Want to get past fluffy feedback and actually understand what your users need? If you’re tired of guessing and ready to hear straight from the folks using your product, this guide’s for you. We’ll walk through—step by step—how to set up targeted user surveys in Qualaroo. No experience needed. No jargon, no time-wasting.
Let’s get you answers that actually help.
Why “Targeted” Surveys Beat Generic Ones
Before you start, here’s a hard truth: generic surveys almost never work. Users ignore them, or worse, give you data that leads nowhere. Targeted surveys—ones that pop up for the right people, at just the right time—are a different story. They get better response rates and more useful feedback.
If you want signal, not noise, you need to:
- Ask the right users
- At the right moment
- The right questions (and not too many)
That’s what Qualaroo’s built for. But you still have to use it wisely.
Step 1: Get Clear on What You Want to Learn
Don’t open Qualaroo just yet. First, decide what you actually want to know. Sounds obvious, but most surveys fail because they start with “let’s ask some questions” instead of “what’s the decision we’re trying to make?”
Ask yourself: - What problem am I trying to solve? - What do I wish I knew about my users’ experience right now? - What would I do differently if I had this info?
Examples: - Why are trial users not upgrading? - How did users hear about us? - What’s stopping people from finishing checkout?
Pro tip: Write your main goal in a sentence. If you can’t, you’re not ready to build the survey.
Step 2: Sign Up and Set Up Your Qualaroo Account
Head over to Qualaroo and sign up. They have a trial, so you don’t need to start with a credit card. Once you’re in, get familiar with the dashboard. It’s not rocket science, but here’s what matters:
- Nudges: This is what Qualaroo calls their pop-up surveys.
- Targeting: The options for who sees each nudge.
- Reporting: Where you’ll see results.
Skip the “tour” if you want, but poke around and click “Create Nudge” to get started.
Heads up: You’ll need to add a snippet of code to your site to actually show surveys. If you’re not technical, send it to your developer now—they’ll know what to do.
Step 3: Create Your First Nudge (Survey)
Click “Create Nudge.” You’ll pick a template or start from scratch. Here’s how to make it work:
3.1. Pick the Right Template (or Start Blank)
- Templates: Useful if you want standard questions (like NPS). Don’t let them box you in.
- Start from scratch: Best if you have a specific question or flow in mind.
My advice: Start blank unless you see a template that’s exactly what you want.
3.2. Write Your Questions
Keep it short—one to three questions is plenty. People hate long surveys.
Types of questions: - Multiple choice: Quick to answer, easy to analyze. - Open text: Good for “what’s missing?” or “how could we improve?” - Rating scales: Fine for NPS or “how easy was this?”
What works: - Be specific. “What made you decide not to buy today?” beats “Any feedback?” - Avoid leading questions and jargon. - Don’t ask for info you won’t use.
What to skip: - Demographic questions you already have. - Questions users can’t answer (like “How would you redesign our backend architecture?”)
Example flow: 1. “What stopped you from completing your purchase today?” (Multiple choice) 2. “Anything else you’d like to tell us?” (Optional open text)
Step 4: Set Up Targeting—The Secret Sauce
This is where Qualaroo shines. Don’t show your survey to everyone. You’ll just annoy people and muddy your data.
4.1. Target by Page
- Show your survey only on relevant pages. Want to know why users abandon checkout? Show it on the checkout page, not your homepage.
- Want feedback on onboarding? Show it to new users after their first login.
4.2. Target by Audience
- User properties: If you use Qualaroo’s API or pass data about users, you can target by things like “free vs. paid,” “location,” or “referral source.”
- Behavior: Trigger surveys after certain actions, like spending 2 minutes on a page or after clicking a feature.
Don’t: Set your survey to appear instantly to every visitor. You’ll get low-quality responses or get ignored entirely.
Pro tip: Less is more. Target narrowly—even if you get fewer responses, they’ll be more useful.
Step 5: Customize Design and Copy (Just Enough)
You can tweak colors, fonts, and the intro message. Don’t get lost here.
- Match your brand so it doesn’t look sketchy.
- Keep the intro short: “Quick question?” or “Help us improve?”
- Don’t promise the world. Users see through “Your feedback will change everything.”
What matters most: That your survey is easy to read and doesn’t cover up important content.
Step 6: Set Up Survey Logic (Branching, If Needed)
If you want to ask follow-up questions based on answers, Qualaroo supports basic branching.
Example: - If a user says they didn’t buy because of “price,” you can ask, “What price would have felt fair to you?”
Don’t over-engineer it. Branching can be useful, but too many paths = confusing reporting and fewer completions.
Step 7: Preview and Test
Always preview your survey before launching. Check:
- Does targeting work? (You can use “preview as user” to check)
- Are there typos?
- Is the logic working?
- Does it look good on mobile?
Test on yourself and a teammate (or two) before pushing live.
Step 8: Launch and Monitor
Go live! But keep an eye on things.
- Check response rates after a day or two. If it’s below 2%, your targeting or questions might be off.
- Read early responses. Are they useful? If not, tweak your questions.
- Don’t be afraid to pause or edit the nudge.
Pro tip: Don’t bombard users with surveys. Limit frequency. Qualaroo has options to avoid repeat pop-ups.
Step 9: Analyze Results—But Don’t Overthink
Qualaroo gives you a dashboard with responses, charts, and export options.
- Look for trends and recurring issues.
- Ignore outliers unless they point to something big.
- Don’t obsess over “perfect data.” If you see a pattern, act on it.
Export the raw data if you want to dig deeper or share with your team.
Step 10: Iterate Based on What You Learn
This is the part most teams skip. Use what you learn to:
- Fix a real problem (not just “collect feedback”)
- Update your survey as you go—drop questions that don’t help, add new ones as your product evolves
- Consider running a new, targeted survey every few months instead of leaving one up forever
What to Ignore
- Complicated segmenting: You don’t need 12 different versions of the same survey unless you have a massive, complex product.
- Vanity metrics: A high response rate is nice, but quality beats quantity. Look for actionable insights.
- Long surveys: No one has the patience. Keep it short and focused.
Wrapping Up: Keep It Simple, Ship, and Learn
Targeted surveys in Qualaroo aren’t magic, but they’re about as close as you’ll get to an honest conversation with your users—if you keep things simple and intentional. Don’t overthink the tech or try to build the perfect survey on your first try. Start with a clear question, target narrowly, and tweak as you go.
The best insights come from asking the right people the right question at the right moment. Start small, launch fast, and get real answers. That’s all there is to it.