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Survey incentives are a game-changer. Whether you're polling customers, analyzing a new market, or conducting vital research, the use of incentives can dramatically impact survey participation rates and results.
Set your company up for success with one of these eight creative survey incentive ideas. The following suggestions are designed to motivate respondents, increase engagement and completion, and, ultimately, improve the value of your survey outcomes.
Survey incentives play a vital role in any well-designed research program.
Incentives have been proven to increase response rates for online, mail, and phone surveys. This is important because increased participation boosts your survey sample size without impacting data quality. Generally, the larger the sample size, the more reliable the results.
Incentives are especially important given the increase in surveys over recent years—and so-called "survey fatigue"— that has led to declining response rates. Grabbing participants' attention is challenging, and thoughtful incentives can make your survey stand out.
This is especially true for companies trying to reach a younger audience. According to a 2024 report by Blackhawk Network (BHN) and Qualtrics, Millennials and Gen Z are less likely to participate in surveys than Gen X and Boomers. Only 54% of younger participants fill them out daily, compared with 73% of those in older generations.
Across age groups, the top reason individuals will choose to participate in any research project is the lure of an incentive. In fact, 98% of respondents to the survey above report being compensated for participation.
Survey incentives can be designed to suit a variety of audiences and goals. Let's explore nine types of incentives your company can use to make surveys more appealing and impactful.
Among incentive types for research participation, monetary rewards are highly desirable. When asked what kind of compensation research participants would prefer to receive, the most chosen options in a 2024 report by BHN were prepaid cards, such as Mastercard® and Visa®, and gift cards. Monetary incentives are effective because they have universal appeal.
Common cash payout examples include:
Monetary incentives are versatile and well-suited for a range of survey types. They are particularly effective for longer or more demanding surveys, where participants expect ample compensation for their time.
Gift cards are a great choice for survey participants, with physical and digital options for convenience. They offer flexibility and appeal to a wide range of participants.
Popular types of gift card incentives include:
With gift cards, participants can choose their own incentives, adding a layer of personalization.
For even greater flexibility, Tango offers Reward Link, so businesses can easily send survey participants a digital link to choose from 100+ popular digital gift cards. The recipient can split the balance as they choose, and the link never expires.
Discounts and coupons can serve as effective survey incentives because they encourage participation while driving future sales and customer loyalty. These incentives work well for companies that want to engage existing customers in surveys.
Forms of discounts include:
With discounts, your team can incentivize survey completion while promoting your brand's products or services—a short-term win that fuels longer-term success.
Prize, lottery, and raffle draws add excitement to surveys. They incentivize participants with the lure of a potential big win, increasing response rates.
Common prize options include:
Not everyone can win but the chance can be alluring enough to encourage participation. Prize draws are particularly effective for wide-reaching surveys with diverse audiences—they've also been shown to discourage bots.
Non-monetary options cater to a participant's intrinsic motivations. These survey incentive ideas can be just as effective as monetary ones, particularly when aligned with a target audience's interests.
Examples of non-monetary incentives include:
These incentives often cost less but will require more insight into which non-tangible rewards will entice participants.
Experience-based incentives offer survey participants unique and memorable opportunities. Experiential rewards can include:
These incentives create positive emotional bonds, enhancing participants’ perception of your brand. From a SpaFinder gift card to lessons with GuitarCenter, Tango offers an incredible range of experience-based rewards that can help recipients create lasting memories.
Charitable donations attract participants committed to social impact. These incentives also work well for employees who cannot receive compensation for participating in research on behalf of their company.
Possible donation types include:
This approach boosts participation and also enhances the organizer’s reputation by showcasing social responsibility.
Offering exclusive content can be a powerful motivator. This incentive taps into participants' desire for information or resources not readily available to the public.
Examples of exclusive content include:
This type of survey incentive suits professional or academic audiences who appreciate access to premium insights.
Subscription services offer survey participants more than a one-off reward, enhancing longer-term satisfaction and loyalty.
Popular subscriptions offered include:
With Tango, your survey respondents could enjoy streaming music on Spotify, entertainment from Hulu, meal kit delivery via HelloFresh, or a Sam's Club membership. Our reward catalog includes over 1,000 gift cards—plus a wide range of global incentives.
Matter, a leading employee recognition platform, discovered the dramatic impact that survey incentives can have on participation rates. When they introduced survey incentives through their platform, they saw participation rates increase by 37% overnight with a small monetary incentive.
This real-world example demonstrates that even modest incentives can drive significant improvements in response rates, helping organizations gather the feedback they need to make data-driven decisions.
The success of your survey incentive program depends not just on what you offer, but how you communicate and deliver those rewards. While increasing survey response rates involves many factors including timing and survey design, the way you present and deliver incentives can significantly impact participation.
Clear, upfront communication about incentives is essential for maximizing participation. Your survey invitation should prominently feature the incentive offer within the first two sentences, and transparency builds trust throughout the process.
Key communication principles include:
Consider personalizing your incentive communication based on participant demographics or past behavior. Professional audiences might respond better to industry insights or development opportunities, while consumer audiences typically prefer retail rewards. Email subject lines should mention the incentive prominently: "Your Opinion + Gift Card" will likely outperform generic survey requests.
The timing of incentive delivery significantly impacts both response rates and data quality, with each approach offering distinct advantages.
Pre-survey incentives (provided upfront) typically generate higher response rates because they demonstrate good faith and create a sense of reciprocity. Even small upfront payments can meaningfully increase response rates. That said, pre-payment can be costly if many recipients don't complete the survey, and it may attract participants more interested in quick rewards than providing thoughtful responses.
Post-survey incentives (provided after completion) ensure you only pay for completed responses and tend to attract more motivated participants. This approach works well for longer, more complex surveys where you need committed participants. The downside is lower initial response rates, as participants must trust that you'll deliver the promised reward.
A hybrid approach can maximize benefits:
Modern survey incentive programs require robust technology platforms that can handle secure, automated reward distribution at scale. The right tools ensure timely delivery, prevent fraud, and provide detailed tracking for your research budget.
Digital reward platforms like Tango offer an API and integrations with popular survey tools like Qualtrics, SurveyMonkey, and Research Now. These platforms provide real-time reward delivery, comprehensive catalogs of reward options, and detailed analytics on redemption patterns.
Essential features to look for include:
Security features are crucial when handling participant data and financial rewards—ensure your chosen platform provides comprehensive protection and detailed tracking capabilities.
Even well-intentioned incentive programs can backfire if not properly designed and executed. Understanding these common pitfalls can save you money and protect your research quality.
Finding the right incentive amount requires balancing cost, response quality, and participant expectations. Offering too little can actually hurt response rates more than offering nothing at all—participants may view tiny rewards as insulting rather than motivating.
However, excessive incentives create their own problems. Overly generous rewards can attract professional survey takers who prioritize speed over accuracy, potentially compromising your data quality. They can also set unsustainable expectations for future research.
General guidelines for appropriate amounts:
Consider your target audience's economic situation and the survey's complexity when setting amounts. Test different incentive levels with small sample groups to find the sweet spot that maximizes both response rates and data quality.
Nothing damages research credibility faster than failing to deliver promised incentives. Delayed or missing rewards not only frustrate participants but can also harm your organization's reputation and reduce response rates for future surveys.
Establish clear delivery timelines and stick to them religiously. If you promise rewards "within 48 hours," ensure your systems can meet that deadline even during peak survey periods. Build buffer time into your promised delivery windows to account for processing delays or technical issues.
Critical delivery requirements include:
For large-scale research programs, consider partnering with established reward fulfillment companies that specialize in research incentives. Their expertise and infrastructure can prevent many common delivery problems while providing better participant experiences.
Diverse global audience research requires careful consideration of cultural preferences and legal restrictions around incentives. What motivates participants in one culture may be ineffective or even offensive in another.
Before launching international surveys:
While incentives can dramatically improve survey response rates, they should be viewed as one component of a comprehensive research strategy rather than a magic solution for poor survey design.
The goal of survey incentives is to gather high quality data from representative samples. Well-designed incentives attract participants who might otherwise skip your survey, helping reduce non-response bias and improve the generalizability of your findings.
However, incentives should complement, not compensate for, fundamental survey best practices. A poorly designed survey with confusing questions won't yield quality data regardless of the incentive offered. Focus first on creating surveys that respect participants' time with clear questions, logical flow, and appropriate length.
Consider how different incentive types might affect response behavior. Immediate small rewards might encourage quick completion, while larger delayed rewards might motivate more thoughtful responses. Prize draws can work well for exploratory research where you need large samples, but guaranteed rewards may be better for detailed studies requiring careful consideration.
No single incentive strategy works for every audience or research context. Successful survey programs continuously test and refine their approaches based on actual response data and participant feedback.
Start by segmenting your audience and testing different incentive approaches with each group. Professional participants might respond better to industry reports or development opportunities, while consumers prefer rewards or cash equivalents. Age, income, and cultural background all influence incentive preferences.
A/B testing different incentive amounts, types, and delivery methods within the same audience can reveal surprising insights. Sometimes offering choice—letting participants select from several reward options—increases response rates more than increasing the reward value. Other times, simplifying to a single attractive option works better.
Key optimization strategies include:
Regular participant feedback can guide incentive optimization and reveal opportunities to improve both incentive programs and overall survey experiences.
Understanding the financial return on incentive investments helps justify research budgets and optimize future programs, particularly for surveys used in sales and marketing contexts. According to research by Tango and Blackhawk Network, companies using rewards and incentives see significant advantages over traditional approaches like discounts or promotional items.
For sales and marketing surveys specifically, the ROI benefits are substantial. Companies implementing reward-based survey incentives report a 16% higher return on marketing investments compared to those using discounts or promotional items. Additionally, these programs demonstrate a 36% faster average sales cycle from lead acceptance to closure, and achieve 14% higher conversion rates than discount-based promotions.
The impact extends beyond immediate response rates. Organizations using survey incentives for customer feedback and market research see a 34% annual improvement in customer lifetime value (CLV) and report twofold annual improvement in customer satisfaction scores. These metrics are particularly valuable for sales and marketing teams who rely on survey data to understand customer preferences, optimize campaigns, and improve conversion rates.
Calculate the cost per completed response by dividing total incentive costs by the number of qualified completions. Compare this metric across different incentive strategies to identify the most cost-effective approaches for your specific audience and research goals.
Consider the lifetime value of research participants when evaluating incentive costs:
Higher-quality responses reduce the need for follow-up research, decrease analysis time, and lead to better business decisions. A slightly more expensive incentive program that yields actionable insights quickly can provide much better ROI than a cheaper approach that produces ambiguous results.
Selecting the right survey incentive ideas is crucial for achieving meaningful engagement. More important still is choosing the right partners for your research, especially for enterprises distributing rewards and incentives at scale.
If you work in marketing, customer engagement, academia, or any role that demands a robust survey program, Tango can help you succeed. Our global reward catalog includes 1,500+ digital gift cards, prepaid cards, and charitable donations to drive survey responses. Tango also helps large companies automate and integrate research incentive and payout processes, with top-notch security and unparalleled support, so you can focus on the data.
Ready to explore how Tango can take your survey participation and outcomes to the next level? Talk with our team.
