled, users can only submit once (tracked by email or user ID).

Show Results

Section titled “Show Results”

Display survey results after completion:

  • Immediately: Show results right after submission
  • After Close Date: Show results only after survey closes
  • Never: Never show results to respondents

Thank You Page

Section titled “Thank You Page”

Thank You Message

Section titled “Thank You Message”

Custom message displayed after survey completion. Use this to:

  • Thank respondents
  • Explain next steps
  • Share what happens with their data

Character Limit: 500 characters

Redirect URL

Section titled “Redirect URL”

Optionally redirect to another page after completion. Enter full URL:

  • External site: https://example.com/thank-you
  • WordPress page: https://yoursite.com/next-steps

Note: If both message and redirect are set, redirect takes priority.

Notifications

Section titled “Notifications”

Notify Admin

Section titled “Notify Admin”

Send email to site administrator when someone completes the survey.

Admin Email Recipients: Enter comma-separated email addresses:

admin@site.com, manager@site.com

Email includes:

  • Respondent name/email
  • Completion timestamp
  • Link to view responses

Notify Respondent

Section titled “Notify Respondent”

Send confirmation email to the person who completed the survey.

Email includes:

  • Survey title
  • Completion confirmation
  • Thank you message
  • Results link (if enabled)

Privacy & GDPR

Section titled “Privacy & GDPR”

GDPR Consent Text

Section titled “GDPR Consent Text”

Add custom privacy notice displayed before survey starts. Use for:

  • Data collection disclosure
  • Privacy policy links
  • Consent requirements

Example:

By completing this survey, you consent to our collection
and use of your responses as described in our
[Privacy Policy](https://yoursite.com/privacy).

Requirement: If GDPR text is added, respondents must check consent box before starting.

Survey States

Section titled “Survey States”

Surveys have three states:

State What It Means
Draft Not visible to members, still being edited
Published Live and accepting responses
Closed No longer accepting responses, may show results

To change state:

  • Draft → Published: Click “Publish” button
  • Published → Closed: Set closing date or manually close
  • Closed → Published: Remove closing date

Survey Statistics

Section titled “Survey Statistics”

View survey performance in the admin list:

Survey List

Tracked Metrics

Section titled “Tracked Metrics”
Metric Description
Views How many times the survey start page was viewed
Starts How many people began the survey
Completes How many people finished all questions
Completion Rate (Completes / Starts) × 100%

Example:

  • 100 views
  • 75 starts (75% started after viewing)
  • 60 completes (80% completion rate)

Viewing Responses

Section titled “Viewing Responses”

Navigate to Surveys → Responses to see all survey submissions.

Response Data Includes:

  • Respondent name/email
  • Start timestamp
  • Complete timestamp
  • Time taken
  • Individual answers
  • User agent/IP (if enabled)

Export Options:

  • CSV download
  • Filtered by date range
  • Filtered by survey
  • Individual or bulk export

For Members

Section titled “For Members”

Taking a Survey

Section titled “Taking a Survey”

Step 1: Start the Survey

Section titled “Step 1: Start the Survey”

When you visit a survey, you see the start screen:

Survey Start Screen

What You’ll See:

  • Survey title and description
  • Number of questions
  • Estimated time (if provided)
  • GDPR consent checkbox (if required)
  • Email input (if required at start)
  • Start button

Before Starting:

  1. Read the description
  2. Check GDPR consent box (if shown)
  3. Enter email (if required)
  4. Click Start Survey

Step 2: Answer Questions

Section titled “Step 2: Answer Questions”

Questions appear one at a time:

Survey Question Screen

Question Display:

  • Current question number (e.g., “Question 2 of 5”)
  • Progress bar showing completion
  • Poll question and options
  • Previous/Next navigation
  • Exit survey link

Answering Questions:

  1. Read the question
  2. Select your answer(s)
    • Single-select: One option
    • Multi-select: Multiple options allowed
  3. Click Next to continue

Navigation:

  • Previous: Go back to review/change answers
  • Next: Move to next question
  • Save & Exit: Save progress and finish later (if enabled)

Survey Navigation Buttons

Step 3: Complete the Survey

Section titled “Step 3: Complete the Survey”

After the last question:

Survey Complete Screen

What Happens:

  1. You see the final question
  2. Click Submit instead of Next
  3. Your response is saved
  4. You see the thank you message (or redirect)
  5. Results appear (if enabled)

Email Collection (if at end):

  • Enter email before submission
  • Used for confirmation email
  • Required field

Survey Progress

Section titled “Survey Progress”

Progress Tracking:

  • Progress bar shows percentage complete
  • “Question X of Y” counter
  • Can navigate back to previous questions
  • Answers are saved as you go

Resuming Later (if enabled):

  1. Click Save & Exit on any question
  2. Your progress is saved
  3. Return to survey URL later
  4. Click Resume to continue where you left off

Survey Validation

Section titled “Survey Validation”

Common Validation Messages:

Message Meaning
“Please select an answer” No option selected on current question
“Email is required” Must provide email to continue
“Please accept privacy terms” Must check GDPR consent
“This survey is closed” Survey no longer accepting responses
“You’ve already completed this survey” Resubmission not allowed

Embedding Surveys

Section titled “Embedding Surveys”

Using Shortcode

Section titled “Using Shortcode”

Add surveys to any page or post:

[wbsurvey id="123"]

Parameters:

Parameter Options Default
id Survey ID (required) -
show_title yes/no yes
show_description yes/no yes

Example:

[wbsurvey id="123" show_title="yes" show_description="yes"]

Finding Survey ID:

  1. Go to Surveys → All Surveys
  2. Hover over survey title
  3. Look at URL: post=123 — ID is 123

Direct URL Access

Section titled “Direct URL Access”

Each survey has a permalink:

https://yoursite.com/survey/survey-title/

Sharing Options:

  • Email the URL to participants
  • Post on social media
  • Add to navigation menus
  • Link from other content

URL Parameters:

Parameter Purpose Example
?preview=1 Preview as admin .../?preview=1
?response=123 View specific response .../?response=123

Survey Results

Section titled “Survey Results”

For Administrators

Section titled “For Administrators”

View comprehensive results in Surveys → View Results:

Overall Statistics:

  • Total responses
  • Average completion time
  • Completion rate
  • Response timeline chart

Question-by-Question:

  • Vote distribution
  • Most popular answers
  • Skip rates
  • Cross-tabulation (compare questions)

Individual Responses:

  • See complete submissions
  • Filter by date/respondent
  • Export individual responses
  • Delete responses

For Respondents

Section titled “For Respondents”

After completing the survey (if “Show Results” is enabled):

What You See:

  • Your own responses
  • Aggregate results for each question
  • How your answers compare to others
  • Total response count

Results Format:

  • Same as standalone poll results
  • Progress bars showing percentages
  • Vote counts
  • Charts (if enabled)

Best Practices

Section titled “Best Practices”

Designing Effective Surveys

Section titled “Designing Effective Surveys”

Do:

  • Start with easy questions to build momentum
  • Group related questions together
  • Keep surveys under 10 questions when possible
  • Use progress indicators
  • Test before publishing
  • Provide clear thank you messages

Avoid:

  • Too many required questions
  • Confusing navigation
  • Lengthy text-heavy questions
  • Missing privacy disclosures
  • Surveys longer than 15 minutes

Privacy Best Practices

Section titled “Privacy Best Practices”

Transparency:

  • Explain why you’re collecting data
  • Link to privacy policy in GDPR text
  • Specify data retention period
  • Allow opt-out of emails

Data Collection:

  • Only require email if necessary
  • Use anonymous surveys when possible
  • Secure sensitive data
  • Provide deletion requests option

Increasing Response Rates

Section titled “Increasing Response Rates”

Before Launch:

  • Promote survey in advance
  • Explain benefits of participation
  • Set reasonable close dates
  • Test on multiple devices

During Survey:

  • Send reminder emails
  • Share completion statistics
  • Offer incentives (if appropriate)
  • Keep survey open long enough

After Survey:

  • Thank participants
  • Share results (if promised)
  • Act on feedback
  • Close survey when done

Troubleshooting

Section titled “Troubleshooting”

Can’t Start Survey

Section titled “Can’t Start Survey”

Possible Causes:

  • Survey is closed or in draft mode
  • You don’t have required access level
  • Wrong password entered
  • Already completed (resubmit disabled)

Solution:

  1. Check survey status
  2. Verify your login/role
  3. Contact site administrator

Questions Won’t Load

Section titled “Questions Won’t Load”

Possible Causes:

  • JavaScript disabled
  • Browser cache issue
  • Network timeout
  • Plugin conflict

Solution:

  1. Enable JavaScript
  2. Clear browser cache
  3. Try different browser
  4. Check browser console for errors

Progress Not Saving

Section titled “Progress Not Saving”

Possible Causes:

  • Cookies disabled
  • Session expired
  • Survey doesn’t allow resume
  • Browser privacy mode

Solution:

  1. Enable cookies
  2. Complete survey in one session
  3. Use regular browsing mode
  4. Contact administrator about resume feature

Can’t See Results

Section titled “Can’t See Results”

Possible Causes:

  • Admin disabled result viewing
  • Results only shown after close date
  • Survey still in progress
  • Not logged in (if required)

Solution:

  • Check survey settings with administrator
  • Wait for close date
  • Complete all questions first

Data Storage

Section titled “Data Storage”

Database Tables

Section titled “Database Tables”
Table Purpose
wp_posts Survey post data (post_type: wbsurvey)
wp_postmeta Survey settings and question links
wp_wbsurvey_responses Survey responses and timestamps

Post Meta Keys

Section titled “Post Meta Keys”
Meta Key Data
_wbsurvey_poll_ids JSON array of poll IDs (questions)
_wbsurvey_access_level public/authenticated/roles/password
_wbsurvey_require_email yes/no
_wbsurvey_allow_resubmit yes/no
_wbsurvey_lead_gate start/end
_wbsurvey_show_results immediately/after_close/never
_wbsurvey_thankyou_message Custom message text
_wbsurvey_thankyou_redirect Redirect URL
_wbsurvey_notify_admin yes/no
_wbsurvey_notify_respondent yes/no
_wbsurvey_gdpr_text Privacy notice text
_wbsurvey_view_count Total views
_wbsurvey_start_count Total starts
_wbsurvey_complete_count Total completions

Documentation by Wbcom Designs — docs.wbcomdesigns.com