I've not done customer satisfaction surveys, Rob, but I've done quite a few post-training surveys. For what it's worth, here's what I've found:
Use questions that are open ended - "What part of the service is most valuable to you and why?" instead of those that elicit a yes/no response.
You can do complimentary questions - "What part of the service was of least value to you?" Over time, this can give you an idea of what part of the work you don't need to emphasize.
I always add something to the effect of "Is there anything else you'd like me to know?" In my experience, if nothing else is filled out, they verbose ones will do this!
Roundabout questions like "Would you recommend this company to a friend?" can also guage overall satisfaction.
To capture an audience that has less time, or you feel will be less inclined to answer, you can use a Likert 1-5 scale to rate various specific items. Most people will circle the appropriate answer.
I hope this helps - good luck!
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Keep the questions short. Don't have too many, I should be able to answer this in less than 30 seconds, if you want to get responses.
You have options as to a rating scale, or yes or no.
yes or no questions are answered much more quickly
scales give you more to work with over time
There isn't any any magic to it...just ask plainly
I have answered hundreds of surveys and designed a bunch and I find the best are those that avoid psychological goobly g--k and simply ask the kinds of questions you'd ask your best buddy...like... is this a cool product or what?

Are you happy with our service?
Yes/No
Are you happy with our product?
Yes/No
Will you return for more?
Yes/No

What could we do to improve our service for you?
______________________________________
______________________________________
Source(s):
written a bunch and answered a bunch more

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Something is always strange about the way most surveys are put together - they never ask the tough questions to which the consumer may a truly negative answer. It's almost as if some product developers really fall in love with the idea of people liking their product, and forget what it's like to be the consumer. They feel that there will always be someone who complains about their product, so they don't really ask the tougher questions.

As a consumer, the questions I would like to be asked have much to do with what I expected vs. what I got. This is simply because you never really know what you're going to get - until you get it.

Here are the type of questions that I would like to be asked:

Is there anything that was disappointing about the product (quality, look/feel if product is tangible, usability, product features) when you received it and first put it to use?

Was the product difficult to use, understand, or put together? (or a question with ratings answer)

Did this product satisfy the needs (or serve the purpose) that you expected it to? (Rather than "did this product meet your expectations". You could also ask the question with a rating answer, such as "How well did this product serve the purpose (or satisfy your needs)?" or other wording.)

What improvements or upgrades would you like to see in the future?

Does the quality of the product meet the standards that you would expect it to meet for the price that you paid for the product?
Source(s):
My experience as a consumer.

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(I like open-ended questions, but you get less feedback from them in general.)

How would you improve the service here?

How could we go "beyond expectation" for you?

What would convince you to keep coming back?

What would convince you to leave us?

Closed-ended question:

Were your expectations of our superior service fulfilled?

Since I come from an education background, I've found surveys to be very difficult to create and get data. You might also want to consider long-term "happiness". Send your customer the same survey in 3-6 months time to get some really good information.
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You don't want it to be too long or make it difficult to fill in.

Generally good information to gather would be how satisfied one is with the process (ordering or whatever), customer service level, would they recommend the company, and any comments.
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