What is the in-platform survey tool?
In-platform surveys
The GoVocal in-platform survey tool lets admins and project managers create and manage surveys entirely within the platform, no external tools required. It supports:
A wide variety of question types (short answer, multiple choice, linear scale, mapping questions, etc.)
Real-time result tracking and Excel exports
Optional logic to personalize survey flows
Full integration with platform access rights and anonymity settings
It’s designed to lower barriers for participation, consolidate data collection, and streamline reporting.
Polls: the “lightweight survey”
Polls are a simplified version of surveys. They are limited to single‑choice and multiple‑choice questions only and are designed for quick community engagement. They share the same infrastructure as surveys (created under the “Create a survey” engagement method) but:
Cannot include complex question types (mapping, ranking, etc.).
Are faster to set up and answer, making them ideal for “temperature checks.”
Have some reporting and analysis limitations (detailed under “Managing Poll Results”).
What are the key capabilities of the survey tool?
Different Question Types: from short/long text to advanced mapping and ESRI shapefile upload.
Pages: organize long surveys into sections; include normal pages or map-based pages with contextual layers.
Logic: route users to relevant questions or pages based on answers.
Anonymity toggle: allow anonymous submissions (see: Enabling anonymous participation).
Reporting: generate phase reports, download raw data, and visualize mapping questions.
Limitations: some question types (e.g. mapping, file upload) can’t be bulk-imported.
What are the different question types?
Every question can be:
Mandatory or optional.
Given a title, description, and extra instructions.
Supported question types:
Short answer / Long answer (with AI summarization if enabled).
Single choice (radio buttons; supports “Other,” randomize order, dropdown view).
Multiple choice (checkboxes; supports “Other,” randomize, dropdown view).
Image choice (choose between images; can limit required selections).
Linear scale (e.g., 1–5 ratings).
Matrix (rows & columns; less mobile‑friendly, design carefully).
Ranking (drag‑and‑drop or number input for priority order).
Rating (star ratings up to 10).
Sentiment scale (emoji‑based feeling capture).
Number (numeric only).
File upload (up to 50MB; files stored as URLs in exports).
Mapping question types (Map‑Based Survey Toolbox):
Drop Pin
Draw Route/Line
Draw Area/Polygon
ESRI Shapefile Upload
Important restrictions:
Ranking, Matrix, File Upload, and all Mapping questions cannot be uploaded back via offline imports.
How to create or duplicate a survey?
Create a survey
Create a project & choose “Create a survey”
In the project creation flow, select Create a survey as the engagement method.
Optional: For Polls, choose the Quick Poll option in the survey phase.
Build the survey structure
Navigate to the Survey Form tab.
Click Edit survey form to open the builder.
Add pages (normal or map-based) and drag in questions.
Customize the input form
Add titles, descriptions, videos, or images to pages.
Configure questions (mandatory/optional, randomized choices, “other” field).
(Optional) Add demographic questions
Toggle on “Show demographic fields in survey?” in phase settings to capture demographic data at the end of the survey.
Test & preview the survey
Use the View Survey button to preview.
Submit test responses, then delete test data before launch.
Open the survey for answers
When ready, turn on the Open for answers toggle.
Creating a Poll (Special Case)
Polls support single choice and multiple choice questions only.
When adding a question, you:
Add a title.
Add answer options.
Press Cancel to return and add another question.
Anonymous polling can be enabled, but users still need an account to vote.
Duplicate an existing survey
Configure a new project/phase as a survey.
Navigate to Survey Form.
Click Duplicate another survey and choose from your existing surveys.
How to apply logic to a survey?
Question‑level logic: Route users to different pages based on answers (single‑select or linear scale only).
Page‑level logic: Decide what the next page is, regardless of responses.
Special options:
“If any other question” logic (one option routes differently; all others go elsewhere).
“If not answered” logic (fallback page).
Limitations:
No backward logic (can’t send users to previous pages).
No intra‑page logic.
Multi-select, Ranking, Matrix, Number, and Mapping questions can’t have logic applied.
Single‑select and linear scale questions with logic are required by default.
How to manage survey results?
See all answers in real‑time under Results.
Export data as Excel (includes URLs to images/files).
Request individual response deletions via support.
Reporting Options
Use the Phase Report feature to create sharable reports (PDF or online).
Visualize answers:
Rating & Linear Scale: % breakdown.
Ranking: Average position (+ “View Details”).
Mapping: Aggregated map view (Drop Pins can be heatmapped).
For advanced mapping analysis, export GeoJSON/ESRI data and use tools like Mapshaper.
Poll‑specific reporting
Poll results can be exported to Excel via the Poll tab → “Export Poll Results.”
There’s no built‑in analysis or visualizations for Polls on the platform.
Results must be analyzed and visualized externally (e.g., in Excel, Power BI).
You cannot delete poll answers yourself; only support can help.
Poll Limitations:
No reports can be created with the Report Builder.
No minimum number of choices can be set (users either pick one or multiple, depending on the question).
Survey limitations
No draft phases: Once added, a phase is visible. However, you can toggle Open for answers off, even when the phase is active.
Offline upload limitations: Ranking, Matrix, File Upload, and Mapping questions cannot be imported back into the platform.
Editing surveys live: You can edit at any time, but deleting questions deletes all answers to them.
Survey overlap with other features
Overlap with Map Consultations:
Surveys can include mapping questions, but these are more structured (one pin/line/area per question).
Ideation Map phases allow multiple pins and open discussion.
Use surveys for structured data collection; use map consultations for open, community-driven inputs.
Overlap with Anonymous Participation:
Surveys can allow anonymous answers; users get a unique submission ID for deletion requests.
Overlap with Access Rights:
If surveys are “open to all” (no login/email), duplicates can’t be blocked.
Requiring email or account creation enforces one submission per user.