Quiet Power

Some think you’ll just do it out of the kindness of your heart....
Some offer you a chance to win a prize...

Surveys, that is. Anyone else notice how ubiquitous they are these days?

Used to be I’d get a ‘telemarketer’ style call once in a while, with a cheerful voice asking me if I’d be willing to take part in a survey. I’d usually agree, just because I was curious as to what was being rated, or what type of questions would be asked. Unfortunately such a positive response would get me put on some sort of ‘sucker’ list, and the surveys would get progressively frequent... They stopped eventually. I don’t know if it’s because my husband yelled at enough of them (if he was the one to answer the phone) or if they just decided to switch completely to internet surveys...

Once in a while I’ve actually been paid to take a survey. Professional surveyers sometimes hang out where people shop- malls or plazas or the like- and offer people a nominal amount of cash, or some sort of ’valuable coupon’ if they’re willing to take the time to answer a few questions. Last time I did it, I think it involved watching TV ads, and then answering questions....

These days it’s internet surveys. They usually promise to enter you into a drawing to win a prize if you complete the questionnaire- for instance the chance at free round-trip tickets had me gladly filling out the survey for the airline, or airport, or whatever it was the last time I flew, but I’ve never actually won anything.

Nevertheless, I’m usually complicit and cooperative when asked to respond to a survey, whether I am bribed or not. I have heard it said that 30% is a pretty good response rate. In other words, if you hand out a survey to 100 people, you will be lucky if 30 of them respond.

You know what that means, don’t you? It means that we, the complicit, consistent and cooperative completers of surveys ... are SHAPING THE WORLD!