Note: In order to use this, you will need the panel ADD-ON functionality.
You can set up the panel synchronization, if you want to synchronize data from the survey with that of the panel. This concerns, for example, data such as First name and Email address. This panel synchronization can be applied to two types of surveys: the registration survey and the profile survey.
Registration survey
A registration survey allows you to register new participants; these participants are automatically added to a panel after answering a number of survey questions. This survey usually contains questions about the potential panel member, e.g. First name, Last name, Email address, Gender and Job title (i.e. a variable from a created category).
Note: The e-mail address and password are essential data for the registration, as the participant requires them to log onto the profile survey.
- Build a survey
- Include page break
- Create panel
- Mapping variables
In a section (e.g. Profile), you can include all questions related to the potential new panel members, e.g. Enter your first name?. The answers provided by the participants to the various questions will be automatically added to the panel at the end of this section using a setting (see further on). Please ensure that these profile questions are grouped together in one section.
In order to register a password using an open question, you must check the Password field setting. To confirm, you must enter the password twice.
In a profile question regarding gender, you can include three answer options: Male, Female and Divers (Gender neutral). Please note that the underlying values must then be 0, 1 and 2 respectively.
After the last profile question in this section (e.g. What is your job title?), include a page break in the survey. This page break must be inserted before any third section. When you click on the page break element in the survey, the Create a new panel member at this page break setting will be displayed on the right. This setting must be checked for the registration of new panel members.
In order to define the mapping, you need a (new) panel, which you can create or maintain in the Panels menu.
In case of a new panel, the Members tab does not display anything yet; the Variables tab lists all system variables which are defined by default for a panel. You can add your own variables, e.g. Function. These variables must be assigned to a category (= variable group), see under the green Add content button.
Once the panel has been created or updated, you can click the Panel Synchronization button in the Settings.
On the Panel Synchronization screen, you can now set the following data:
- The type of panel synchronization must be selected. For a registration survey, it will be the Sign Up type.
- The panel for the registration of potential panel members must be selected (in this example, Survey panel).
- The data of the profile questions from the registration survey must be mapped with the variables from the selected panel. For example, the q2 Enter your first name? open question can be mapped to the First Name system variable and the q7 What is your job title? open question can be mapped to the Function variable specified by you. In the Panel variables column, you can ONLY select the system variables (in red frame) and your own category variables (in green frame) from the linked panel.
By mapping these data, you make sure that when a participant answers the q2 Enter your first name? question with John, this first name will be stored under the First Name system variable in the selected panel. A function such as System engineer, which is specified by a participant, will appear in this panel under, for example, the Function variable created by you.
Note: The data type of a profile question (see the second column in the figure above) must match the data type of the mapped panel variable.
After you have mapped all data, you can click on the X cross (4) at the top right of the screen. The data you have set will be automatically saved. You will then return to the Build screen containing the settings. The registration survey is now ready for use.
Note: Test the registration survey before activating it. If you test this survey several times, please remove each time the profile data included in the selected panel. This is because an e-mail address may only be included in a panel just once.
Once participants have completed the registration survey using the anonymous survey link and sent the answers, the profile data provided will be included in the corresponding panel. Only any passwords provided will NOT be displayed in the panel; however, they have certainly been recorded.
Using a user name (e-mail address) and a password, a participant can log onto his/her profile page and access other surveys linked to the appropriate panel.
Confirm e-mail address
In order to confirm the registered e-mail address of a new panel member, please follow the procedure described in the Sign-Up: How to confirm an email address? topic.
Profile survey
A profile survey, which usually contains more questions than a registration survey (or: sign-up survey), allows you to have the data updated or complemented (by the panel members/participants) which are registered in the corresponding panel. For example, in a profile survey you will include more or less the same questions as in the corresponding registration survey, so that a logged-in panel member has the possibility to modify his/her data recorded in the registration survey such as First name and Function. Additionally, you can include extra questions in a profile survey to collect additional information about a panel member. Consider, for example, questions about the living environment, the household, the living situation of a panel member. The structure of such a panel survey will be considerably different.
After a panel member has updated and/or complemented the data in the profile survey, these will be processed directly in the panel, provided of course that the panel synchronisation has been set up. In this survey, there is no need to check a setting for the update of existing panel member data.
If the anonymous survey link is used in a profile survey, the panel member (participant) must log in using a user name (e-mail address) and a password.
Note: To circumvent the login process for the profile survey, you can also invite the corresponding panel for this survey. A panel member will then receive a personal link, which will authenticate and identify him/her.
- Build a profile survey (1)
- Build a profile survey (2)
- Set up filter profile questions
- Create panel
- Mapping variables
At the beginning of a profile survey, you will often include a section (e.g. Introduction) with a question in which you ask the panel member (the participant) for permission to process the updated and/or complemented data in a panel. This can be a question with a simple Yes or No answer.
In the following section (e.g. Profile) you can include verification questions, which are used to verify the data entered by a panel member in the registration survey. For instance, the function of a panel member may have been changed. To implement the function change in a panel profile survey, you can, for example, set up the following data:
- a text block including amongst others the placeholder {{member.Function}} which allows the panel member to view at the position of this placeholder the job title he/she specified in the registration survey, e.g. Customer support specialist.
- a single response question with 2 answers: Yes and No. If the function of the panel member has been changed, he/she will select the No answer.
- an open question containing the text Please edit your job title in order to allow the panel member to indicate his/her new job title, provided he/she has selected the No answer in the single response question. This can be set up using a filter.
Furthermore, you can include new profile questions in this survey to obtain additional information about an existing panel member. These questions can, for instance, be related to the environment, household and living situation of a panel member, e.g. an open question like What district do you live in?.
For each profile question, a variable (system or custom variable) must in fact be available in the corresponding panel. For example, the custom variable District can be created for the question What district do you live in?. This variable can be assigned to a category (= variable group), see below the green Add content button.
The profile data adjusted and added by a panel member will be processed directly in the panel when submitting the answers. Please ensure that all profile questions are grouped together in one section.
For the profile questions from the second section of the panel profile survey, you can also specify a filter in which, for example, you can ask the panel member if he/she wants to update and complement the panel data he/she has supplied before. For this, you must click on the section element in the survey for the Add filter button to appear on the right-hand side. When you click this button, the Filter for section - NAME window will be displayed. In this window you can define, for example, the following choices:
- Show this element
- if - Question - q1 Do you want to update and complement your data for the panel? - Yes - selected
In order to define the mapping, you need a panel, which you can maintain in the Panels menu.
The Members tab shows the details of the panel members as entered in the registration survey; the Variables tab lists all system variables which are defined by default for a panel. To this tab, any variables you wish to apply, e.g. District, must be added. These are the variables to be used for the new questions from the profile survey. These variables must be assigned to a category (= variable group), see under the green Add content button.
Once the panel has been updated, you can click the Panel Synchronization button in the Settings.
On the Panel Synchronization screen, you can now set the following data:
- The type of panel synchronization must be selected. For a profile survey, it will be the Panel profile type.
- It is a panel for which the mapping must be carried out.
- The panel for the update of panel member data must be selected (here: Survey panel).
Below you will find the overview with the data to be mapped:
- The data of all profile questions from the profile survey must be mapped with the variables from the selected panel. For example, the q2 Please edit your first name open question can be mapped to the First Name system variable and the q7 Please edit your job title open question can be mapped to the Function variable specified by you. The new q12 What district do you live in? profile question can be mapped to the District variable. In the Panel variables column, you can ONLY select the system variables (in red frame) and your own category variables (in green frame) from the linked panel.
By mapping these data, you make sure that when a panel member answers the q2 Please edit your first name question with a first name other than the one specified in the registration survey, this first name will be stored under the First Name system variable in the selected panel. A district such as North East, which is specified by a panel member, will appear in this panel under, for example, the District variable created by you.
Note: The data type of a profile question (see the second column in the figure above) must match the data type of the mapped panel variable.
After you have mapped all data, you can click on the X cross at the top right of the screen. The data you have set will be automatically saved. You will then return to the Build screen containing the settings. The profile survey is now ready for use.
Note: Test the profile survey before activating it. If you test this survey several times, please remove each time the profile data included in the selected panel. This is because an e-mail address may only be included in a panel just once.
Once a panel member has adjusted and/or completed the profile survey and submitted the answers, the profile data provided by him/her will be processed in the appropriate panel.