In online retail, customers don’t remember every click—they remember how you made them feel. That feeling is shaped by service: how responsive, respectful, and reliable your brand is when your shoppers need help.
When deploying a customer satisfaction survey online, you must do so with clear intention. Know exactly what you want to measure and why!
Below are high-impact survey question examples, organized by stage and survey type. If you want honest, actionable feedback, this is a great place to start.
Onboarding and first impressions
This is your customer’s first taste of your brand’s service. Were you helpful? Fast? Clear? Or did they feel ignored or frustrated from the start?
Use a mix of CES, CSAT, and open-ended questions to gauge ease and support quality during onboarding.
Survey question examples
How did you hear about us? (Multiple choice — use clear options like “Search engine,” “Instagram,” “Friend or family,” “Online ad,” etc.)
How easy was it to place your first order or get started with our service? (CES)
How satisfied were you with the level of help or guidance you received during your first interaction? (CSAT)
How would you rate the responsiveness of our team when you first reached out? (5-star survey)
Did you get the support you needed before completing your first order? (Yes/No — with optional comment box)
Who, if anyone, stood out in delivering great service during your first experience? (Open-ended — great for team recognition)
What could we have done to make your onboarding or first purchase easier? (Open-ended)
Support interactions and issue resolution
Whether it’s a quick question or a serious problem, how you respond defines how customers feel about you.
Read more: Customer support trends you need to know
Use a mix of CSAT, CES and 5-star survey questions, as well as comment boxes, to capture the reality of your service delivery: speed, clarity, tone, and resolution.
Survey question examples
How satisfied are you with the support you received? (CSAT)
How easy was it to get your issue resolved? (CES — especially useful if you offer chatbots, ticketing, or help centers)
How would you rate the professionalism and friendliness of the support team? (5-star survey)
Did our team communicate clearly and keep you informed throughout the process? (Multiple choice — Yes / No / Somewhat, followed by a comment box)
Was your issue resolved during your first interaction with us? (Multiple choice — Yes / No / Still unresolved)
Did our service team make you feel valued? (CSAT or 5-star — emotional satisfaction matters as much as resolution)
What could we have done better during this support interaction? (Open-ended)
Was there anything frustrating or confusing about getting help from us? (Open-ended — pairs well with CES to pinpoint service friction)
Who went above and beyond to help you? (Open-ended — encourages recognition and shows customers you’re listening)
These belong in any customer satisfaction survey that follows a help desk ticket, live chat, or service call.
Product success and service follow-through
The product might ship, but your service doesn’t stop there. Great retail brands check in to see if customers are getting the results they expected — and whether they felt supported along the way. This is where CSAT, 5-star surveys, and open-ended customer feedback shine.
Survey question examples
How satisfied are you with the overall service you received after placing your order? (CSAT — not just the product, but the experience around it)
How would you rate the clarity of our post-purchase communication (emails, tracking, instructions)? (5-star survey)
Did you feel supported if you had questions or concerns after your purchase? (Yes/No — consider adding an optional “Tell us more” field)
How easy was it to get updates or information about your order? (CES)
Did the service team follow through on what was promised (timelines, resolution, follow-ups)? (Multiple choice — “Yes,” “Partially,” “No”)
Did you encounter any issues that you didn’t report? (Open-ended — invites unspoken customer feedback that support may have missed)
What could we have done to better support you after your purchase? (Open-ended — powerful for customer success analysis)
These questions go beyond surface-level satisfaction. They help you understand whether your customer service is proactive, accessible, and matched to customer needs.
Loyalty, retention, and advocacy
A great product may bring a customer in, but great service is what keeps them.
To understand if your customer service is building long-term loyalty, use NPS, CSAT, and emotion-driven survey questions that go deeper than “Would you buy again?”
Survey question examples
How likely are you to recommend our brand to someone you know? (NPS)
Why did you give that score? (Open-ended)
How likely are you to shop with us again, based on your recent service experience? (Multiple choice — “Very likely,” “Somewhat,” “Not likely”)
How would you rate the consistency of our service across multiple interactions? (5-star survey — ideal for repeat customers)
Did you ever consider switching a competitor due to a service issue? (Yes/No — use carefully, but it reveals churn risk)
What’s one thing we could do to turn you into a loyal, long-term customer? (Open-ended)
What does “great service” mean to you, and did we deliver it? (Open-ended — gold for refining your brand’s service standard)
These questions help you connect customer service performance to real business outcomes: retention, word-of-mouth, and lifetime value. The Net Promoter Score is a starting point; it’s the comments and open-text fields that reveal what actually drives loyalty.
Ask better questions, deliver unforgettable service
In the service industry, customer satisfaction is often based on perception rather than hard numbers. Quick replies, extra effort, a kind tone: these details are likelier to build customer loyalty than trying to offer the perfect product.
Every retail brand says they care about customers — but most fail to prove it. What sets the best apart is the consistent collection of multifaceted feedback that reveals patterns and uncovers friction. Great service comes from listening well and acting fast.
Want help getting started? Check out our ever-growing library of survey templates built specifically for retail customer service teams.
About Simplesat: Simplesat is the leading omnichannel survey app designed to enhance customer feedback management across various platforms, including Zendesk, Salesforce, and Gladly. Trusted by businesses worldwide, Simplesat delivers actionable insights that drive business growth and customer satisfaction.
