Switching questions that show why customers chose you over the rest
Ask customers who moved to you what pushed them, what made the move hard and what decided it. Each question below comes with when to ask it and what the answer tells you.
What switching survey questions tell you
Switching survey questions ask customers who moved to you from another tool or way of working what stopped working, who pushed for the change, what made the move hard and what decided it. The answers show the problems that make buyers look around, the obstacles that hold them back and the reasons they pick you, which is what your sales and marketing teams need.
Ask a few weeks after the move, once the customer is settled, by email or inside your web app. Ask the first question to everyone, add logic so only customers who switched see the rest, and pick five or six questions in total.
Each written answer gets a category, a theme and a sentiment, so the reasons customers left their old tool sort into a few patterns. Results shows the median and the middle half for the weeks a switch took, and the average place for each deciding factor.
- Questions
- 12
- Best asked
- A few weeks after the move
- Industry
- Any business
- Where to find them
- From library in the Usertick survey editor, on every plan
The 12 switching and alternatives questions, with when to ask each
Grouped by what they tell you. Use them as they are or change the wording.
Why they moved
Find out what stopped working, who pushed for the change and what nearly kept them where they were.
- 01Yes / No
Did you move to us from something else?
Whether the customer came from another tool or way of working. Add logic so a No skips the switching questions, which keeps the survey short for everyone else.
- 02Text
What made the old way stop working for you?
What made the old way stop working. The themes are the triggers that send buyers looking, which your marketing can speak to directly.
- 05Multiple choice
Who pushed for the change?
Who pushed for the change. Results shows each share in a donut, which tells your sales team whether to speak to users, managers or finance.
- 12Text
What nearly made you stay where you were?
What nearly kept the customer where they were. The answers are the objections your next prospect will raise, ready for your sales team to answer.
How the move went
These show what made switching hard and how well you helped, so you can plan help for the next customer.
- 03Multiple choice
What made switching hard?
Every part of the switch that was hard, from moving data to a contract. Results shows bars with each share, so you know which kind of migration help to offer.
- 04Ruler
How many weeks did the switch take?
How many weeks the switch took, up to 12. Results shows the median and the middle half, a realistic timeline to give new customers.
- 06Stars
How well did we help you move over?
Rates how well your team helped the customer move over, in five stars. Read low ratings next to what made switching hard to see where your help fell short.
- 08Emoji
How did the switch feel while it was happening?
Five faces for how the switch felt while it was happening. Results shows the share of each face, and the low faces are worth reading next to what made it hard.
What decided it
Ask how many options customers weighed and what tipped the choice, then how much better you are than what they left.
- 07Dropdown
How many options did you look at before choosing?
How many options the customer looked at before choosing. A high share of customers who only looked at you points to referrals or reputation carrying the decision.
- 10Ranking
Pick the three things that decided it for you
Customers pick and order the three things that decided it. Results shows the average place per item, which tells you what to lead with when you sell.
- 11This or that
When you compare tools, which wins?
A familiar name against a better fit. The split bar shows how your customers weigh brand against fit, which matters most when you are the newer name.
- 09Big scale
How much better is this than what you had before?
How much better you are than what the customer had before, on a 1 to 10 scale. Results shows the average and a column per step, and the high scores are a good place to find case studies.
Tips for asking about switching and alternatives
Small choices that get honest, useful answers.
- 01
Ask once the customer is settled
Wait a few weeks after the move, so customers can judge both the switch and the result.
- 02
Ask only customers who switched
Ask whether the customer switched first, and add logic so the rest appears only for those who did.
- 03
Share the answers with sales
Pass the deciding factors and the objections to your sales team, so they hear them in customers' own words.
- 04
Plan help for the hard parts
Use the share for each hard part to decide whether to offer data import help, training or a longer trial.
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 switching and alternatives
Full surveys that ask about the same things, and neighboring topics in the library.
Templates
Browse all templatesFrequently asked questions
A few weeks after the move, once they are settled. Ask by email or inside your web app, and ask again after a few months about how much better things are.
Five or six. Pick whether they switched, what stopped working, what made it hard, what decided it and what nearly kept them.
Yes. Ask whether they moved from something else first, and logic skips the switching questions for everyone who answers No.
Keep the open questions open, so customers name the tools themselves. You can reword any question or add options once you know which names come up.
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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