Effort questions that measure the work your customers put in
Ask customers how hard a task felt, how long it took and how many tries it needed, in numbers you can compare. Each question below comes with when to ask it and what the answer tells you.
What customer effort survey questions tell you
Customer effort survey questions measure the work a task takes from the customer's side: how hard it felt, how many minutes or attempts it took and whether the result was worth it. A task that works but takes too long still costs you goodwill, and a number for effort shows which part of your product or service to simplify first.
Ask right after the task ends, with a popup in your web app or a link at the end of the flow, so customers still remember the steps. Pick one effort score, one time or count question and the open question on the hardest part, and ask the weekly hours and days to value questions later in a separate survey.
Results shows the average and a column per step for the 1 to 10 scales, and the median and the middle half for minutes, days, steps and attempts, so a few very long tasks don't skew the number. Each written answer gets a theme and a sentiment, so the hardest parts customers name sort into a short list.
- Questions
- 15
- Best asked
- Right after the task ends
- Industry
- Any business
- Where to find them
- From library in the Usertick survey editor, on every plan
The 15 effort and time questions, with when to ask each
Grouped by what they tell you. Use them as they are or change the wording.
How hard it felt
Use one 1 to 10 effort score as your main number, and add the dial or the expectation question for how it felt.
- 01Big scale
How much effort did that task take?
Effort for a task on a 1 to 10 scale. Results shows the average and a column per step, so you can see whether most customers sit near the easy end or spread out.
- 02Big scale
How much effort was the initial setup?
Effort for the first setup on a 1 to 10 scale. Ask it once setup ends, and compare it with the task effort score to see whether the start or the daily work costs more.
- 03Big scale
How hard was it to find what you were looking for?
How hard it was to find something, on a 1 to 10 scale. Ask it after a search or a browse, and add an open question on what the customer was looking for.
- 10Mood dial
How did that effort feel?
A mood dial for how the effort felt. Results shows each face with its share, which adds the feeling to the numbers on time and steps.
- 13Multiple choice
Compared to what you expected, it went…
How the task went against expectations. Results shows each share in a donut, and the Slower than expected answers are worth reading next to the open questions.
Time and attempts
Count the minutes, steps and attempts a task took, so you can measure the effect of a simpler flow.
- 04Ruler
How long did that take you?
How long the task took, on a ruler from 0 to 60. Results shows the median and the middle half, a fair number when a few customers left the task open far longer.
- 08Number
How many steps did it take?
The number of steps a task took, counted by the customer. Compare the median with the steps your flow should need, and look for the gap.
- 09Number
How many attempts before it worked?
How many tries the task needed before it worked. A median above one points to an error message, a form or a step that needs fixing.
- 06Ruler
How long did you wait before getting help?
How long the customer waited before getting help, on a ruler from 0 to 30. Read it next to the effort score, since a long wait can turn an easy fix into a hard task.
Time and value over weeks
Ask these a few weeks in, to see how much time customers spend and how soon the effort pays off.
- 05Ruler
How many hours a week do you spend on this?
Weekly hours spent on the work, up to 40. Ask it when a customer starts with you and again a few months later, then compare the medians to show the time saved.
- 07Ruler
How many days until you got real value?
How many days passed before the customer got real value, up to 30. Ask it a month in, and use the median as your time to value from the customer's side.
- 11Yes / No
Was the result worth the effort?
Whether the result justified the effort. A No next to a high effort score marks the task to simplify first, and a Yes tells you customers accept the work.
Where to cut the work
Let customers name the hardest part and what they would automate, and check how long a survey they will accept.
- 12Text
What was the hardest part?
The hardest part in the customer's own words. Each answer gets a theme, so the step customers name most often rises to the top of the list.
- 14Text
What would you automate first if you could?
What the customer would automate first. The themes add up to a list of repetitive work, ready for your roadmap or for a better default.
- 15Slider
How long are you happy to spend on a survey like this?
How long the customer would spend on a survey like this one, on a slider from 1 to 20. Use the median to decide how long your next survey can be.
Tips for asking about effort and time
Small choices that get honest, useful answers.
- 01
Ask the moment the task ends
Show the survey when the task finishes, with a form submit or custom event trigger (from Starter, or on 1 survey on Free) or a link on the final screen, so customers still remember each step.
- 02
Pick one main effort score
Use the same 1 to 10 question for every task, so you can compare tasks with each other and with the period before.
- 03
Count time and tries too
Add one minutes or attempts question next to the score. The score says a task felt hard, and the count shows how much work went into it.
- 04
Ask the long-term questions later
Ask about weekly hours and days to value a few weeks after customers start, in a separate short survey.
Add these questions to a survey
From the library to the first answers.
- 1
Open the library
In the Usertick survey editor, choose From library, filter by industry and topic, and add several questions at once.
- 2
Or paste your own list
Paste questions reads up to 10 questions from any text on Free, 100 on Starter and 200 on Pro and above, keeps your wording and picks an answer type for each.
- 3
Choose where it runs
Show the survey on your website, send it by email, share its link and QR code, or switch it to a conversation.
- 4
Read the answers
Results counts every score and choice, and Usertick reads each written answer and files it by topic, on every plan.
Templates and more questions about effort and time
Full surveys that ask about the same things, and neighboring topics in the library.
Templates
Browse all templatesFrequently asked questions
Right after the task ends, while customers remember the steps. On your website or web app, a popup after the last step suits this, and from Starter, or on 1 survey on Free, a form submit or a custom event from your code can open it at that moment.
Start with the 1 to 10 effort question for the task, and add the hardest part question after it. Add minutes or attempts once you want to measure a change.
Two or three: one score, one time or count question and one open question. A long survey about effort adds to the effort it measures.
Yes. Use the same effort question in a survey for each task and compare the averages. Results compares each card with the period before, so you can also see whether one task got easier.
Yes. The question library comes with every plan, the free plan included, and the free plan covers 150 responses a month across your surveys.
Yes. Once a question is in your survey, reword it, change its options or its answer type, and add logic to skip it for some answers.
Yes. The library is translated into Usertick's built-in languages, and in any other language it shows in English for you to translate.
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