3 Top Tips for Getting Questionnaire Wording Right

This is the third blog in our mini-series on language in market research, exploring how the words we choose shape the quality, clarity, and impact of market research.

Writing a survey can seem simple – until you’re the one responsible for translating a list of business objectives into a clear, logical set of questions. There are countless decisions to make when designing a questionnaire, but this article focuses on three top tips for getting question phrasing right.

1. Keep questions specific

Questions should be as specific as possible, leaving little room for interpretation. The reliability and validity of a survey are higher when respondents interpret questions in the same way.

For example, consider the question:

“How often do you collaborate with other teams?”

Here, collaborate can be interpreted in different ways, and no time frame is specified.

A clearer alternative would be:

“In the last week, how many times did you work with someone from another team to complete a task?”

This version includes a defined time frame and asks about concrete behavior. It also ensures respondents use a consistent unit (the number of times), making results easier to interpret.

2. Avoid leading questions

A classic illustration of leading language comes from the Loftus & Palmer (1974) study, where participants estimated car speeds differently based on the verb used – smashed, hit, or collided. More forceful verbs produced higher estimated speeds.

This demonstrates why questions should use neutral language wherever possible and avoid implying an answer.

For example:

“How badly did the system failure disrupt your operations?”

This wording assumes a failure occurred and that it caused disruption. A more neutral alternative would be:

“To what extent, if at all, did the system issue affect your operations?”

Removing emotional or loaded language eliminates assumptions and allows “no impact” to be a valid response.

3. Avoid hidden assumptions

Building on the previous point, it’s important to ensure your questions don’t presume an experience or outcome. Let’s say you’re assessing how smoothly a client onboarding process has gone. One objective might be to understand what problems occurred.

Asking:

“What problems did you experience during onboarding?”

assumes that problems did occur and may lead respondents to invent or exaggerate issues.

A fairer approach is to begin with a closed question:

“Did you experience any problems during onboarding?”
(With answer options: Yes/No)

If the respondent selects Yes, then you can follow up with an open-ended question:

“What problems did you experience?”

Starting with a closed question also makes the data easier to analyze, as respondents can be cleanly categorized into those who did and did not experience problems. This would be much harder if only an open-ended question were asked.

In summary, when writing questionnaires:

• Be as specific as possible
• Avoid emotionally loaded or leading language
• Don’t make assumptions

To discuss how our tailored insights programs can help solve your specific business challenges, get in touch and one of the team will be happy to help.