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How to create a Custom Survey.

Self-Service Surveys make it easy to create and launch custom surveys in minutes. Choose from templates, start fresh, or copy an existing survey. You can target the right audience, schedule delivery, and track responses in real time. Collect feedback from your team on any topic you choose.

Full Process at a Glance

  1. Go to Feedback → Custom Surveys and click Create a Survey
  2. Choose your starting point — start from scratch, use a template, or copy an existing survey
  3. Add a title and description — this is what recipients see when they open the survey
  4. Set response visibility— choose whether responses are tracked, confidential, or public
  5. Select your recipients — choose a contact group or filter to a specific audience (Private surveys only)
  6. Build your questions — choose from 14 question types and add as many as you need
  7. Set results access — choose who can view the survey results after it closes
  8. Choose your message option — launch your survey via text or manually share the link and QR code
  9. Write your launch message — the message your employees will receive with the survey link
  10. Schedule your survey — set your start and end dates and add reminder messages if needed
  11. Launch — click Finish to go live

See below for further explanations of the steps.

📍 Where to Start

You can begin creating a new survey in two ways:

  • Dashboard → Click Create a Survey
  • Feedback > Custom Surveys → Click Create a Survey

Both options take you to the same survey setup screen.

💡 Tip: If you’re just getting started, the Dashboard offers the quickest access.

🛠 Choose Your Survey Setup

After selecting Create a Survey, you can choose from the following options:

  1. Start from Scratch – Build a brand-new survey
  2. Copy an Existing Survey – Reuse a survey you’ve already created
  3. Use a Template – Pick from a collection of pre-built survey templates designed for common use cases. Templates include pre-written questions and default settings that you can customize.

 

  Choose Your Survey - Part 2

If copying an existing survey: A list of your surveys appears. Select the one you want to copy and click Continue.

If using a template: Browse the available templates. Selecting one shows a live preview of its questions on the right side so you can evaluate it before committing. Select your template and click Continue.

✏️ Add a Title and Description

This appears on the first page—make it welcoming.

  • Title: Keep it short and clear
  • Description: Briefly explain what the survey is for and why it matters
A live preview on the right updates as you type, showing exactly how your survey's intro page will look to recipients. Click Continue when ready.  Your survey is saved at this point.

🔒 Set Survey Access & Response Tracking

Choose how responses are tracked and who can access the survey.

Need help deciding? Click “Not Sure Which to Pick?” for built-in guidance.

Access Types:

Option

Description

Private Tracked

You will know who has completed a survey and know their specific response. Only the people you invite to take the survey can take it. Automated Reminder messages are available.

Private Confidential

Responses are anonymous, but traits like Job Title, Location, etc are visible with each response. Only the people you invite to take the survey can take it. Automated Reminder messages are available.

Public Anonymous

Anyone with the survey link could take the survey.  Responses are anonymous, so questions like first name, last name, etc need to be added in order to collect that information. No reminder messages available.
  • Private Surveys can be limited to one response per person or allow multiple.
  • Public Surveys always allow multiple responses.

👥 (Private Surveys Only) Select Recipients

If your survey is private, you’ll choose who receives it:

  • An entire contact group(like, Employees)

  • Or filter to specific individuals using the criteria selector

🔐 This ensures the survey goes only to the right audience.

➕ Add and Configure Your Questions

In the Configure step, you’ll build out your survey by choosing from a wide variety of question types.

Note: If your contact group includes recipients who speak different languages and your account has translation enabled, clicking Translate will automatically generate translated versions of your questions. 
 

Question Types Available:

    Once you select a question type, you can:

    • Customize options like answer choices, rating labels, or input validation
    • Make the question required or not
    • See a live preview of how it will look for your respondents

    ✍️ You can add as many questions as you need. Click OK to select a question type—your questions will auto-save as you go. Keep building until your survey feels complete.

    Additional Feature:

    Branching:  Show or don't show questions based on previous answers.  Think of branching as a way to create follow up questions within a survey, so not every respondent sees the question.  

    1. Within your follow up question, change the visibility to "If".

    2. Then choose the parent question in the second drop down

    3. Based on the potential answer types in the previous question, then decide when the follow up question should show.  For example, if the previous answer is Yes.

    Results Access

    Control who can view the results of this survey.

    Admins Only -  User Admins can only see the survey results

    Admins and Managers - User Admins and Manager Users can see the results(managers see only data they have permissions to access)

    Personal - Shows for Manager level users. Only the survey creator and User Admins will see the survey and it's results.

    Restricted - Shows only for User Admins. Only users that are granted access to this survey can see the results.

     

    📬 Choose Message Options(Private Surveys Only)

    Decide how to notify participants:

    • Send a message(Most common): 
      goHappy will send an text to your selected contacts inviting them to take your survey. You'll write the message in the next step and choose the send schedule after that. This is the most common option.

    • Share it Yourself: 
      Once the survey is live you will need to share the link or QR code with your recipients. You'll receive a shareable link and QR code that you can distribute manually. These are always available later under the Share button on the survey dashboard.

    📅 If your survey is scheduled to start later, messages will send automatically when it begins.

    Compose the Launch Message

    Write the message that will be sent to your recipients. The message editor includes:

    - Tokens — Insert personalization tokens like the recipient's name or your company name
    - Templates — Start from a saved message template
    - Image attachment — Optionally attach an image to your message

    The survey link token is required. A token like `` must appear somewhere in your message body — this is what gives recipients the link to the survey. The editor will flag it if the token is missing.

    > Tip: The default message is pre-filled with a sensible invitation and the survey link token already inserted. Customize it to match your organization's voice.

    If your account has translation enabled and your contacts speak multiple languages, you'll need to click the Continue button for the translation to take effect.

     

    🗓 Schedule and Share the Survey

    Choose when your survey goes live—and when it ends.

    Launch Timing Options:

    • Start immediately
       Your survey is live and sent right away and stays open until manually closed.
    • Set start and end date
       Choose specific start/end dates to plan ahead or limit the window for responses.

      (You can also set a reminder to only follow up with anyone who hasn’t responded—reminders only work for private surveys when dates are set.)
    Set reminder dates (optional)
    For Private surveys that have a start and end date, you can add one or more reminder messages. Reminders are sent only to participants who have not completed the survey yet. Reminder messages can also be added after the survey has launched via the Edit survey screen.
     
     

    Final Steps:

    • Preview Survey: Opens your survey in a new tab exactly as respondents will see it, so you can test it and share this link with others to review. Refresh the webpage and you can start the survey again. Results are not saved.
    • Share: Displays the survey link and QR code so you can distribute them separately if needed. These only work once the survey has launched.
    • Finish – Launch the survey
    • Or Save for Later if you’re still working on it

    🔧 Managing the Survey After Launch

    Once your survey is live, you can:

    • Edit questions and settings anytime
    • View response data from the Dashboard
    • Re-access the share link or QR code
    • Update permissions or respondent visibility
    • Use Survey Settings (after clicking the Edit button, then look to the bottom left) to manage details

    ⛔ Current Limitations for Self-Service Custom Surveys

    We’re always working to make surveys even better. Right now, here’s what isn’t available for self-service custom surveys:

    • Rating scales larger than 1–5

    Reach out to your CSM if you need help with this functionality.

    Have feedback? We’d love to hear it—your ideas help shape what comes next.

    Have Questions?

    Your Customer Success Manager is here to help. Or send an email to support@gohappyhub.com.

    If you’re unsure about anything—or just want a quick walkthrough—reach out anytime. We’ve got your back.