Survey Invitation Email Template: Get More Bang for Your Buck from Recipients

Sending out effective survey invitation emails is crucial to getting high response rates. With some planning and best practices, you can create survey emails that pique recipient interest and motivate them to participate. This article will cover tips for writing compelling survey invitation emails along with a sample template you can model.

Why Send Survey Invitations?

Surveys provide important insights into your customers, employees, members or other groups. Well-designed surveys give you qualitative and quantitative data to guide decisions and improvements. However, you need people to actually complete your survey to get useful results. That's where a personalized, inviting survey request comes in.

An email survey invitation serves multiple purposes:

• Informs recipients about the survey and topic
• Encourages participation by highlighting benefits
• Provides logistics like access links, timeframes and contacts
• Shows recipients their perspective matters

Elements of an Effective Survey Invitation Email

Your survey invitation email needs to motivate recipients to click through and complete your survey. Include these key details:

Clear subject line

The subject line is the first thing recipients see and it should quickly communicate the email purpose. Examples include:

• Please Take Our Quick Customer Survey
• Share Your Feedback in Employee Engagement Survey
• Invitation to Participate in Member Experience Survey

Personalized greeting

Address recipients individually by name when possible for higher open and response rates. If sending to a full list, use a general salutation like "Dear members".

Explain the purpose

Briefly explain the survey goals and importance of issue or decisions it will inform. Help recipients understand their perspective matters.

Highlight benefits of participation

Communicate what's in it for survey takers. How will results be used to improve products, services, policies or experiences relevant to their needs?

Share survey length and format

Set expectations upfront on estimated time to complete and survey format - email, online, phone, etc.

Note confidentiality and anonymity

Assure recipients their responses are confidential and/or anonymous if applicable.

Provide contact information

Include email and phone number where recipients can ask questions or learn more.

Express appreciation

Thank recipients sincerely for their time and willingness to share feedback.

Include call-to-action

Close with a specific request for them take the survey by certain date. Provide the survey link or access details.

Best Practices and Tips

Crafting effective survey invitation emails is both an art and a science. Apply these best practices:

Keep it short and scannable

Get key details upfront with clear organization, headers, bullets and emphasis.

Test subject lines

Try different subject lines and compare open rates. Adjust based on results.

Personalize when possible

Segment and customize messages when practical for better relevance.

Be transparent

Explain who is conducting the survey and why input is needed.

Follow up with non-responders

Send reminders to increase overall response rates.

Template 1 - Sample Survey Invitation Email Template

Here is a template showing optimal survey invite content and structure:

Subject Line: Please Take 5 Minutes for Our Client Survey

Dear [First Name],

As a valued client, we would greatly appreciate your feedback through this short client satisfaction survey.

The brief 5-minute survey will help us understand what we are doing well and where we can improve our services to better meet your needs. Your responses will be completely anonymous.

[Link to survey]

Please take a few minutes to complete the survey by June 15th. As thanks for your participation, you will receive a $5 Starbucks gift certificate.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact our office at 555-1234 or email [email protected].

We sincerely appreciate your time and thank you in advance for your helpful input!

Best regards, [Your name]

Template 2 - Sample Employee Engagement Survey

Here is a template showing employee engagement survey invite content and structure:

Subject Line: Please Share Your Perspectives in Our Employee Survey

Dear [First Name],

We are conducting an employee engagement survey to gather your thoughtful feedback on your experience working here over the past year.

This anonymous 15-question survey should take less than 10 minutes to complete. Your input will help leadership better understand what we’re doing well and where we can improve.

[Link to survey]

Please complete the survey by March 10th. Employees who participate will be entered into a drawing for a $100 visa gift card.

Feel free to contact Jane Smith, HR Director at 555-4321 or [email protected] if you have any questions. We appreciate your time and value the confidential feedback you can provide through this survey.

Best regards, [Your name]

Template 3 - Sample Event Satisfaction Survey

Here is a template showing event satisfaction survey invite content and structure:

Subject Line: Please Share Your Feedback from the ABC Conference

Dear attendee,

Now that our 2024 ABC Conference has concluded, we would greatly appreciate your feedback through this short satisfaction survey.

The 8-question survey will help us understand what aspects you found valuable and where we can make improvements for next year’s event experience. We estimate this will take less than 5 minutes to complete.

[Link to survey]

Please submit your anonymous responses by January 30th. As thanks, you’ll be entered to win 1 of 5 $50 Amazon gift cards.

If you have any questions about the survey, please email [email protected]. We sincerely thank you for sharing your perspectives on the conference!

Regards,

[Your name] ABC Conference Planning Team

See also: World's Top Companies that Use Email Marketing

Template 4 - Participation Survey Invitation

Here is a template showing participation survey invite content and structure:

Subject: Please Help Us Plan Future Events

Dear member,

To make our future events as helpful as possible, we need your input. Please take 5 minutes to complete this event participation survey: [Link]

Your feedback will shape topics, formats, timing and other aspects to best meet member needs. As thanks for your perspectives, you'll be entered to win a $100 Visa gift card.

Please complete the 10-question survey by April 15. Feel free to email [email protected] with any questions. We appreciate your help improving future member events!

Thank you, [Your name]

Template 5 - Research Survey Invitation

Here is a template showing research survey invite content and structure:

Subject: Input Needed for Important Member Research

Dear member,

As part of our 2025 strategic planning, we are conducting an important member research project on [topic]. Please take 10-15 minutes to share your insights through this online survey: [Link]

Your perspectives will help guide our future directions and priorities to best serve members. All responses are anonymous. As thanks for your feedback, you’ll receive an executive summary of the results.

Please complete the survey by March 1st. If you have questions, contact [email protected]. We appreciate your membership and value your confidential input!

Regards, [Your name]

Template 6 - Employee Participation Survey

Here is a template showing employee participation invite content and structure:

Subject: Please Share Your Perspectives on Company Culture

Hi [First Name],

Your confidential input is needed for an employee participation survey on our company culture. Please take a few minutes to complete this 10-question survey: [Link]

As an employee, you have valuable insights on what we are doing well and where we can improve engagement, collaboration, recognition and other aspects of work life here.

Complete the survey by May 30th and you’ll be entered to win one of five $50 gift certificates. If you have questions, contact HR Director Jane Smith at [email protected].

We appreciate your time and perspectives!

[Your name]

Template 7 - Ask Participation Survey Invitation

Here is a template showing ask participation survey invite content and structure:

Subject: Please Participate in Our Member Survey

Dear member,

We would greatly appreciate your participation in our annual member survey. As a valued member, your confidential perspectives will help us better meet your needs going forward across programs, services, communications and more.

Please take a few minutes to complete this 15-question survey: [Link]

We estimate it will require about 10 minutes of your time. As thanks for sharing your feedback, all completed surveys will be entered into a drawing for a $200 Amazon gift card.

The survey will close on April 30th. So we sincerely ask that you complete it by then or let us know if you have any questions at all. Please email [email protected] or call 555-1234.

Thank you in advance for your participation and support!

[Your name] Association Leadership

See more: Partnership Email Template

Conclusion

Well-crafted survey invitation emails that inform, encourage and appreciate can significantly boost participation. Apply best practices like personalization while highlighting respondent benefits and keeping content short, clear and scannable. Test different subject lines and follow up with non-responders. With a thoughtful invitation template, you will garner survey responses to guide better decisions.

FAQs

How do you write a survey invitation email?

Keep the introduction brief explaining the purpose and importance of the survey. Clearly highlight what's in it for them to participate and be transparent on estimated time and format. Provide the survey link and logistics upfront along with contact details for questions. Close by expressing appreciation and urging recipients to complete survey by a specific date.

How do you write an email to introduce a survey?

The intro should explain goals of the survey - what information you are hoping to gather and how results will be used to inform decisions or improvements. Give context around the issue or experience the survey covers. Motivate participation by communicating benefits of sharing their perspectives confidentially.

How do you announce a survey?

First determine the appropriate channel depending on your audience - email, social media, flyers, etc. Craft a short, engaging announcement that piques interest in participating. Include brief background, estimated time to complete, incentives if any, dates open and a link/details to access the survey.

How do I email a survey link?

The body of the email should provide the context, importance and benefits of their participation. Insert the live survey link making it clickable text, not just the bare URL. Specify any access passwords or codes needed. Include alternative instructions to find the survey if linking from email isn't allowed.

How do you invite people to participate in a survey?

Start by explaining purpose and why responses are valuable. Be transparent on estimated time and format. Assure confidentiality where applicable. Share how you'll use feedback to improve experiences relevant to their needs. Close with an appreciation of their consideration and clear call-to-action steps to access and complete the survey by a given date.

How do you ask customers for a survey?

Introduce yourself and your role if emailing directly. Explain reasons for the survey relate to understanding customer experience and satisfaction. INCENTIVIZE by offering entry into a gift card drawing upon survey completion. Make it easy to access and emphasize brevity, approx 5-10 minutes. Express thanks and closing date to submit responses.