Clarifications on the Design of Customer Comment Cards: Question Type, Question Wording, and Writing Space

Abstract

Comment cards are a common way to obtain timely customer feedback. Prior research has shown, however, that comment cards are often poorly designed. As such, researchers have identified areas where improvements can be made. Despite these efforts, there are at least three issues where additional clarification is warranted; namely, the appropriate types of questions to ask, question wording related to the use of double-barreled questions, and the appropriate amount of writing space for comments. This research note helps clarify these issues by proposing: (a) that the most appropriate questions are those that help quantify the qualitative comments, (b) that not all double-barreled questions are as problematic as some suggest, and (c) that the minimally acceptable amount of space for writing comments is more than previously thought. The proposed clarifications are illustrated using a sample of restaurant comment cards.

KEYWORDS:

• comment cards
• customer feedback
• writing space
• double-barreled questions
• restaurants