Survey Question Types Growth+This feature requires the Growth+ plan or higher
The EquipDash survey builder offers two categories of elements you can add to your surveys: Survey elements for collecting ratings and scores, and Form elements for gathering customer information, free-text answers, and structuring your layout.
Survey Elements
Survey elements are rating-type questions designed to measure customer sentiment. EquipDash calculates averages, trends, and breakdowns automatically for all of these.
NPS Rating
The NPS Rating is a 0-to-10 scale that measures how likely a customer is to recommend your business to others. It is the industry standard for tracking customer loyalty.
- Scale: 0 ("Not likely") to 10 ("Very likely")
- Categorisation: Responses are automatically classified as Promoter (9-10), Passive (7-8), or Detractor (0-6)
- Best for: Measuring overall customer loyalty and benchmarking over time
See NPS Scores Explained for a deep dive into how NPS works and how to improve yours.
Likert Scale
The Likert Scale presents a statement and asks customers to rate their agreement on a 1-to-5 scale.
- Scale: 1 (Strongly Disagree), 2 (Disagree), 3 (Neutral), 4 (Agree), 5 (Strongly Agree)
- Best for: Gauging opinions on specific statements (e.g. "The check-in process was smooth and efficient")
Customer Satisfaction (CSAT)
The Customer Satisfaction question uses an emoji-based 5-point scale so customers can rate their satisfaction at a glance.
- Scale: Very Unsatisfied, Unsatisfied, Neutral, Satisfied, Very Satisfied (shown as emoji faces)
- Best for: Measuring satisfaction with a specific interaction or touchpoint
Customer Effort Score (CES)
The Customer Effort Score measures how easy or difficult it was for the customer to accomplish something, on a 1-to-7 scale.
- Scale: 1 (Very Difficult) to 7 (Very Easy)
- Best for: Understanding friction points (e.g. "How easy was it to book online?")
Form Elements
Form elements let you collect customer information, capture open-ended answers, and structure the layout of your survey.
Heading
A large text heading to introduce a section of your survey.
- Best for: Breaking a longer survey into clear sections (e.g. "About Your Rental", "About Our Staff")
Full Name
A name input field for collecting the respondent's full name.
- Best for: Identifying who submitted the response, especially for anonymous or public survey links
Email
An email address input field with built-in format validation.
- Best for: Collecting contact details for follow-up or matching responses to customer records
Phone
A phone number input field.
- Best for: Gathering an alternative contact method alongside email
Signature
A signature capture field where respondents draw or type their signature.
- Best for: Collecting acknowledgements, agreements, or consent alongside survey responses
Text Input
A single-line text input for brief structured answers.
- Best for: Short structured answers (e.g. "Booking reference number")
Address
An address input field for collecting a physical address.
- Best for: Gathering location information from respondents
Single Choice
Presents a list of options where the customer can select one answer.
- Best for: Categorical questions with mutually exclusive answers (e.g. "How did you hear about us?")
- Customisation: Add, remove, or reorder answer options in the builder
Multiple Choice
Presents a list of options where the customer can select one or more answers.
- Best for: Questions where multiple answers apply (e.g. "Which activities did you enjoy?")
- Customisation: Add, remove, or reorder answer options in the builder
Additional Logo
An extra logo or image that can be placed anywhere in the survey.
- Best for: Co-branding or adding visual elements between sections
Date Picker
A date selection field that lets respondents pick a specific date from a calendar.
- Best for: Collecting dates relevant to the feedback (e.g. "When did you visit?")
Short Text
A single-line text input for brief open-ended answers.
- Best for: Quick open-ended responses (e.g. "What was the highlight of your trip?")
Long Text
A multi-line text area for detailed responses.
- Best for: In-depth feedback (e.g. "Is there anything we could improve?")
Star Rating
The Star Rating lets customers rate something on a 1-to-5 star scale. It is simple and universally understood.
- Scale: 1 to 5 stars
- Best for: Quick satisfaction ratings on specific aspects (e.g. "How would you rate our equipment?")
Text Block
A block of display text that does not collect any input. Use it to add instructions, context, or explanations between other elements.
- Best for: Providing context or instructions within the survey (e.g. "The next few questions are about your rental experience")
Summary of All Element Types
Survey Elements
| Element | Scale / Format | Best For |
|---|---|---|
| NPS Rating | 0-10 | Customer loyalty and overall satisfaction |
| Likert Scale | 1-5 (Strongly Disagree to Strongly Agree) | Opinions on specific statements |
| CSAT | 5-point emoji scale | Satisfaction with a specific interaction |
| CES | 1-7 (Very Difficult to Very Easy) | Measuring ease of a process |
Form Elements
| Element | Format | Best For |
|---|---|---|
| Heading | Display only | Section headers |
| Full Name | Name input | Identifying respondents |
| Email input | Contact details and follow-up | |
| Phone | Phone input | Alternative contact method |
| Signature | Signature capture | Acknowledgements and consent |
| Text Input | Single-line text | Short structured answers |
| Address | Address input | Location information |
| Single Choice | Pick one | Categorical questions |
| Multiple Choice | Pick one or more | Multi-select questions |
| Additional Logo | Display only | Branding or visual breaks |
| Date Picker | Date selection | Collecting specific dates |
| Short Text | Single-line free text | Brief open-ended feedback |
| Long Text | Multi-line free text | Detailed open-ended feedback |
| Star Rating | 1-5 stars | Quick ratings on specific aspects |
| Text Block | Display only | Instructions or context between elements |
Conditional Questions (Show a Question Only When Needed)
Any survey question can be set to appear only when an earlier answer matches — so respondents only see follow-ups that are relevant to them. The classic use is asking why only when someone is unhappy: add a Long Text "What went wrong?" question after your NPS Rating, then set it to show only when the NPS score is at most 6 (detractors).
To set it up, open the question you want to gate, tick "Show this question only if…", and build the rule (earlier question · comparison · answer). Numeric questions like NPS, CSAT, CES, and Star Rating support is at least / is at most comparisons, so you can target high or low scorers precisely.
This is the same conditional-logic engine used across waivers and forms — see Form Fields & Builder → Show a Field Only When Needed for the full walkthrough, operators, and multi-condition (match all / any) options.
Analytics stay accurate: a conditional question is only shown to some respondents, so EquipDash reports its response rate against the number of people who actually saw it — a gated question never looks "skipped" by people who were never asked it. Conditional questions are marked with a small Conditional badge on the Survey Analytics page.
Tips for Choosing Element Types
- Start with NPS — It gives you a single number to track over time and is the most widely used benchmark.
- Keep it short — Surveys with 3-5 questions get the highest response rates. Avoid the temptation to ask everything.
- Mix types — Combine a survey element (like NPS or CSAT) with one open-ended text element for the best balance of data and detail.
- Use specific questions — "How would you rate the condition of the mountain bikes?" gives more actionable insight than "How was everything?"
- Use form elements for context — Add a Heading before each section and a Text Block to explain what you are asking, especially for longer surveys.