If maps and GIS are part of your job, it's often easy to forget that for many, digital mapping can appear complicated. Maptionnaire offers many options for mapping questions, here's how to best use them to ensure accessibility:
-
Avoid map spaghetti
A common pitfall is to overload the map with layers representing existing features and proposed changes. The aim here is good: to provide information. However, the result is often a messy heap of polygons and lines in all colors of the rainbow.
Example of map spaghetti If you cannot leave them out, consider starting the survey with a couple of pages without any questions where you simply introduce the information. Use a simple basemap on the pages where the mapping is done, with the more detailed map layers as optional add-ons in the legend.
Another good option would be to present the maps as a separate webpage (Communicate subscription).
How to: Simply split the map layers onto several survey pages, and provide information using content elements like heading, text and images – or even video clips. It's completely fine to have survey pages without any questions! Remember to edit the legend – you can even set it to be visible by default.
-
Placing pins is easier than drawing lines
It's usually clear what area the respondent means, even if they use a simple point to mark it on the map. You can always ask them to provide further clarification in the follow-up questions.
Similarly, when it comes to drawing routes, think what it is that you really want to know. Are you interested in learning the specific routes they take, or where they are going, when and why? Ask them to map their starting point and the destination with pins! This is what Helsinki Region Transport Authority did in their 2024 survey: take a peek at the results here.
Sometimes you may actually be interested in the exact routes respondents take. If there's a limited number of them, consider if you could just show them on the map and have respondents select the ones they use most often.
How to: Map point, Select map
-
Enable hopping between different scales
Another common problem is that when accessing the survey, the respondents are shown a map of very large area, such as a city or even the entire state – but they are asked to scale their answers to the neighborhood level. This requires considerable zooming and orienting on the map. Make it easier for them by adding a simple zoom-to-location question, e.g. a list of all districts, with the map zooming to it when selected.
How to: Zoom to Location
-
Click and select
Instead of asking respondents to place pins or draw areas or routes, show them a map with features that they can simply click to select. E.g. Want to know which parks respondents go to? Add a shapefile layer containing all the parks in the city, and have them click and select the ones they visit. If you want them to respond to questions related to features, ask them in a pop-up.
How to: Respondent selects areas from the map (Select map); Respondent selects + answers follow-up questions (Pop-up map)
-
Help respondents navigate by adding points of interest
Add clearly labeled landmarks or key context areas on the map as overlay layers. For this, you can utilize Map Overlays or Pop-up Maps to help respondents orient themselves and focus on the relevant features.
How to: Add pop-up features to a map (Pop-up map/Click maps)
-
Sometimes, you just need to get rid of the map
We love it when customers use the mapping features, but you can overdo it. Remember, the simpler, the better. E.g. if you want people to tell which town they live in, there's no point in having them select the town's polygon on the map.