XM for Strategy & Research Reviews

“Makes it easy to distribute surveys for research”

Pros

Distributing surveys for research is really convenient with this program. It offers a wide range of skip logic options which opens up a lot of possibilities when building surveys.

Cons

At the beginning, it can be a bit difficult to understand everything the program is capable of.

“Helpful feedback and collaboration”

Pros

Getting feedback from friends and colleagues is pretty simple and collaborating with others works well too.

Cons

The interface didn't feel very user friendly and I had to click around quite a bit before figuring out how to format the survey.

“reliable tool”

Pros

One of the biggest strengths is its highly linear backend language which makes the tool feel very reliable and unlikely to break. The advanced AI is also a strong point because it connects logical analysis with numerical insights really well. It also helps beginners or end users better understand the impact of the extraneous variable being tested which makes the platform especially useful for research and strategy work.

Cons

On the downside, the setup uses a lot of cache memory and can slow down processor performance. When several multilayered applications are running at the same time, disruptions are quite likely. Another area that could be improved is the dashboard which still feels limited. It would be better if it were more advanced, especially with richer vertical limit options.

“Huge timesaver”

Pros

Working with Qualtrics Strategy & Research has been very simple. It gives you a huge amount of flexibility when it comes to customizing surveys and there are countless ways to build and format questions so you can get better responses and more useful feedback. One of the most valuable features is that it analyzes and summarizes the results for you which saves a lot of time. It has been incredibly useful for market research and getting a clearer understanding of customers. I also really appreciate the way surveys are presented to respondents, with questions appearing one at a time because it keeps people from feeling distracted or overwhelmed during longer surveys.

Cons

I honestly have no complaints about the platform. It has been very simple to create, publish and send out surveys.

“plenty of ways to build surveys”

Pros

Having a secure survey platform that my institution actually approves has been a big advantage. It gives you plenty of ways to build surveys, whether you want to start with a template or create one from scratch and customize every detail to fit exactly what you need.

Cons

Getting comfortable with everything can take quite a while because there are so many features and configuration options involved in building surveys.

“wide range of customization options”

Pros

Being able to embed custom CSS directly into surveys was a big plus for us. Along with that, the wide range of customization options made the platform even more valuable and gave us a lot of flexibility.

Cons

The interface could use a bit of a refresh. It feels noticeably more dated than some of the other XM tools.

“Powerful insights right away”

Pros

It works really well straight out of the box and at the same time there's plenty of room to get even more impressive results when you start using the more advanced methods.

Cons

I'm not sure whether this is already possible but having some kind of live data feed into external tools like Tableau or even Excel would be a really valuable addition.

“Highly customizable”

Pros

It is very user-friendly, highly customizable and helps create surveys that look polished and professional.

Cons

A few features can feel a bit confusing when you're just getting started.

“Can adjust surveys”

Pros

Building surveys with this platform is very simple and it gives a lot of freedom in how everything looks. The customization options make it simple to adjust surveys so they fit your application better. There's also a wide range of question types available and the fillable table questions are especially useful when creating forms that need to capture data across multiple aspects.

Cons

Some areas felt a little difficult to navigate in the beginning. The results analysis side can seem somewhat confusing at first although there is plenty of documentation available to help you work through it.

“Handy quick surveys”

Pros

Having a free option for running quick surveys makes this really convenient to use which is something I appreciate a lot.

Cons

The interface could be more user-friendly. It's not impossible to figure out but locating certain features can take some effort and it doesn't feel as user-friendly as I'd prefer.

“Packed with functionality”

Pros

Building applications and surveys in it has worked really well for collecting both quantitative and qualitative data. The platform comes with a lot of functionality so there is definitely a bit of a learning curve but the time spent getting comfortable with it pays off. I especially value how customizable it is and how many different distribution options it offers, whether that is email, personalized links, generic links, Twitter and more. It is also very helpful that survey data can be exported directly into Excel. One feature I particularly appreciate is the email notification when a survey is completed, along with the periodic updates showing how many responses each form has received.

Cons

One thing I would really like to see improved is a simpler way for people to go back and retake or finish a form if they stop midway or do not complete it in one sitting. Also, while the support pages are useful and contain a lot of good information, it would be even better if there were more video tutorials and live learning sessions to help users get the most out of the software.

“gold standard for survey-building platforms”

Pros

It feels like the gold standard for survey-building platforms. The interface is very user-friendly, it supports highly complex logic and it includes question types you just don't come across in many other tools. Uploading my own lists is also very simple and I regularly use their panel when I need to recruit external sample.

Cons

The reporting and data visualization side of Qualtrics doesn't really work for me. The overall look and feel is weak and the tool just isn't flexible enough in that area. If a proper dashboard feature were available, it would make a big difference. Customer support has also been disappointing since responses are not timely and my issues often go unresolved.

“Lets me gather responses from different groups”

Pros

Branching logic in the surveys is one of the strongest parts of this software. It makes it possible to gather responses from different groups of people within a single survey which is incredibly useful. The built-in reports also give real-time progress updates and an immediate basic read on the data. On top of that, there are plenty of customization options available for both survey creation and reporting which I really value.

Cons

For very simple tasks like collecting email addresses, t-shirt sizes or other basic information something quicker like Google Forms makes more sense. This platform is not the fastest or most user-friendly option for simple surveys. The data exports are not always presented in Excel or similar formats in the most convenient way either so some cleanup is usually needed. There is also a learning curve with all of the features although once you get comfortable with them, Qualtrics becomes a very powerful tool.

“Works well for research”

Pros

It works really well for both research projects and instructional use. Building polished surveys is simple and it's convenient to copy questions from one project to another or put together quick RSVPs and information-gathering forms. From a teaching perspective, it's also very manageable to have students use it. The site feels user-friendly overall so students can usually find their way around without much trouble. On top of that, there are plenty of useful resources available that make it easier to learn the platform's features.

Cons

The most frustrating part is how survey fonts are handled. When questions are brought in from outside the library, the font often has to be updated manually for each individual question. It would be much better if the platform applied a default font consistently across everything instead.

“Excellent data analysis”

Pros

Building surveys is pretty user-friendly overall, aside from a few question types. For example, calendar-based selections need some basic JavaScript to make them work in a practical way. Where the platform really shines is in data analysis which is excellent and easily one of its strongest features.

Cons

Pricing is quite steep compared with some competing tools. It definitely costs a lot although the unlimited admin license is very useful in our environment and you do get a fair amount in return. The bigger frustration is how complicated it is to customize the platform's look and feel. Anything beyond very basic changes requires custom CSS and header edits so it's something to test carefully before buying. Another annoyance is that the branded themes they create can't be edited further at the admin level which is really frustrating. Also, the textIQ analysis probably doesn't offer enough value when you're dealing with more complex feedback.

“Our go-to solution for surveys”

Pros

Qualtrics has been our go-to platform for survey research and I've built quite a few surveys with it. It lets me put together different kinds of surveys without much difficulty which has made the process very manageable. On the one occasion I ran into a problem, their technical support person stepped in and gave me a solid workaround that solved it.

Cons

Like any software, it does have some limitations. I've come across a few of them but as mentioned, I was still able to find a workaround that worked well enough.

“Polished surveys”

Pros

The surveys come out looking very polished and professional and the results can be exported to CSV if you want to work in Excel or Google Sheets or sent straight into SPSS for more advanced statistical analysis.

Cons

Some features were not immediately self-explanatory but a quick Google search usually brings up instructions, often from a Qualtrics help page.

“Improved a lot”

Pros

Over the past five years, it has come a long way in terms of functionality. It offers a lot more flexibility now when it comes to customization, saving questions into blocks and libraries, reporting and analysis and even the overall look and feel. There's a wide variety of question types available, along with plenty of customization options for each one and rearranging a survey with drag-and-drop is very simple. The analysis tools are quite powerful and exporting data in multiple formats like CSV, TSV, SPSS and XML is really convenient. On the respondent side, the experience is clear and has worked without problems for what we need.

Cons

At times, I do run into issues with scrolling and saving survey changes when I'm using Qualtrics on my iPad.

“stellar support”

Pros

Getting started with this software is very simple which makes a big difference when you're working with people who have all kinds of skill levels. It's the kind of system that just about anyone can pick up and learn. We also really value the wide range of question types and the flexibility to build custom reports from the data. Another big plus is the customer service, any time I've run into a problem, the support team has walked me through it pretty quickly. The reps are clearly well trained and the support site is excellent too. From past experience, I also know that Qualtrics genuinely pays attention to suggestions from users and I appreciate that they've made updates to the platform based on that feedback. That's why I always encourage people to reach out when they see an issue or want a new feature added.

Cons

The biggest downside for us as a non-profit is the cost. It feels a bit expensive and I wish there were smaller packages designed for non-profits and smaller organizations or monthly add-on options for certain features like SMS messaging since we only need that a handful of times each year.

“Responsive team”

Pros

the software feels fairly user-friendly and the support team does a really good job answering questions quickly. Customer service has improved a lot over the years and if you call, it's pretty fast to reach an actual person. The people on the phone are usually very knowledgeable and helpful.

Cons

It does take a little while to fully learn the software. The online chat can be slow, probably because they're short-staffed so calling is really the best way to get help. They also roll out new features all the time which can be hard to keep up with although that's ultimately a positive thing.