How to ask for feedback – and actually get it

Reading this message from LinkedIn was like stepping barefoot on Lego.

Ugh, right?

Before I go too hard on them, it is tough to get feedback from anyone these days. We’re constantly bombarded by requests from everyone from Amazon (‘Rate your garden shears!’) to our local Indian restaurant (‘Tell us how you liked your korma!’)

And they did do a few things well (I’m being generous here):

1. They asked for my ‘expertise’, not ‘feedback’: expertise is a higher status, more effective word. The first time they sent me this message I admit I was a teensy bit flattered (bless my delicate ego). The 57th time, not so much.
   

2. They emphasised the brevity of the survey: ‘1-2 minutes’
   

3. The whole message is short.

But… that’s where the good stuff ends.

Here’s what I’d change:

1. Sound like an actual personUse ‘we’ and ‘you’  to create connection and make your message sound like a real conversation between actual people (not ‘LinkedIn is…’).  Contractions (‘we’re’ not ‘we are’) also help with warmth.
   

2. Ditch the snoresome opener‘Thanks for being a valued LinkedIn member.’ Total waste of real estate. I’d start with a question or a surprising stat instead to get attention.
   

3. Give a reason for the survey – but make it specifice.g. ‘Your input will help to decide which of two cool new programmes we launch this spring.’
   

4. Do your homeworkI don’t work in the energy sector.  
   

5. Offer a gift in advance to trigger reciprocityStudies show we respond better to gifts than rewards. So we’re far more likely to fill out a form if we’re given an incentive in advance, rather than a reward afterwards.
   

6. Make it short and oddLinkedIn does well to share how long the survey will take.  Even better would be an odd number – science shows uneven numbers are more believable: ‘Just 76 seconds of your time.’
   

7. Sprinkle in some contrast‘That’s less time than it takes you to boot up your computer in the morning.’
   

8. Get weirdWe get asked for feedback all the time. So what can you do to stand out or put a smile on people’s faces? A funny image? A weird subject line?  An unconventional gift?‘As a thank you we’ve adopted an axolotl at London Zoo in your name. Did you know they can regrow almost any body part multiple times…?’

What have I missed? Hit reply to tell me what you’d improve. Or am I starting 2026 off too grumpy?