Introduction

Have you been wondering when to send out surveys? We’re here to help, so let’s start by giving you a little background information about how surveys work and what they can do for your organization:

Surveys are a great way to collect information about your customers and the products or services they use. The best part is that they can be used at any time of day or night, which means they’re convenient for both you and your customers.

Now that you’ve decided to create a survey and you’re ready to roll. But which time of day is best?

The answer is a little bit different for every business, but we can help you get started. Some businesses like to send out surveys at random times throughout the day, while others prefer sending them during specific hours. 

Either way, it’s important that you choose the right time to send your survey so that it doesn’t interrupt or inconvenience your customers.

Factors That Could Affect the Best Time For Sending Your Survey

Now that you’ve decided on the best time to send your survey, it’s time to take a look at the factors that will affect this decision.

1. Different devices that are most likely to be used at certain times of the day: If you’re sending your survey via email, then there’s one big factor that can help decide when you should send it: user behavior. To make sure your survey reaches as many people as possible, you’ll want to consider what time of day your audience is most likely to be using their devices. If they’re on a computer during work hours, then you might want to send them the survey in the morning. If they’re on their phones during lunch break, then it might be more appropriate for them to receive it at noon. However, if they’re on their phones at night when everyone else is sleeping, then sending them a survey at 6:00 pm may not be as effective. If you want to make sure that your email survey doesn’t get lost in all of this frenetic activity, then you’ll want to send your survey before bedtime.
2. The results you have achieved from previous email survey invitations: Another thing to consider when deciding when is best for sending your survey is how much information those who have already responded have shared with you already and how much more they might be able to give if they were still active participants in your study. If someone has already responded (or is currently responding) and says something like “I’m busy right now” or “I don’t have time,” then it’s probably not worth sending during that same hour again.
3. Times when a more immediate survey response is needed: There are times in your business when you need to get feedback right away, and other times when it’s better to wait. For example, if you’re launching a new product or service, it’s a good idea to wait until after the launch to ask for people’s opinions on the new product or service. If you’re doing a pilot run of an upcoming campaign, it’s best to ask respondents who’ve already participated in the campaign about their experiences with it before sending out the final survey.

The Best Time to Send a Survey, According to Research Studies

• CampaignMonitor found that Monday was the best day to send email campaigns, with an average open rate of 22.0% and a click-through rate of 2.4%. Tuesday was second, with an average open rate of 22.5% and a click-through rate of 2.2%. Wednesday came in third place with an average open rate of 22.4%, followed by Thursday (21.3%) and Friday (20.7%).
• MailerLite reported that Monday had a 0.1% unsubscribe rate hence marketers agree that it is not a good day to send emails, while Wednesday had a 0% unsubscribe rate as well which means that if you want to keep your recipients engaged after they’ve opened your survey, it’s better to send them on Wednesday or Thursday than on any other day of the week. This is because people are more likely to be working or otherwise engaged on Monday mornings, which means they’ll be less likely to open your survey and more likely to complete it if they do open it.
• A 2013 census by GetResponse found that people send over 17% of all emails on Tuesday and Fridays, making it the most popular day of the week to send. GetResponse also found that Monday had the lowest unsubscribe rates overall: 0%, followed by Tuesday at 1%, then Wednesday and Thursday at 2%, and Friday at 3%.
• Customer.io’s research on the best day to send emails: Customer.io’s research on the best day to send emails is Tuesday are the best days for sending emails because people are most likely to respond on those days (according to Customer.io). The best time to send them is the afternoon to guarantee a more open rate and evening for clicks.
• CheckMarket Research. CheckMarket conducted a similar study and found that it was best when sending emails on Monday morning or at lunchtime on weekdays, between 3 and 6 O’clock. Sending out on Thursday and Friday between 15:00 and 17:59 is favorable as well as Sunday mornings. Their study also showed that sending emails on Saturdays increased click-through rates from 8% to 15%.
• Zendesk Research. Zendesk used their own data analysis tool to determine when users were most likely to respond to a survey request and they found that users liked receiving surveys at 9 am and 3 pm. They also found that those times were much less likely than other times throughout the day (like during rush hour or after lunch)
• MailChimp Research. According to MailChimp Research, the best time to send out emails depends on who you are and who you’re sending them. MailChimp found out that it’s best to send emails to your subscribers during weekdays and not weekends for optimal results. Also, according to Mailchimp’s whole system, the peak of email sending is at 10 am in the recipients’ own time zones.

Conclusion

If you’re looking for the best day to send a survey, the first thing to consider is how often your customers check their email. It’s important that you don’t send an email on the busiest day of the week or in the middle of the workday when people are inundated with emails. 

Instead, choose a time when they will be more likely to be checking their inboxes. You should also consider how much data you have about your customers. Do you know when they check their emails? If you do, then it makes sense to send surveys during these times rather than when they have no idea if they’ve been contacted by anyone else recently.

Finally, what are your goals with this survey? Are they purely informational or are there other reasons for sending it at this time? 

If these questions aren’t answered correctly or if any of them don’t make sense then sending a survey at just anytime could backfire on you and cause readers to disregard your message entirely.

Explore: 75+ Free Survey Form Templates