Your site manager panel includes several options for asking custom questions of your users. These options are available in the following areas:
- Site Settings (User Registration , Response Questions , and Hours Questions tabs)
- User Groups (in Volunteerism > User Groups)
- Initiatives area (in Volunteerism > Needs)
- Qualifications (in Volunteerism > Qualifications)
- Advanced Events (Agency Application Questions, Supplemental Need Questions, and Volunteer Questions tabs)
This article provides an overview of the different types of questions you can ask, and it gives instructions on how to create each type of question.
Note: A separate article on qualification questions is available, as the setup for those questions is a little different from the setup provided in this article.
Question Field Types
A question field type really refers to the format of the answer you want to receive. These include enabling a person to type in an answer, check a box, or select from a dropdown, to name a few examples.
Your Connect site has the seven question fields types listed below. Note that not all field types are available in all situations.
| Type | Description | Example |
| Small text field | For open-ended questions; user types in a brief answer. Question appears inside the text box. |  |
| Large text field | For open-ended questions requiring an answer of more than a few words. Question appears above the text box. |  |
| Dropdown | Options shown in a dropdown list; user can select only one. |  |
| Radio button | User clicks a round "button" to select an option; can select only one. |  |
| Check box | User switches an option "on" to select it; can select all that apply. Note: Check box questions cannot be marked as "required" and are not available for qualifications. |  |
| File Upload | Available for qualifications, hours-submission, and user group questions only; volunteer uploads a file. |  |
| Waiver | Available for qualifications only; volunteer opens and signs an electronic waiver using eSign technology. Click here to learn more. |  |
Creating Questions
Basic instructions for creating a custom question are provided below. See the article Question Types for Qualifications for more information on creating custom qualification questions.
To create a new question in Get Connected:
- Select a question type.
- Complete the fields provided, described below.
Field Description Field Type Select a field type; see previous section for more information on question field types. Export Label Enter a short version of the question. The export label shows up as the column header in reports and data exports. This is sometimes called the "title." (This field does not apply for qualification questions.) Question Type the question as you want it to be displayed on the site. Note that this does not need to be an actual question; for example, if you're using a dropdown field type, you might write an instructional statement such as, "Select your neighborhood from the dropdown list." Field Options For dropdown, radio button, and check box questions, type the different options from which the user will choose. Type one option per line; press Enter to go to a new line. For a waiver field type, select the waiver to be attached to the qualification. Required Toggle this option ONif users are to be required to answer the question. Note: Check box questions cannot be marked as required.
- Click Submit to save the question.
Once you've created your custom questions, you can re-order them as you see fit!
To re-order your custom questions:
- Click on the three lines to the left of your custom questions' ID in the table.
- Drag the question to where you want it and your questions are re-ordered!
Important: To ensure that your data is uniform, try not to change a question once users have begun entering answers.