Low response rates can occur when responders are unable, unsure, or unmotivated to complete the questionnaire.
Common Causes of Low Response Rates
- Unclear purpose or value of the assessment
- Invitation emails not being received
- Emails being filtered into spam or junk folders
- Responders overlooking or forgetting the invitation
- Questionnaire fatigue caused by long or complex questionnaires
- Too many narrative comment questions
- Concerns about confidentiality or anonymity
- Poor timing of the project launch (for example, holidays, weekends, or busy periods)
- Lack of support or communication from leadership
- Responders not knowing the Subject well enough to provide feedback
- Too many requests being sent at the same time Insufficient reminder emails
- Organizational change, stress, or heavy workloads
- Responders assuming their feedback is not important
What You Can Do
To help improve response rates:
- Clearly explain the purpose of the assessment and how the results will be used to help responders understand the value and importance of their feedback
- Encourage leadership support and communication
- Reinforce the confidentiality of feedback to help responders feel comfortable providing honest and meaningful input
- Keep questionnaires focused and concise
- Make sure responders are appropriate and familiar with the Subject’s work
- Monitor participation closely after launch
- Follow up quickly on bounced-back emails
- Send reminder emails at appropriate intervals
A strong response rate helps ensure that reports are more balanced, meaningful, and useful.
