At Upinion, we believe that tapping into social messaging as your source of data is very powerful. And the best way to do so is having a Conversation with your respondents rather than a traditionally applied survey. We frequently get asked about the differences between a Conversations and a survey. In this article we will give you answers and explain the distinctions between these two methods.

If you really want to get answers to the big WHY and want to get a deeper understanding of what drives your customers, the logic would be to reach out to them where they are most active. These days that is instant messaging. Therefore the natural transformation of a survey is to become a Conversation: 'a research dialogue that can be held in the place consumers are in their natural social habitat, the place where they feel safe, honest and opinionated'. The questionnaire as a form needs to become human, broken up into smaller Conversations that are ongoing and relevant.    
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​This is how a Conversation and results look like on the Upinion platform:
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A Survey is a method of gathering information from individuals. It can be conducted over the phone, by email, on the web or in person (interview). The result is a list of questions with answers (data). The traditional Survey consists of one-off forms that measure answers on questions in the same way at a fixed moment in time. You might recognise the image below, which is a typical survey.
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A Conversational Survey is a method of gathering information from individuals just like a Traditional Survey. However, a Conversational Survey is conducted on a (mobile) chat messaging platform, for example Facebook Messenger or Upinion Messenger. Conversational Surveys, in contrast to Traditional Surveys, are ongoing which means that you can tap into the Conversation for as long as you have a messaging relationship with your respondent. Chat messaging technology gives you a more in depth relationship with your respondents. It provides powerful in-the-moment insights and offers a much more enjoyable experience for the respondents. 

In some cases you can copy questions and answers from a questionnaire into a conversation. With a Conversation you do not need to be as formal as in a Survey, because chat messaging is more personal. You can keep your questions shorter and if needed you can rephrase your question or even split it in two.

Yes you can, but need to take into consideration that the decision tree works slightly different then an online coded script. To get the same script result you need to have some training and knowledge in how to do this. Contact one of our partners if the complexity of your Survey Script requires an expert to translate it into an effective Scripted Instant Conversation.