What did you expect while waiting?
Expected waiting behavior identifies the feedback users need while work remains incomplete. Compare it with actual execution stages without inventing completion estimates.
Product and software research / Survey guide
Product and software research · Practical survey guide
Loading feedback survey
Understand uncertainty during slow product actions.
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BEFORE YOU INVITE PEOPLE
Local planning aid. No answers are submitted or saved.
A useful starting point
Questions to understand the actual experience.
Understand uncertainty during slow product actions. Use the prompts relevant to your audience and allow people to skip situations they did not encounter. Keep response handling consistent with what you explain in the invitation.
If nothing was unclear or difficult, say so. Skip questions about steps you did not experience; use not applicable where appropriate.
When did you think the action had stopped?
The perceived stopping point identifies a gap between ongoing work and visible progress feedback. Explain the actual state and available next action, without inventing completion estimates or assuming uncertainty means execution failed.
What progress information would help?
Helpful progress information identifies the state or next check that would reduce uncertainty. Show verified pending behavior without treating a display change as proof of completion.
If nothing was unclear or difficult, say so. Skip questions about steps you did not experience; use not applicable where appropriate. What did you expect while waiting? When did you think the action had stopped? What progress information would help?
Download the questions as text ↓
Examples to adapt, rather than a validated research instrument.
Choose the response format
Make room for the explanation.
| Question | Suggested format | What to preserve |
|---|---|---|
| What did you expect while waiting? | Optional short text | Retain the specific point or condition described; avoid replacing it with an unexplained rating. |
| When did you think the action had stopped? | Optional written explanation | Keep context that distinguishes different experiences. Do not invent progress percentages. |
| What progress information would help? | Optional improvement suggestion | Keep the suggested change separate from whether it has been tested. Show pending status and prevent duplicate submissions. |
Make questions optional where appropriate. If you add a rating scale, label its endpoints, keep one idea per question, and retain a follow-up for reasons. These examples are not a validated measurement instrument.
Before you send it
Check what your wording assumes.
Would you agree that everything about loading feedback was clear and easy?
What did you expect while waiting?
The first wording combines an assumed positive outcome with two different judgments. The revised prompt asks about a specific experience and permits an inconvenient or uncertain answer.
Read the answers carefully
Keep the conclusion within the evidence.
Do not invent progress percentages.
Users repeat clicks during a long-running action. This is a synthetic example, not a customer result. Do not invent progress percentages.
A worked interpretation example
From a comment to a practical next step.
Illustrative scenario. These are not customer results.
Keep the finding specific
Users repeat clicks during a long-running action.
Choose an action to test
Show pending status and prevent duplicate submissions.
Check the experience again
After trying the change, repeat “What did you expect while waiting?” with people who experienced it. Check whether they still describe the original issue: users repeat clicks during a long-running action. Compare explanations and sample context, rather than claiming the change caused an improvement.
From question to next step
Make the feedback useful.
Set the decision
Start with the decision: Understand uncertainty during slow product actions.
Invite relevant voices
Invite people with relevant experience. Ask after someone has encountered the situation described in “What did you expect while waiting?”, while they can still recall the details. For material testing, show the actual draft first; for planning, ask before the next relevant activity.
Choose an action
Show pending status and prevent duplicate submissions.
Before you send it
Questions, answered.
Who should receive this questionnaire?
Product users who attempted the described task. Ask only about steps each person encountered; do not treat a voluntary response sample as representative.
When should I ask these questions?
Ask after someone has encountered the situation described in “What did you expect while waiting?”, while they can still recall the details. For material testing, show the actual draft first; for planning, ask before the next relevant activity.
What should I investigate in the answers?
Users repeat clicks during a long-running action. This is an illustrative pattern to look for, not a claim about your respondents. Do not invent progress percentages.
What would a practical follow-up look like?
Show pending status and prevent duplicate submissions. After trying the change, repeat “What did you expect while waiting?” with people who experienced it. Check whether they still describe the original issue: users repeat clicks during a long-running action. Compare explanations and sample context, rather than claiming the change caused an improvement.
How should I ask “When did you think the action had stopped?”?
The perceived stopping point identifies a gap between ongoing work and visible progress feedback. Explain the actual state and available next action, without inventing completion estimates or assuming uncertainty means execution failed. Use an optional written explanation when predefined choices would hide relevant context.
Can I use the questions in SurveyTeams?
Copy the prompts or download TXT, CSV, JSON, or a Markdown worksheet, then adapt them in your own survey. The CTA opens registration; it does not import this example automatically. Verify available features in your account.
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Draft your own loading feedback questionnaire.
Use these examples to draft your questionnaire. Create a survey draft, add questions, and check the respondent preview in SurveyTeams. Additional features depend on your account and plan.
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