Getting Started FAQ¶

Quick answers to common questions from people new to Opionate. For a step-by-step walkthrough, see Your First 10 Minutes on Opionate: From Sign-Up to First Response.

The Basics¶

What is Opionate?¶

A platform for designing surveys, collecting responses, analyzing open-ended feedback with AI-assisted Text Analytics, and turning results into presentation-ready reports - all in one workspace rather than a separate tool for each step.

Do I need any research background to use it?¶

No - the survey builder, Reporting, and Text Analytics are all built to be usable without formal research training, though a research background certainly helps in interpreting results well (see Reading Cross-Tab Results: What to Look for Beyond the Percentages for a starting point on that).

How do I sign up?¶

With an email and password (requiring email verification, see Understanding Email Verification and Why It's Required) or with Google sign-in (see Google Sign-In and Account Security).

Building Your First Survey¶

What's the fastest way to build a survey?¶

Starting from the Template Gallery rather than a blank page - see Starting a Survey from the Template Gallery.

What's the difference between the two survey take experiences?¶

Chat Interface presents questions conversationally, one at a time; Traditional Form shows a standard form layout. See Chat vs. Traditional: Choosing How Respondents Take Your Survey.

Can I test my survey before sending it to real respondents?¶

Yes - preview mode always starts fresh, so you can test as many times as you need without it counting as a real response.

Getting Responses¶

I don't have an audience to send my survey to. What do I do?¶

See Introduction to Panel Recruitment for recruiting real respondents directly inside Opionate.

How do I know if my survey is performing well?¶

Check your Survey Management page for completion rate and average completion time - see Completion Rate and Average Time: What Your Survey Management Page Shows You.

Analyzing Results¶

How do I analyze open-ended responses?¶

Use Text Analytics - see How Text Analytics Works: From Open-Ends to Categories.

How do I turn my results into a presentation?¶

Build a report in Reporting, then export it to PowerPoint - see Building Your First Report and Exporting Your Report to PowerPoint.

Cost¶

Does using Opionate cost credits?¶

Most features - building surveys, Reporting, templates - don't consume credits. Credits apply specifically to Text Analytics, AI Follow-up Questions, and Panel Recruitment. See What Actually Consumes Your Credits (and What Doesn't).

Is there a free plan?¶

Check the Plans section of your Billing & Subscription page for current options.

Still have a question? Reach out via Opionate's in-app messaging and the team will help directly.