How to make a QR code for a survey

Whether they’re for business, educational, or personal use, surveys are an excellent way to gather data. Retailers can ask customers how likely they are to refer the business to a friend. Teachers can ask students what they’re most excited to learn on their field trip. Reunion organizers can ask friends and family which days work best for an event.

No matter the use case, surveys can help you get the data you need to make decisions. Adding a quick response (QR) code to a survey is a good way to share it with others, provide additional information, offer rewards, or engage further with your respondents.

Learn the benefits of QR codes for surveys

A key advantage of QR codes is that they’re easy to create and use. There are several ways to create QR codes, many of which are intuitive and don’t require any previous experience.

From a user’s perspective, scanning a QR code is almost as simple as taking a photo with a smartphone. “Because QR codes are primarily used to open web pages, they’re incredibly user- friendly when running surveys,” says Matt Strutte, head of growth at Blinq, a digital business card provider. “Instead of sharing a link in an email or text message, a scan of a QR code will automatically open a web page from a single tap.”

QR codes also reduce the need to touch multiple surfaces (like restaurant menus, for example), which is a big concern for many people given the COVID-19 pandemic. Since users don’t need to touch anything but their smartphone to scan the QR code, these codes can help reduce the spread of germs.

Identify the best use for the QR code

If you want to use a QR code with a survey, you have options. You can place the QR code on marketing materials, like flyers or websites, and have it link to the survey. You could also place a code in the survey itself. For example, the QR code could provide a discount code as a way for a business to thank respondents for taking the survey.

“We’ve seen QR codes used to run surveys in a number of different ways,” says Strutte. “Ideally, the survey’s code is presented at the end of an experience to gather feedback (especially if it’s a positive experience). Retailers often add a ‘how did we do’ survey QR code to receipts. For restaurants, you might find one added to a physical business card shared at the end of a meal.”

Choose the right QR code software

Creating QR codes doesn’t need to be complicated — especially when you have the right tools. Online form builder Jotform is a comprehensive QR code generator, but you can also use it to create surveys. You can build a survey from scratch or choose from thousands of templates and customize form fields, logos, colors, and other aspects as needed.

Customize the QR code for your survey

To add the QR code to a survey in the Jotform Form Builder, you just have to click on Add Form Elements and select the Widget section. From there, search for QR code and click on it to add a QR code to your form.

The Widget Settings menu will open on the right, where you can customize the QR code and encode it with text, numbers, or a URL in the field provided. For a survey to family members, for example, the QR code can lead to a heartfelt message of thanks for answering the questions.

Show users how to scan the QR code

While QR codes are easy to use, they may seem intimidating to those who haven’t encountered them before.

“One silver lining of the COVID-19 pandemic is that the job of educating people about how to scan QR codes has been done for us,” says Strutte. “Having said this, we all know someone whose camera reel is full of photos of QR code images. When you share a QR code for your survey, it’s best to give a bit of direction on how to scan the code, just in case.”

You can provide written instructions with the survey or simply show people in person if you have the opportunity.

When it comes to gathering data, surveys are an easy way to collect responses from a number of people at once. When you add a QR code to a survey — to offer discounts, send messages, or share coupon codes — you further engage your audience. Now that you know how to create a QR code for a survey with Jotform, it’s time to get started creating your own.

Photo by Jason Goodman on Unsplash