SMS surveys.

There's no hard limit to how many questions you can ask in a text survey, but keeping it short and simple is the best way to get better results. We recommend asking around 5 to 6 questions (inclusive of an introduction text).

SMS surveys consistently outperform email and phone surveys. While email surveys typically see 10-15% response rates, SMS surveys achieve completion rates up to 3x higher (Mobilesquared), making shorter, focused SMS questionnaires more effective than lengthy email forms.

A few helpful tips:

• One question per text Sending one clear question at a time helps avoid confusion and makes it easy for people to reply.
• Need to ask more? You can send a link to an online form where people can answer more questions on their phone.
• Keep it short and friendly Short, clear questions are easier to answer. Personal touches, like using the customer's name, can also boost responses.
• Timing matters Sending your survey at the right time and while the experience is still fresh helps optimise participation.

Personalising your SMS surveys is a great way to make your messages more engaging and relevant to each recipient.

• Use the recipient's name Including the person's name makes the message feel more personal and increases engagement.
• Include custom details Add specific information like appointment times, locations, or other relevant details.
• Segment your audience Group your contacts based on factors like location, purchase history, or interests.
• Add personalised links Insert short links that lead to surveys or forms customised for each recipient.

Personalised messages show that you value your customers and understand their needs, leading to higher response rates and more meaningful feedback.

Yes. Any SMS surveys sent through our system must fully comply with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), as outlined in our terms and conditions.

• Get clear consent If your message includes offers, incentives, or promotions, you must have clear permission to contact them.
• Make opting out easy Every message should include a simple way for people to unsubscribe, for example replying 'STOP'.
• Be open and transparent Your business name should be clear in every message, and content should be honest and relevant.
• Keep personal data secure Any personal information is handled carefully, stored safely, and only accessed by authorised team members.

Absolutely. You can send SMS surveys to international mobile numbers using our international SMS platform. Every country has its own rules for sending SMS messages, and there are different guidelines depending on whether your message is purely for notifications or includes marketing content.

When sending international messages, the cost is based on the rates set by each country's mobile networks. The monthly rental for an international reply number is also dependent upon the country, though costs are not too dissimilar to the UK pricing of £15 ex VAT per month.

Just let us know which countries you want to send to, and we'll guide you through the process to make sure your campaign is fully compliant.

We send an introduction text before the survey to help build trust with your customers. This initial message invites your customer to take part and confirms the mobile number that will be used to collect their replies.

Letting them know who's asking and what to expect helps reassure them and encourages more people to take part, which means better response rates and higher quality answers. While it uses one extra message, the increase in engagement and survey completions more than makes up for the small extra cost.

To get you started, a Faretext SMS expert will work with you to build your first few SMS surveys and map out the workflow. This ensures everything runs smoothly, your questions are set up correctly, and all replies are organised properly.

After that, it's up to you! We can give you access to your own workflow builder, linked to your SMS account, so you can create and customise your own survey workflows, whether you want to send them out right away or schedule them for later.

Every message you send and every reply you receive is automatically recorded, so you always have a full picture of how your survey is performing. Replies can be sorted and labelled as they come in, based on the categories you choose.

You'll also get insights on who didn't reply, or where someone dropped out part-way through, giving you a chance to fine-tune your future messages. All data can be downloaded in Excel or CSV format, laid out clearly using the labels and structure you've set.

Yes, absolutely. You can run multiple SMS surveys at the same time. To make sure responses are correctly matched to the right survey, each live survey needs its own dedicated reply number.

If you'd rather use just one reply number, you can simply stagger your survey sends. Every survey created with our workflow builder has an expiry time, which helps avoid any overlap or confusion.

While SMS surveys generally see high response rates, it's normal for some customers not to complete them on the first try. With our workflow builder, it's easy to spot who hasn't replied or who dropped out part-way through.

While reminders aren't sent automatically (to respect customer preferences), we've made it simple to identify those users and send a quick, friendly follow-up SMS through your Faretext account, or pair surveys with our SMS reminders service to automate follow-ups. This gives you full control over your communication.

SMS surveys are far more flexible than simple yes or no answers. You can ask rating scales (like 1 to 5 or 1 to 10), multiple-choice options, or open-ended questions where customers can write their own response.

Using our workflow builder, you can guide people through a short series of tailored questions that suit your exact goals, all while keeping things quick and easy for your audience to reply to. Read our guide to interactive feedback by text to see what's possible.