Top 10 Best Practices: Mission Building
Over the years, our Customer Success Team has picked up a few tools of the trade when it comes to building and deploying effective Missions. Here are a few of their favorites:
1. Start with “why”
Prior to creating a mission, we recommend taking a moment to identify the critical data and key metrics you intend to capture. We’ve often found that the most meaningful and actionable data is the result of focused and intentional mission structure.
- Prior to creating a new task, ensure that the question you are asking is in line with your initial "why" for the mission.
- Still not sure whether to include a question? Ask yourself, what will I do with this data once collected? If it's not actionable, it might be unnecessary.
2. Keep it Short & Sweet
GoSpotCheck missions can take many forms, so it can be tempting to get carried away with the number of variety of questions contained within a single mission. We’ve found that in most cases, missions that are succinct, focusing on data that is most important, provide a better experience for users and admins alike.
- Admins have easier accessibility to the data and metrics that matter most (less clutter)
- Mobile App Users can complete more missions in less time
3. Consistency is Key
Mission Naming: Consider creating a consistent naming convention for your Missions to help your team understand the context, priority, or goal of each one, without having to click into it.
Task Format Consistency: Be consistent in the way you frame your task prompts across all Missions. For example:
- If you use a multiple choice question to rate the condition of an object as a) Poor, b) Average or c) Excellent, use the same language for all qualitative questions in that Mission and all other Missions
- Try to keep the preferred response consistent across your Yes/No tasks
- WRONG: Is the dining room clean? Yes/No AND Is the bathroom dirty? Yes/No
- RIGHT: Is the dining room clean? Yes/No AND Is the bathroom clean? Yes/No
4. Use Sections Wisely
Sections can be useful to break up a lengthy Mission, but careful not to go section-crazy! Each new section creates a additional tap for the user in order to get to the "task at hand", so we recommend using them to group tasks that represent:
- a change in activity (e.g. Manager Meeting vs. Merchandising Check)
- a change in the user's location in the store (e.g. Produce Section vs Dairy Section)
- the passing of time (e.g Pre-event activities vs. During-event activities)
5. Start with a Yes/No Task
One of the most powerful ways to create smarter missions is to use Conditional Tasks. These tasks allow you to collect follow-up data, based on an answer to a previous question. It's a good idea to begin a new question series with a Yes/No question, to confirm whether or not the item in question is present at all. If the response is Yes, you can add conditional tasks to collect supporting details surrounding that item. If it's No, add a conditional multiple choice task allowing the rep to indicate why the item is not present.
6. Use descriptive task titles in conditional tasks
Remember those quizzes from middle school where you were required to answer the question in a complete sentence? This is just like that! We recommend including the name of the item that a conditional task is referencing as part of the task title so that it is crystal clear to the representative what data they ought to be capturing. For example:
1. Which displays are present at this location? a) Apple Bins b) Orange Bins c) Watermelon Bins
1.1 Take a photo Take a photo of the Apple Bins
1.2 Take a photo Take a photo of the Orange Bins
This strategy is also really important when it comes to GoSpotCheck Reporting; descriptive task titles make it possible for anyone user analyzing the data to more quickly understand the context of the data (without having to refer back to the parent task).
7. Limit Short Answer Tasks
Short answer tasks can be useful to capture observations in the field, however, these free field responses are not quantifiable. We recommend limiting Short Answer Tasks within missions, instead favoring more quantifiable alternatives like Multiple Choice or Multiple Select tasks, populated with your most likely Short Answer responses.
Example:
1. “Is the apple bin on display?” Y/N
1.1 (on "No" response)
“Why isn’t the apple bin on display” (Multiple Choice)
a) Seasonal exclusion
b) Manager hasn’t put it out
c) Store not participating
d) Missed Deadline for Display
8. Use Scale Tasks for Small Ranges
When attempting to collect a range of data, the scale task is a great option, especially for small ranges (1-10). For larger ranges, consider using a Multiple Choice task, populated with number increments/ranges of the most likely responses. (Example: Multiple Choice Task (a. 1-5, b. 6-10, c. 11-15, etc). This allows for easier entry on the front end (less user fat-fingering), and better aggregation on the backend)
9. Deploy to a Test Team First
The very best way to understand how your Mission will fare out in the field, is to test it on your own mobile device! Experiencing the Mission you've created from the perspective of the team helps you to catch any inadvertent mistakes like typos, required questions that you intended to be optional, or even using the wrong task type (e.g. Multiple Choice instead of Multiple Select). Those mistakes, though less obvious in the dashboard, become extremely obvious to your users in the Mobile App. Deploying the Mission to a Test Team first (even if that team is just you!), helps you identify and correct these errors before they reach your team.
10. Perfect your Reports
While you're at it, go ahead and submit your Mission Response. When you head back to the Mission Overview page, take a look at the way your tasks are reported. Are they telling the right story? Do the task tiles represent information that you care to review and share? Next, export your data to XLS or CSV format and review the way it is formatted. Will the data provide you with the right information to act? If the answers to any of these questions is NO, now is the time to modify and improve your questions.
Return to your Mission to edit and repeat the process until you have a Mission that meets the needs of your organization.
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NEW MISSION BUILDER - GENERAL AVAILABILITY COMING SOON
CONTENTS
Top 10 Best Practices: Mission Building
6. Use descriptive task titles in conditional tasks
8. Use Scale Tasks for Small Ranges
9. Deploy to a Test Team First
Top 10 Best Practices: Mission Building
Over the years, our Customer Success Team has picked up a few tools of the trade when it comes to building and deploying effective Missions. Here are a few of their favorites:
1. Start with “why”
Prior to creating a mission, we recommend taking a moment to identify the critical data and key metrics you intend to capture. We’ve often found that the most meaningful and actionable data is the result of focused and intentional mission structure.
- Prior to creating a new task, ensure that the question you are asking is in line with your initial "why" for the mission.
- Still not sure whether to include a question? Ask yourself, what will I do with this data once collected? If it's not actionable, it might be unnecessary.
2. Keep it Short & Sweet
GoSpotCheck missions can take many forms, so it can be tempting to get carried away with the number of variety of questions contained within a single mission. We’ve found that in most cases, missions that are succinct, focusing on data that is most important, provide a better experience for users and admins alike.
- Admins have easier accessibility to the data and metrics that matter most (less clutter)
- Mobile App Users can complete more missions in less time
3. Consistency is Key
Mission Naming: Consider creating a consistent naming convention for your Missions to help your team understand the context, priority, or goal of each one, without having to click into it.
Task Format Consistency: Be consistent in the way you frame your task prompts across all Missions. For example:
- If you use a multiple choice question to rate the condition of an object as a) Poor, b) Average or c) Excellent, use the same language for all qualitative questions in that Mission and all other Missions
- Try to keep the preferred response consistent across your Yes/No tasks
- WRONG: Is the dining room clean? Yes/No AND Is the bathroom dirty? Yes/No
- RIGHT: Is the dining room clean? Yes/No AND Is the bathroom clean? Yes/No
4. Use Sections Wisely
Sections can be useful to break up a lengthy Mission, but careful not to go section-crazy! Each new section creates a additional tap for the user in order to get to the "task at hand", so we recommend using them to group tasks that represent:
- a change in activity (e.g. Manager Meeting vs. Merchandising Check)
- a change in the user's location in the store (e.g. Produce Section vs Dairy Section)
- the passing of time (e.g Pre-event activities vs. During-event activities)
5. Start with a Yes/No Task
One of the most powerful ways to create smarter missions is to use Conditional Tasks. These tasks allow you to collect follow-up data, based on an answer to a previous question. It's a good idea to begin a new question series with a Yes/No question, to confirm whether or not the item in question is present at all. If the response is Yes, you can add conditional tasks to collect supporting details surrounding that item. If it's No, add a conditional multiple choice task allowing the rep to indicate why the item is not present.
6. Use descriptive task titles in conditional tasks
Remember those quizzes from middle school where you were required to answer the question in a complete sentence? This is just like that! We recommend including the name of the item that a conditional task is referencing as part of the task title so that it is crystal clear to the representative what data they ought to be capturing. For example:
1. Which displays are present at this location? a) Apple Bins b) Orange Bins c) Watermelon Bins
1.1 Take a photo Take a photo of the Apple Bins
1.2 Take a photo Take a photo of the Orange Bins
This strategy is also really important when it comes to GoSpotCheck Reporting; descriptive task titles make it possible for anyone user analyzing the data to more quickly understand the context of the data (without having to refer back to the parent task).
7. Limit Short Answer Tasks
Short answer tasks can be useful to capture observations in the field, however, these free field responses are not quantifiable. We recommend limiting Short Answer Tasks within missions, instead favoring more quantifiable alternatives like Multiple Choice or Multiple Select tasks, populated with your most likely Short Answer responses.
Example:
1. “Is the apple bin on display?” Y/N
1.1 (on "No" response)
“Why isn’t the apple bin on display” (Multiple Choice)
a) Seasonal exclusion
b) Manager hasn’t put it out
c) Store not participating
d) Missed Deadline for Display
8. Use Scale Tasks for Small Ranges
When attempting to collect a range of data, the scale task is a great option, especially for small ranges (1-10). For larger ranges, consider using a Multiple Choice task, populated with number increments/ranges of the most likely responses. (Example: Multiple Choice Task (a. 1-5, b. 6-10, c. 11-15, etc). This allows for easier entry on the front end (less user fat-fingering), and better aggregation on the backend)
9. Deploy to a Test Team First
The very best way to understand how your Mission will fare out in the field, is to test it on your own mobile device! Experiencing the Mission you've created from the perspective of the team helps you to catch any inadvertent mistakes like typos, required questions that you intended to be optional, or even using the wrong task type (e.g. Multiple Choice instead of Multiple Select). Those mistakes, though less obvious in the dashboard, become extremely obvious to your users in the Mobile App. Deploying the Mission to a Test Team first (even if that team is just you!), helps you identify and correct these errors before they reach your team.
10. Perfect your Reports
While you're at it, go ahead and submit your Mission Response. When you head back to the Mission Overview page, take a look at the way your tasks are reported. Are they telling the right story? Do the task tiles represent information that you care to review and share? Next, export your data to XLS or CSV format and review the way it is formatted. Will the data provide you with the right information to act? If the answers to any of these questions is NO, now is the time to modify and improve your questions.
Return to your Mission to edit and repeat the process until you have a Mission that meets the needs of your organization.