If you’re in charge of employee feedback, you know the drill: sending out pulse surveys is easy the first time, and a pain from then on. Manually setting reminders, duplicating surveys, or chasing responses gets old fast. Thankfully, tools like Survey Sparrow claim to make recurring employee pulse surveys a breeze. But the actual setup isn’t always as obvious as marketing pages suggest.
This guide walks you through the real steps to schedule recurring employee pulse surveys in Survey Sparrow, with tips on what works, what doesn’t, and what to just skip.
Why Recurring Pulse Surveys Matter (and When to Skip Them)
Pulse surveys are short, regular check-ins—think of them as your organization’s vital signs. They’re great for spotting burnout, catching issues early, or tracking morale. But if you overdo it, your team tunes out. If you never automate, you burn out.
Recurring pulse surveys are best for: - Regular morale checks (monthly, bi-weekly, or quarterly) - Tracking change over time (after a reorg, new manager, etc.) - Quick anonymous feedback on specific topics
But skip automation if: - Your surveys change every time (it’s more work to re-set schedules) - You’re only running a one-off survey - Your team is already survey-fatigued
If you’re sure you want to automate, here’s how to do it in Survey Sparrow—without the fluff.
Step 1: Set Up Your Survey Template
Before you can schedule anything, you need an actual survey. You can use an existing one, or create a fresh template. Here’s how:
- Log in to Survey Sparrow.
- Obvious, but you’d be surprised how many guides skip this step.
- Navigate to the ‘Surveys’ tab.
- Click ‘Create Survey’ if you’re starting new.
- Choose the right survey type.
- For pulse surveys, keep it short—5 questions or less is best.
- Multiple choice, Likert scales, or quick ratings work well.
- Write your questions.
- Don’t overthink it. Ask what you really want to know.
- Example: “How supported do you feel this week?” (1–5 scale)
Pro tip: Pulse surveys are for trends, not essays. Avoid open-ended questions unless you’re ready to read them all.
Step 2: Test Drive Your Survey
Don’t set a recurring survey live without testing it. You’ll catch broken logic, awkward wording, or wonky formatting.
- Use the “Preview” button to see how it looks.
- Send a test survey to yourself or a colleague.
- Double-check anonymity settings (especially if you promised privacy).
If you spot a snag, fix it now. You don’t want to discover a typo after your CEO replies.
Step 3: Set Up Recurring Scheduling
Here’s the meat of it. Survey Sparrow calls this “Recurring,” “Automated,” or sometimes “Scheduled” delivery, depending on your version. The UI changes a bit, but the basics are the same.
3.1 Choose Your Distribution Method
Survey Sparrow lets you send surveys via: - Email - SMS - Shareable links - Embedded widgets - Slack/Teams (if you’ve connected integrations)
For pulse surveys, email is usually the least annoying and most trackable.
3.2 Schedule Your Recurrence
- Go to your survey’s “Share” or “Send” section.
- Pick your distribution method (usually Email).
- Look for the “Schedule” or “Recurring” option.
- This is not the same as just hitting “Send Later.”
- Set your frequency.
- Options are usually daily, weekly, monthly, or custom intervals.
- For employee pulse surveys, monthly or bi-weekly is plenty.
- Pick your start date and time.
- Avoid Mondays at 9AM—emails get buried. Midweek mornings work best.
- Select your audience.
- Upload a contact list, pick individual users, or use groups.
- Set an end date or number of occurrences (if needed).
- If you don’t, it’ll keep going forever (ask me how I know).
Pro tip: If your organization uses Google Workspace or Microsoft 365, sync your contact lists to avoid manual upkeep.
Step 4: Set Reminders (But Don’t Overdo It)
Survey Sparrow lets you send automatic reminders to people who haven’t responded. This is great—until it isn’t.
- Set one reminder, max two.
- Space them a few days apart.
- Be friendly, not naggy. (“Quick reminder to share your feedback!”)
What to avoid: Don’t set daily reminders. That’s how you get blocked, both by inbox filters and by your team’s goodwill.
Step 5: Track Responses and Adjust
Scheduling’s only half the battle. If nobody responds, you’re just sending emails into the void.
- Check the “Reports” or “Analytics” tab regularly.
- Watch for drop-offs: if response rates tank, your survey is too long, too frequent, or too dull.
- If feedback feels canned or your team’s griping, revisit your questions or frequency.
Pro tip: Quarterly is often the sweet spot. Monthly can work for small, tight teams, but gets ignored in big orgs.
Step 6: Edit or Pause Recurring Surveys
Life happens. You might need to change a question, pause for holidays, or stop the survey altogether.
- To edit:
- Most changes (like fixing typos) can be made mid-schedule, but double-check that edits apply to future sends, not past ones.
- To pause or stop:
- Use the “Pause” or “Delete Schedule” option in the survey’s schedule settings.
- If you just delete the survey, you lose all your data—pause is safer.
Pro tip: If you want to tweak questions between sends, duplicate the survey and set up a new schedule. Survey Sparrow isn’t great at versioning.
What Works Well (and What Doesn’t)
Works well: - Automating routine feedback—set it and forget it (mostly) - Clean, user-friendly dashboards for tracking responses - Integrations with Slack, Teams, and email platforms
What to watch for: - Scheduling UI can be confusing—double-check your settings - Versioning is clunky; edits to live surveys don’t always apply retroactively - Too-frequent surveys lead to “survey fatigue” fast
Ignore: - Fancy themes and branding—nobody cares if your pulse survey has a gradient background - Overly complex logic for pulse surveys—keep it simple
Keep It Simple and Iterate
Recurring pulse surveys can be powerful, but complexity is your enemy. Start basic: a short survey, sent at a sensible interval, with a single reminder. See what works, then tweak.
Don’t get seduced by every bell and whistle—most people just want a quick, easy way to give feedback. If you’re overwhelmed, dial it back. Consistency beats perfection every time.