The market today is very different from the past. Before, companies held much of the power, providing products that were not necessarily relevant or applicable to their consumers’ needs. However, the free market has taken control of most of the world’s economies; each company strives to stay ahead of the competition. This has impressed upon them that consumers can actually be more powerful than the company because they can decide if the company will survive or fail.

Thus, it is all the more important for these companies to understand the perspective of the consumers and their opinions about certain products and services. Before the age of the internet, this was done through house-to-house or phone surveys. Today, however, surveys have been translated online, making communication more convenient and faster between the company and the respondent.

Online surveys, or web surveys, provides a way for the company to reach its target market or consumer base in order to ask for their opinions. What used to be a very tedious task in tallying responses and preferences of survey takers became easier and more rapid because of modern technology. It is also handy in terms of getting the viewpoint of customers who do not reside near the company because they do not have to employ field agents to reach them. Customers might be irritated or annoyed with phone surveys or agents who are constantly trying to reach them, especially if they were in the middle of doing something. Thus, it may not translate to accurate results. Customers are much more inclined to answer surveys at the comfort of their own, without having to be pressured by time or pending duties elsewhere.

Even if web surveys are more convenient, traditional methods of formulating questions and objectives of the survey are still important. These need to be clear and direct-to-the-point, without having to be unnecessarily lengthy and redundant. Surveys are incredibly useful tools in gauging the market, but it takes a research and knowledge to accomplish it successfully.