Hear from readers about the stories your area is missing
Ask readers how well you cover where they live, which local topics matter and which stories you are missing. Each question below comes with when to ask it and what the answer tells you.
What local news survey questions tell you
Local news survey questions ask readers how well you cover their area, which local topics matter, which stories you are missing and where else they get local news. Page views show which local stories got read. These answers show what readers wish you had covered and how much they would miss you.
Run the survey on your local section pages, print its QR code in the local edition and share the link in community groups, with a tag for each area. Pick four to six questions, and keep the contact question for readers happy to be a source.
Each written answer gets a theme, a sentiment and an urgency, so a tip about something happening this week stands out. Give each tip an owner in the inbox, and post urgent ones to the local desk in Slack or Microsoft Teams with a workflow.
- Questions
- 13
- Best asked
- On local section pages, or with the local edition
- Industry
- Media
- Where to find them
- From library in the Usertick survey editor, on every plan
The 13 local coverage questions, with when to ask each
Grouped by what they tell you. Use them as they are or change the wording.
How well you cover the area
Scores for the coverage as a whole and beat by beat, to compare area by area with a tagged link.
- 03Big scale
How well do we cover your area?
How well you cover the reader's area, from one to ten. Results shows the average and a column per step; share a tagged link per area to compare neighborhoods.
- 07Stars
How would you rate our local reporting?
A five star rating for local reporting. Results shows the average and the share who gave four or more; ask it every few months to follow the trend.
- 10Matrix
Rate our local coverage on each
Rates council news, schools, crime and housing in one grid. The heat map with row averages shows which beat needs more reporting time.
- 05Multiple choice
How much local news do we publish?
Whether you publish too little, enough or too much local news. Results shows a donut with each share; read it next to how long readers have lived in the area.
Stories and sources
Ask these to fill the story list, and give every tip and contact an owner the same week.
- 02Multiple choice
Which local topics matter to you?
Readers pick every local topic that matters, from council decisions to local business. Results shows a bar per topic, a guide for where to send your reporters.
- 04Text
Which local story are we missing?
An open question for the story you are missing. Each answer gets a theme and an urgency, so a tip about something happening now can reach the desk the same day.
- 11Text
Who in your area deserves a story written about them?
An open question for local people worth a story. Each answer gets a theme; pass the names to the desk for profiles and community pieces.
- 06Contact
Leave your details if you are happy to be a local contact
Lets readers leave a name and email to become a local contact. Results shows a table of names and emails; give the list to the reporter who covers that area.
Readers and their community
Who is reading and how much rests on your coverage, worth knowing before a funding appeal or a staffing decision.
- 01Yes / No
Do you read our coverage of your own area?
Splits readers who follow their own area from those who don't. Select No in Results to read why, and whether the coverage or the format keeps them away.
- 08Dropdown
How long have you lived in the area?
How long the reader has lived in the area. Select All my life in Results to see how long-time residents rate the coverage compared with newcomers.
- 09Multiple choice
Where else do you get local news?
Where else readers get local news, from community groups to the council. Results shows each share; a lead for nowhere else shows how much rests on your coverage.
- 13Multiple choice
Should a reporter live in the area they cover?
Whether readers want reporters to live where they report. Results shows a donut with each share, a signal for how you staff each area.
- 12Big scale
How much would you miss local reporting if it stopped?
How much readers would miss local reporting if it stopped, from one to ten. Results shows the average and a column per step, a useful number for a funding appeal.
Tips for asking about local coverage
Small choices that get honest, useful answers.
- 01
Tag the link by area
Share a link per neighborhood or town with its own tag. The tag is kept with each answer, so you can compare coverage area by area.
- 02
Ask in print and online
Print the QR code in the local edition and run the survey on the local section of the site, so you hear from readers on paper and on screens.
- 03
Act on tips quickly
Give every story tip an owner in the inbox, and post urgent ones to the local desk with a workflow.
- 04
Reply to local contacts
Readers who leave their details expect to hear back. Reply within a week, or leave the contact question out.
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 local coverage
Full surveys that ask about the same things, and neighboring topics in the library.
Templates
Browse all templatesFrequently asked questions
Run the survey on your local section pages, print its QR code in the local edition and share the link in community groups. Each link can carry a tag for its area.
Yes. The open questions collect tips, and the contact question collects the names and emails of readers happy to help, shown in a table in Results.
Four to six: how well you cover the area, which topics matter, the story you are missing and how long the reader has lived there.
Target by pages, such as one town's section, and by country on every plan. For a finer split, share a separate tagged link in each area.
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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