Launching a new product feature is a big deal. But the real work starts the moment it goes live—when real users interact with it and (if you’re lucky) tell you what’s great and what’s a mess. If you’re looking for a practical way to get useful feedback—without chasing down users or drowning in noise—this guide is for you.
We’ll walk through using Survicate, a popular tool for collecting in-app and email feedback. I’ll cover what actually works, where you can save time, and what’s not worth obsessing over. Whether you’re a product manager, designer, or founder, you’ll leave with a simple, reliable process.
Step 1: Get Clear on What Feedback You Need
Before you open any survey tool, decide what you want to learn. Don’t just ask, “What do you think of our new feature?” unless you like vague answers and lukewarm data.
Focus on: - Specific behaviors: Are users finding and using the new feature? - Pain points: What’s confusing or broken? - Impact: Is this actually making their lives better?
You don’t need a PhD in survey design. Just answer this: What would make us change, keep, or kill this feature?
Pro tip: Write down 1-3 questions you really want answers to. You’ll use these later.
Step 2: Set Up Your Survicate Account
If you’re new to Survicate, sign up and poke around first. The interface is straightforward; you don’t need a user manual.
Things to know:
- You can integrate Survicate with most web apps and email platforms.
- There’s a free plan, but you’ll hit limits if you want advanced targeting or lots of responses.
- Their widget can show surveys right inside your app or on your site.
- You can also send surveys by email (handy if your users are less active in the app).
Skip: Over-customizing your workspace or fiddling with branding before you have a live survey. Get feedback first—polish later.
Step 3: Build a No-Nonsense Feedback Survey
Don’t let Survicate’s templates tempt you into 10-question marathons. Most users won’t bother unless it’s fast.
What works: - 1-3 questions, max. - Use multiple-choice for quick answers. - Add an optional open-text field for “Anything else?” (You’ll get gold here, but don’t expect many to answer.)
Examples: - “Did you use the new [feature]? Yes / No / Not yet” - “How easy was it to use? (1-5 scale)” - “What was confusing or missing?”
Pro tip: For new features, lean on questions about ease of use and usefulness. Skip “Net Promoter Score” unless you care about bragging rights.
How to do it in Survicate: 1. Go to “Create survey.” 2. Pick “Website” or “In-app” survey (or “Email” if that fits your users). 3. Choose a blank template or the simplest one you see. 4. Add your questions—don’t overthink the design. 5. Preview it. If it takes more than 30 seconds to finish, cut something.
Step 4: Decide Where and When to Ask
This is where most teams mess up. If you ask every user, every time, you’ll annoy them and dilute your data. If you bury your survey, no one will see it.
Best practices: - Target users who actually used the feature. Survicate lets you trigger surveys based on user actions or page visits. - Ask soon after the feature is used. The closer to the “aha” (or “ugh”) moment, the better the feedback. - Don’t over-survey. Once per user, max, for this feature. No one likes pop-up fatigue.
How to set up targeting in Survicate: - Use “Event-based targeting” to show the survey after someone uses the feature. - For web apps: Trigger on URLs or button clicks. - For email: Filter your user list to folks who’ve accessed the feature.
Skip: Showing the survey to brand-new users or those who haven’t engaged with the feature.
Step 5: Launch and Monitor Your Survey
Once your survey’s live, keep an eye on responses. Survicate dashboards are decent for a quick read. Don’t expect magic insights on day one—give it a week or so, depending on your traffic.
What to watch: - Completion rates: If fewer than 20% of targeted users respond, your survey may be too long or annoying. - Drop-off points: Are people bailing after question one? Trim the fat. - Open-text gold: Read every comment. Even one or two can reveal big usability issues.
Pro tip: If you’re getting zero responses, double-check your targeting and timing. If you’re getting lots of “it’s fine” answers, your questions might be too generic.
Ignore: Obsessing over fancy analytics or export features. Just read the feedback and look for patterns.
Step 6: Share and Act on What You Learn
The only thing worse than no feedback is getting feedback and ignoring it. Loop in your team—engineers, designers, support. Share the raw stuff, not just cherry-picked quotes.
How to make feedback actionable: - Summarize the main themes: “10 users found setup confusing,” “3 asked for integrations.” - Highlight direct quotes: Paste real user words, not just your spin. - Decide what to fix now, later, or never: Not every comment is a roadmap item. Filter ruthlessly.
Pro tip: If you hear the same complaint from even a handful of users, it’s probably real. Don’t wait for “statistical significance” before fixing obvious pain points.
Skip: Making a pretty slide deck before you’ve actually made changes.
Step 7: Close the Loop (Optional, But Powerful)
If you make updates based on feedback, tell your users. Survicate won’t do this for you, but a quick update email or in-app message goes a long way. People like to know their input mattered.
Simple message:
“Thanks for your feedback on [feature]! We fixed X and improved Y—let us know what you think.”
Why bother? - Builds trust. - Increases survey participation next time. - Reminds your team that feedback isn’t just a box to check.
What’s Worth Your Time (and What Isn’t)
Worth it: - Targeted, short surveys right after feature use. - Reading every open-text response. - Sharing feedback with your full team.
Not worth it: - Surveying everyone, all the time. - Fancy survey logic or endless question trees. - Waiting for “perfect” data before acting.
Wrap Up: Keep It Simple, Iterate Fast
Survicate makes it easy to collect feedback, but don’t let the tool distract you from the basics. Ask clear, focused questions. Get feedback from the right users at the right time. Act on what you hear, then repeat.
Don’t stress about being perfect. The best teams get a little feedback, make quick tweaks, and keep moving. You can always run another survey. Just keep it simple and keep listening.