FluidSurveys: Intuitive, Quick, Cost-Saving
May 06, 2014
FluidSurveys: Intuitive, Quick, Cost-Saving
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Software Version
4.0
Overall Satisfaction with FluidSurveys
My organization uses FluidSurveys for a variety of in-house research: this includes internal and external surveys as well as e-consultations. My team, in addition to our advisory role for the organization's public opinion research, also serves as an administrator of the system: we manage accounts, assist in programming surveys and gathering data, and reporting on the data. In this sense, we serve as the gatekeepers for the system, which is used across the organization (including in our regional offices, although most of the work is undertaken at HQ). Over the past few years we have implemented dozens of surveys using FluidSurveys, including high-profile public e-consultations which have received thousands of responses.
FluidSurveys has allowed for both opinion-gathering and non-opinion information-gathering, as it's amenable to more than just typical surveys. (We have used it to gather input on annual reports, for an example of the latter.) It allows for a collection of info in a centralized area, using a very intuitive and flexible system. The system obviously is a major improvement over paper surveys in terms of ease of implementation and collection; it also presents a cost-effective solution when contracted research isn't possible.
FluidSurveys has allowed for both opinion-gathering and non-opinion information-gathering, as it's amenable to more than just typical surveys. (We have used it to gather input on annual reports, for an example of the latter.) It allows for a collection of info in a centralized area, using a very intuitive and flexible system. The system obviously is a major improvement over paper surveys in terms of ease of implementation and collection; it also presents a cost-effective solution when contracted research isn't possible.
Pros
- Easy programming: The system is designed so that those with average computer skills can program a survey from start to finish. The WYSIWYG formatter means creating content is as easy as dragging and dropping question types, and typing in your content. Logic such as branching and skipping is presented in a clear way, making it easy for people to understand branching and skipping.
- Templates: FluidSurveys support can create templates that will allow your surveys to blend seamlessly into your website (or not, if that's your preference). You can start with a blank template, use a pre-built template, or even create a totally customized appearance by going into the HTML/CSS editor - and these choices are unique to each survey. Our e-consultations, for example, are designed to reflect the look of web pages, while our video feedback surveys are actually built right into the web page using custom coding.
- Reporting: We (and our clients!) love the auto-generated reports and other data functions. You can get sleek-looking reports at the click of a button, apply filters to them, modify how data is displayed, and download the reports (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, PDF, etc). You can download individual responses or aggregate data, and you can also export your questionnaires (which helps with document management).
Cons
- Support: I have had mixed experiences with the support offered. There is a preference by FluidSurveys support for e-mail correspondence, and they are usually quick to answer for easy issues; however, for significant concerns, it can be hard to get on the phone or meet in person with those higher in the organization. However, this may be due to recent growing pains in the company; recently, I have noticed significant improvement in this area.
- The cost savings in using FluidSurveys to conduct research, rather than outsource it, has saved us hundreds of thousands of dollars over the few years that we have been using it. Contracting out research is costly, so if you have the right people/skills and technology to do the work in-house, you're able to conduct a lot more research than you would otherwise be able to.
From a Government perspective, FluidSurveys offers some qualities that make it stand out:
- It is located in Canada;
- It's servers are located in Canada;
- They are willing to host user-group meetings, so that Government departments can explain how they have implemented a wide variety of tasks with it (and people can get very creative with FluidSurveys! If they can use an in-house option they've already purchased to conduct non-survey-related tasks, it introduced major cost savings to taxpayers. So it's also very important to share this type of creativity with other departments).
Using FluidSurveys
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Like to use Relatively simple Easy to use Technical support not required Well integrated Consistent Quick to learn Convenient Feel confident using | None |
- The actual survey-building part is quite easy: you select the question type from the bank provided, drag and drop it into your survey page, and fill in the fields with your content. Text can be modified using a WYSIWYG editor. Basic branching can be done at the click of a button, and more advanced branching is done through a very straight-forward wizard.
- Creating, launching, and closing surveys is also very easy. Closing a survey can also be automated (so if you wanted to end a survey at midnight, for example, you won't have to sit at the computer watching the clock count down).
- Reporting is huge for us, and this generates data at the click of a button. We can quickly generate reports for clients, even when it involves running filters. Reports can be downloaded in a variety of formats. You can also allow a client to see reports on their own, by providing them with a log-in (which provides access only to the report for whatever survey you've selected).
- Some advanced options can be hard for people to figure out, as resources to help with those options are scant. For example, some people have don't realize you can plug in answers from a previous question later in the survey, but this option isn't explicitly identified or explained anywhere. So it can take some time, a lot of curiosity, and problem-solving skills to figure out some of these aspects of FluidSurveys. (However, you can always contact support staff for help.)
Yes - We haven't used the mobile interface much, because the regular version is actually fairly good when reduced to mobile dimensions.
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