In-Store Feedback Survey: 40 Example Questions

Ask any successful retailer for the blueprint on how they grew their business, and you’ll get a multitude of different answers. That’s because expansion plans are personalized. Only with a thorough understanding of your customers (and what they want) can you reverse engineer a store that exceeds their expectations. 

Store surveys are the perfect vehicle to gather this data. By standardizing the questions you ask and making it standard practice, you can dial down on things you’re doing well and fix areas you’re falling flat on. 

So, what exactly should you ask in a store survey? This article shares 40 example questions that dive deeper into every aspect of the retail customer experience, from product assortment to store layout and accessibility. 

What is a store survey?

A store survey is a research technique that allows retailers to learn how people interact with their store. Topics can range from customer service to store cleanliness and the overall atmosphere, and you should aim to use a range of question formats:

• Open-ended questions (e.g., how could we improve?)
• Multiple choice questions (e.g,. did you prefer this or that?)
• Scaled questions (e.g,. on a scale of 1 to 10, how would you rate this?)

Purpose of a store survey

Identify what is working

Store surveys have long had their place in retail environments because they let brands identify what’s working. If customer feedback shows that people enjoyed the product testing station in-store, for example, hosting more demonstrations can attract even more shoppers. 

You can also evaluate the role that retail plays in the customer journey with survey data. Kenny Flowers, for example, uses Shopify’s unified commerce platform to send post-purchase feedback surveys to people who’ve completed an online purchase. Interestingly, it found that most online customers didn’t discover the brand online—they’d visited its flagship store first.

"Sometimes that's someone who walked in, tried things on, but didn't make a purchase in the store,” says founder Kenny Haisfield. “That doesn't mean Kenny Flowers is lost on them. They went online, saw more assortment, and completed their purchase there."

Fix what’s not working

By contrast, store surveys can highlight where you’re falling flat, so you can put a strategy in place to rectify it.

For example, you might arrive at the store before the morning rush and not realize that parking spaces are full by 10 a.m. The store survey can tell you this and highlight the importance of reliable parking to customers. Perhaps you could negotiate with the retail park owner to reserve parking spaces just for your shoppers. 

Personalize the shopping experience

Surveys also allow you to enrich customer profiles and offer a personalized experience. You might highlight at-risk customers or loyal fans—both of which receive a different approach in retail marketing campaigns: 

• At-risk customers respond negatively to your store surveys. Identify the root cause of their unhappiness and reach out to offer a solution to recover negative service. This plays into the service recovery paradox: the idea that you can build more goodwill by fixing a bad experience than you’d otherwise have gotten if the experience was problem-free.
• Loyal customers have responded positively to your store surveys. Lean into what makes them make repeat purchases, and use this as the foundation for any future outreach. If they love the fact they’ve got a good deal, for example, send a personalized email with a discount to redeem on their next purchase.

💡Tip: Shopify creates a unique customer profile each time someone shares their phone number or email address with your brand. Any supplementary data you collect—from purchase history to feedback surveys they’ve completed—feed back to this profile for a 360-view of each individual shopper. 

Retail survey questions to ask

Here are the most important questions to ask in a retail store survey. 

How would you rate your in-store experience out of 10?

This question offers a quick snapshot of how customers feel about their experience in a physical store. It also lets you benchmark performance: you can compare the rating across different store locations or track the impact of any changes on customer satisfaction. 

Plus, you can use the scores to trigger follow-ups with each customer. Reach out to those with a low score (between 1 and 5) to figure out how you can recover their experience. Those who rated you highly (either a 9 or 10) might get an invitation to your loyalty program to incentivize repeat purchases. 

How easy was it to find what you were looking for?

Retail stores can be overwhelming places for customers to shop. The store’s layout, signage, and in-store assistance influence how easy it is for customers to find what they’re looking for. This question can pinpoint areas for improvement.

Again, reach out to people who answered “no” to this store survey question. Offer a personalized service—like recommending a product they’re still looking for—to recover the experience. 

On a scale of 1 to 10, how likely are you to recommend the store to a friend?

Word-of-mouth referrals are one of the most lucrative ways to drive foot traffic to a retail store. An unbiased vouch for your business can be more effective than simply shouting about how great you think your store is. 

Net Promoter Score (NPS) measures how likely someone is to recommend your store to a friend. It’s ranked on a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being “I would never recommend” to 10 being “I’d tell everyone about it!” 

Test out ways to improve the retail experience and include this question in your survey to monitor how each strategy impacts word-of-mouth referrals. You could even tie this in with a POS loyalty program that rewards people for referring a friend. 

Customer service

Customer service underpins every aspect of the shopping experience, from helping customers find the right product to returning one they no longer want—and everything in between.

Ask the following questions in your store survey to highlight where you’re doing well, and how you can improve the retail experience to keep shoppers coming back:

• How easy was it to get the help you needed?
• How would you rate the quality of customer service you received during your visit?
• Did the staff have the knowledge to assist you with your questions or concerns?
• How quickly did we resolve your issue?
• Was there anything you felt could have been improved?

💡Tip: Reach out to unhappy customers and offer a solution to their problem—or at least show your commitment to resolving it. If someone says the associate they spoke to lacked product knowledge, for example, explain how you’ll review your training program and offer assistance from a more experienced associate in the interim. 

Product selection

A carefully curated product selection is a competitive advantage for most retailers. By becoming the go-to place for customers to pick up their favorite products, you could also increase sales by cross-selling and upselling other items they’re likely to be interested in. 

That said, you don’t want to overwhelm customers with a vast assortment of products they’re not ready to buy. Shoppers may struggle to find what they’re looking for if your product catalog is too complex. 

Figure out whether you’re striking the right balance with these store survey questions:

• Did we have the products you were looking for in stock?
• Did you look for a product that we advertised but was unavailable? 
• How easy was it to find the products you were looking for?
• Are there any products you wish we carried that we currently don’t offer?
• How satisfied were you with the choices you had when buying [product]?

Pricing

Today’s consumers are more price sensitive than ever. Fierce competition amongst retailers means customers often have the pick of the bunch when deciding which product to buy and at what cost. 

But there’s still the potential to charge premium prices for your inventory—you just need to figure out what your customers are willing to pay and which factors influence price sensitivity.

Here’s how to figure out the answer from store surveys:

• Do you find our prices competitive compared to other stores you shop at?
• How often do you take advantage of sales or promotions?
• Which types of promotions do you find most appealing?
• Would you consider our products affordable for your budget?
• Are there any products in our store that you feel are overpriced?

💡Tip: Combine survey data with retail pricing analytics inside Shopify. It pulls product data from every integrated sales channel (online and offline), so you can confidently identify an optimal product price that maximizes revenue while remaining competitive.

Cleanliness and store atmosphere

Every retail store should be a pleasant place for customers to shop. The overall atmosphere (sometimes called the store’s “vibe”) and cleanliness are two major factors influencing this.

Store surveys let you uncover subtle ways to improve the store experience that you might not have previously been aware of. If your retail staff are indoors on a hot day, for example, they might not realize that bumping the air conditioning up a few degrees would’ve made more shoppers stick around to escape the heat. 

Here are some questions to include in your survey to uncover these insights:

• Did you feel comfortable and welcome during your visit?
• Did you find the store to be well-organized and tidy?
• How would you rate the store's overall ambiance?
• Did you notice any areas of the store that could have been cleaner?
• How would you rate the cleanliness of our restrooms or fitting rooms?
• Would the cleanliness of the store influence your decision to return or recommend it to others?

Store layout 

There are infinite ways to arrange the space within the four walls of your retail store. While the ultimate goal is to design a store that makes it easy for customers to locate what they’re looking for (and even entice impulse purchases), some layouts are more practical than others.

Here’s how to figure out whether your store’s layout is working:

• Did the store layout make it easy for you to navigate and find products?
• Were product categories clearly labeled and easy to locate?
• Did you find the checkout area to be conveniently located?
• Is there anything you would suggest changing about the store’s layout to improve your shopping experience?

Accessibility and parking

An inclusive retail environment is more than a nice-to-have—it’s paramount. Not only do ADA laws mandate that stores are easy for people with disabilities to access, but accessibility features such as parking can sway people’s decision to visit. 

Assess whether your store is inclusive by asking these questions in your store survey: 

• Were our opening hours convenient for you?
• How easy was it for you to find parking at our store?
• Did you find the store entrance to be easy to access?
• Did you feel safe walking from the parking area to the store and back?
• How would you rate the accessibility of our store for people with disabilities?
• Were staff available to assist with physical accessibility needs if needed?
• Is there anything you would suggest improving to make the store more accessible? 

Returns and exchanges

As much as you’d like to think that shoppers love their purchase, products wind up back on your shelves for reasons outside of your control. The experience someone has when returning a product, however, significantly impacts their likelihood of buying again. 

These questions help identify points of friction in the retail returns process: 

• Was it easy to find information about our return and exchange policy?
• Did you encounter any issues while making a return or exchange?
• How likely are you to shop with us again based on your returns experience?
• How would you compare our return process to other retailers you’ve used?
• Were you offered a suitable alternative (e.g., exchange, store credit) during the return process?

💡Tip: Streamline your returns program by unifying your order data into a single platform. With Shopify, customers can return online-bought items in-store (and vice versa). There’s no need to train retail staff on how to operate an entirely new system—they can view order history, process returns, and even issue store credit from the POS. Inventory quantities are updated automatically. 

How to conduct a store survey

Now we know the types of questions to ask in your survey, here’s how to gather customer feedback on autopilot with Shopify.

1. Find the right survey tool

Survey tools let you standardize how you request and gather feedback. Instead of having each store associate ask a slightly different spin on a core question, every recipient gets asked the same question, the same way. Their data is compiled in the survey tool to make it easier to analyze. 

Ideally, you should find a survey tool that integrates with your existing technical infrastructure. Apps like Grapevine and LoudHippo are both available in the Shopify App Store, meaning you can send surveys to anyone who buys from your Shopify-powered business, no matter where that sale took place.

2. Implement into your POS

Your point of sale (POS) system is the command center for your entire retail business. If the survey app you’ve chosen integrates with your POS system, this unlocks a multitude of ways to share the store survey link with your customers:

• Add the link to the survey on receipts
• Use customer-facing displays to ask quick survey questions at checkout 
• Add QR codes to in-store signage that point people towards an online survey 
• Send purchase confirmation emails to follow up with customers after they leave your store

3. Collect and analyze the survey data

Make it a regular practice to analyze the data collected through your store surveys. This is where most retailers tend to fall flat.

“When we capture data, we often don’t do it with an intention of what we’re going to do after that data comes back,” says Neil Hoyne, chief strategist at Google, in a recent Shopify Masters interview.

For more granular insights, don’t just look at the top-line data—slice and dice the feedback to filter results from a particular segment. For example: 

• First-time buyers vs. repeat customers
• People who bought a specific product
• Shoppers who visited your store during a special sales or promotional event
• Customers who interacted with a particular sales associate in-store 
• People who purchased using a specific payment method
• Customers who gave a low satisfaction score in previous store surveys

Create better shopping experiences with Shopify POS

Everything from the store’s layout to your customer service approach should be dictated by feedback. A store survey can standardize how you collect and analyze that data at scale.

Shopify POS has everything you need to collect and organize survey data. From app integrations to omnichannel marketing campaigns and unified customer profiles, implementing a survey doesn’t require a complete overhaul of your retail operations. Simply use the technology you’re already familiar with to gather insights that can change the course of your business for the better.