Surveys

Bundle multiple polls into comprehensive surveys. Collect detailed feedback from your community with multi-question forms, access controls, and response tracking.

What Are Surveys?

Surveys combine multiple polls into a single questionnaire. Instead of posting individual polls, you create one survey with multiple questions:

Each question is a separate poll
Questions appear one at a time
Progress is tracked automatically
Responses are stored together
Statistics show completion rates

This creates structured data collection — surveys guide respondents through a complete questionnaire with start-to-finish tracking.

For Site Owners

Creating Surveys

Navigate to WP Admin → Surveys → Add New

Survey Basics

Survey Title

The main heading displayed when members start your survey. Make it clear and descriptive.

Survey Description

Explain the purpose and what respondents can expect. This appears on the survey start screen.

Adding Questions

Question List

Your survey questions appear in the Questions section. Each question is a poll you’ve already created.

To add questions:

Click Add Question
Select a poll from the dropdown
Questions appear in the order you add them
Drag to reorder questions
Click X to remove a question

Requirements:

Polls must be published before adding to surveys
Each poll appears as one question
Minimum 1 question required
No maximum limit

Survey Settings

Access Control

Access Level Control who can take your survey.

Option	Who Can Access
Public	Anyone, including logged-out visitors
Authenticated	Only logged-in members
Specific Roles	Selected WordPress roles only
Password Protected	Anyone with the password

Role Selection: When “Specific Roles” is selected, choose which WordPress roles can access the survey (Subscriber, Contributor, Editor, etc.).

Password: When “Password Protected” is selected, set a password. Respondents must enter this before starting.

Email Collection

Require Email When enabled:

Survey asks for email before starting
Email is stored with response
Used for notifications and follow-up

Lead Gate Show email collection on:

Start: Before first question
End: After completing all questions

Response Settings

Allow Resubmit

Let respondents take the survey multiple times. When disabled, users can only submit once (tracked by email or user ID).

Show Results

Display survey results after completion:

Immediately: Show results right after submission
After Close Date: Show results only after survey closes
Never: Never show results to respondents

Thank You Page

Thank You Message

Custom message displayed after survey completion. Use this to:

Thank respondents
Explain next steps
Share what happens with their data

Character Limit: 500 characters

Redirect URL

Optionally redirect to another page after completion. Enter full URL:

External site: https://example.com/thank-you
WordPress page: https://yoursite.com/next-steps

Note: If both message and redirect are set, redirect takes priority.

Notifications

Notify Admin

Send email to site administrator when someone completes the survey.

Admin Email Recipients: Enter comma-separated email addresses:

admin@site.com, manager@site.com

Email includes:

Respondent name/email
Completion timestamp
Link to view responses

Notify Respondent

Send confirmation email to the person who completed the survey.

Email includes:

Survey title
Completion confirmation
Thank you message
Results link (if enabled)

Privacy & GDPR

GDPR Consent Text

Add custom privacy notice displayed before survey starts. Use for:

Data collection disclosure
Privacy policy links
Consent requirements

Example:

By completing this survey, you consent to our collection
and use of your responses as described in our
[Privacy Policy](https://yoursite.com/privacy).

Requirement: If GDPR text is added, respondents must check consent box before starting.

Survey States

Surveys have three states:

State	What It Means
Draft	Not visible to members, still being edited
Published	Live and accepting responses
Closed	No longer accepting responses, may show results

To change state:

Draft → Published: Click “Publish” button
Published → Closed: Set closing date or manually close
Closed → Published: Remove closing date

Survey Statistics

View survey performance in the admin list:

Tracked Metrics

Metric	Description
Views	How many times the survey start page was viewed
Starts	How many people began the survey
Completes	How many people finished all questions
Completion Rate	(Completes / Starts) × 100%

Example:

100 views
75 starts (75% started after viewing)
60 completes (80% completion rate)

Viewing Responses

Navigate to Surveys → Responses to see all survey submissions.

Response Data Includes:

Respondent name/email
Start timestamp
Complete timestamp
Time taken
Individual answers
User agent/IP (if enabled)

Export Options:

CSV download
Filtered by date range
Filtered by survey
Individual or bulk export

For Members

Taking a Survey

Step 1: Start the Survey

When you visit a survey, you see the start screen:

What You’ll See:

Survey title and description
Number of questions
Estimated time (if provided)
GDPR consent checkbox (if required)
Email input (if required at start)
Start button

Before Starting:

Read the description
Check GDPR consent box (if shown)
Enter email (if required)
Click Start Survey

Step 2: Answer Questions

Questions appear one at a time:

Question Display:

Current question number (e.g., “Question 2 of 5”)
Progress bar showing completion
Poll question and options
Previous/Next navigation
Exit survey link

Answering Questions:

Read the question
Select your answer(s)
Click Next to continue

Navigation:

Previous: Go back to review/change answers
Next: Move to next question
Save & Exit: Save progress and finish later (if enabled)

Step 3: Complete the Survey

After the last question:

What Happens:

You see the final question
Click Submit instead of Next
Your response is saved
You see the thank you message (or redirect)
Results appear (if enabled)

Email Collection (if at end):

Enter email before submission
Used for confirmation email
Required field

Survey Progress

Progress Tracking:

Progress bar shows percentage complete
“Question X of Y” counter
Can navigate back to previous questions
Answers are saved as you go

Resuming Later (if enabled):

Click Save & Exit on any question
Your progress is saved
Return to survey URL later
Click Resume to continue where you left off

Survey Validation

Common Validation Messages:

Message	Meaning
“Please select an answer”	No option selected on current question
“Email is required”	Must provide email to continue
“Please accept privacy terms”	Must check GDPR consent
“This survey is closed”	Survey no longer accepting responses
“You’ve already completed this survey”	Resubmission not allowed

Embedding Surveys

Using Shortcode

Add surveys to any page or post:

[wbsurvey id="123"]

Parameters:

Parameter	Options	Default
`id`	Survey ID (required)	–
`show_title`	yes/no	yes
`show_description`	yes/no	yes

Example:

[wbsurvey id="123" show_title="yes" show_description="yes"]

Finding Survey ID:

Go to Surveys → All Surveys
Hover over survey title
Look at URL: post=123 — ID is 123

Direct URL Access

Each survey has a permalink:

https://yoursite.com/survey/survey-title/

Sharing Options:

Email the URL to participants
Post on social media
Add to navigation menus
Link from other content

URL Parameters:

Parameter	Purpose	Example
`?preview=1`	Preview as admin	`.../?preview=1`
`?response=123`	View specific response	`.../?response=123`

Survey Results

For Administrators

View comprehensive results in Surveys → View Results:

Overall Statistics:

Total responses
Average completion time
Completion rate
Response timeline chart

Question-by-Question:

Vote distribution
Most popular answers
Skip rates
Cross-tabulation (compare questions)

Individual Responses:

See complete submissions
Filter by date/respondent
Export individual responses
Delete responses

For Respondents

After completing the survey (if “Show Results” is enabled):

What You See:

Your own responses
Aggregate results for each question
How your answers compare to others
Total response count

Results Format:

Same as standalone poll results
Progress bars showing percentages
Vote counts
Charts (if enabled)

Best Practices

Designing Effective Surveys

Do:

Start with easy questions to build momentum
Group related questions together
Keep surveys under 10 questions when possible
Use progress indicators
Test before publishing
Provide clear thank you messages

Avoid:

Too many required questions
Confusing navigation
Lengthy text-heavy questions
Missing privacy disclosures
Surveys longer than 15 minutes

Privacy Best Practices

Transparency:

Explain why you’re collecting data
Link to privacy policy in GDPR text
Specify data retention period
Allow opt-out of emails

Data Collection:

Only require email if necessary
Use anonymous surveys when possible
Secure sensitive data
Provide deletion requests option

Increasing Response Rates

Before Launch:

Promote survey in advance
Explain benefits of participation
Set reasonable close dates
Test on multiple devices

During Survey:

Send reminder emails
Share completion statistics
Offer incentives (if appropriate)
Keep survey open long enough

After Survey:

Thank participants
Share results (if promised)
Act on feedback
Close survey when done

Troubleshooting

Can’t Start Survey

Possible Causes:

Survey is closed or in draft mode
You don’t have required access level
Wrong password entered
Already completed (resubmit disabled)

Solution:

Check survey status
Verify your login/role
Contact site administrator

Questions Won’t Load

Possible Causes:

JavaScript disabled
Browser cache issue
Network timeout
Plugin conflict

Solution:

Enable JavaScript
Clear browser cache
Try different browser
Check browser console for errors

Progress Not Saving

Possible Causes:

Cookies disabled
Session expired
Survey doesn’t allow resume
Browser privacy mode

Solution:

Enable cookies
Complete survey in one session
Use regular browsing mode
Contact administrator about resume feature

Can’t See Results

Possible Causes:

Admin disabled result viewing
Results only shown after close date
Survey still in progress
Not logged in (if required)

Solution:

Check survey settings with administrator
Wait for close date
Complete all questions first

Data Storage

Database Tables

Table	Purpose
`wp_posts`	Survey post data (post_type: wbsurvey)
`wp_postmeta`	Survey settings and question links
`wpwbsurveyresponses`	Survey responses and timestamps

Post Meta Keys

Meta Key	Data
`wbsurveypoll_ids`	JSON array of poll IDs (questions)
`wbsurveyaccess_level`	public/authenticated/roles/password
`wbsurveyrequire_email`	yes/no
`wbsurveyallow_resubmit`	yes/no
`wbsurveylead_gate`	start/end
`wbsurveyshow_results`	immediately/after_close/never
`wbsurveythankyou_message`	Custom message text
`wbsurveythankyou_redirect`	Redirect URL
`wbsurveynotify_admin`	yes/no
`wbsurveynotify_respondent`	yes/no
`wbsurveygdpr_text`	Privacy notice text
`wbsurveyview_count`	Total views
`wbsurveystart_count`	Total starts
`wbsurveycomplete_count`	Total completions

Documentation by Wbcom Designs — docs.wbcomdesigns.com