This article will guide you step by step to create a SaaS customer survey about renewal intent. With Specific, you can quickly build a ready-to-launch survey in seconds—no hassle, just actionable insights.
Steps to create a survey for SaaS customers about renewal intent
If you want to save time, just click this link to generate a survey with Specific. AI makes it possible to rapidly compose targeted, expert-curated semantic surveys.
Tell what survey you want.
Done.
You don’t even need to read further to start. The AI survey builder creates your survey with expert knowledge, even automatically adding follow-up questions that help you capture deeper insights from every respondent. If you’d like to customize or create your own, the Specific survey tool makes it simple, too.
Why a SaaS customer renewal intent survey really matters
Ignoring your customers’ renewal intentions is risky. If you’re not actively running these surveys, you’re missing opportunities to boost retention and spot issues before they become problems.
Customer-centric companies are 60% more profitable than those who don’t prioritize feedback. When you listen, act, and adapt, loyal customers follow. [1]
Half of all consumers say their expectations for service have climbed in just the past year. If you’re not adapting to this heightened bar, somebody else will. [1]
That’s why the importance of a SaaS customer renewal intent survey can’t be overstated—it’s your ticket to understanding churn signals, identifying upsell opportunities, and gauging how well your product is delivering on its promises. The benefits of regular SaaS customer feedback are clear: better retention, improved features, and a higher rate of long-term renewals. If you want actionable, real-world feedback, these surveys are essential—not optional.
Still not convinced? Consider this: If you’re not engaging your users with targeted questions that dig into renewal intent, you’re leaving hidden risks and huge growth levers untouched. And it’s never been easier to get started—with AI survey generators, you can close the loop today.
What makes a good survey on renewal intent?
Gathering real insights means designing a survey that encourages candid answers. Clarity and honest tone matter as much as data structure. Here’s what works best with renewal intent surveys for SaaS customers:
Clear, unbiased questions: The wording must be easy to understand, neutral, and not leading. This reduces confusion and increases the accuracy of your data. It’s key to remove bias—anything less skews your results. [5]
Conversational tone: When your survey feels like a natural chat rather than an exam, people open up. Honest, nuanced feedback comes from engaging in a relaxed, friendly format.
Keep it short and sweet: Surveys longer than 15 questions? Most users won’t finish. Aim for 5–10 targeted questions so you don’t lose them. [3]
Mobile-first design: Over 70% of respondents now complete surveys on mobile. If your survey feels clunky on a phone, response rates suffer. [4]
Bad practice | Good practice |
|---|---|
Piling on 20+ questions in one go | Focused on 5–10 key questions |
Complex, leading wording | Simple, unbiased language |
No follow-up questions or context | Conversational, with smart clarifying loops |
No mobile optimization | Fully mobile-friendly format |
The best measure of a good survey? High quantity and quality of responses. Without both, your analysis and next steps are guesses—not informed decisions.
Key question types and examples for a SaaS customer renewal intent survey
Mixing the right question types is what unlocks a 360-degree view of your users. A robust renewal intent survey combines close-ended, open-ended, and scale-based questions. This blend, recommended in best practices [5], leads to better, more actionable data.
Open-ended questions prompt users to explain, describe, or elaborate in their own words. Use them to explore context and motivations. This is great for early signals, deep dives, or when you want to learn what’s truly on your customer’s mind. For example:
What is the single most important factor in your decision to renew your subscription?
Can you describe a recent experience that nearly led you to cancel your subscription?
Single-select multiple-choice questions help you quickly capture structured data—ideal for identifying major trends or bottlenecks. Example:
Which of these best describes your current plan regarding renewal?
I plan to renew
I am undecided
I plan to cancel
My renewal depends on pricing/features
NPS (Net Promoter Score) question is a proven metric for customer loyalty and often serves as a renewal intent indicator. Use an NPS survey when you want to benchmark satisfaction and spot at-risk users. Want to generate an automatic NPS survey for SaaS customers about renewal intent? Try this template.
On a scale from 0 to 10, how likely are you to recommend our product to a friend or colleague?
Followup questions to uncover "the why" are critical after broad or ambiguous answers. Effective use of followups helps uncover the underlying story or motivation—which is where the gold is. For example:
Why do you feel that way about renewing your subscription?
What would make you more likely to renew?
Not sure how to design smart followups? Explore more question examples and pro tips for renewal intent surveys.
What is a conversational survey—and how is AI survey generation different?
A conversational survey isn’t just a boring list of questions. It’s a dynamic chat that adapts and probes, encouraging customers to talk openly—just like a face-to-face interview. Manual survey creation typically means wrestling with static forms, predefined logic, and endless branching headaches.
AI survey generation flips the script. Instead of building a rigid questionnaire, you describe your objective in everyday language and the AI instantly generates quality, unbiased questions (even smart follow-ups!). This makes the whole experience not just faster, but much more engaging for both creator and responder.
Manual surveys | AI-generated surveys |
|---|---|
Static, one-size-fits-all | Adapts to responses in real time |
Hard to customize, slow to launch | Launch-ready in seconds |
Little or no follow-up | Conversational, with context-aware follow-ups |
Tricky analysis of unstructured data | Instant AI-powered summaries and analytics |
Why use AI for SaaS customer surveys? You get more truthful feedback, higher completion rates, and way deeper insights at every step, especially on intent questions. According to industry research, customer feedback surveys deliver data that powers smart decisions, innovation, and bigger wins against competitors—if you build them right. [6]
The best part: Specific elevates the conversational survey experience, so both you and your customers find it painless, engaging, and lightning fast. For a step-by-step breakdown, check out our guide to creating a survey from scratch or using AI.
The power of follow-up questions
Follow-up questions transform basic answers into real insight. Instead of settling for a bland “I’m unsure if I’ll renew,” smart automated follow-ups (like those in Specific's followup feature) can dig deeper and clarify intent in real time.
SaaS customer: "I might not renew—depends on a few things."
AI follow-up: "Can you share which specific factors are making you unsure about renewing your subscription?"
These AI-driven probing questions often surface issues or opportunities your form-based survey would miss entirely. Include open-ended questions strategically; they often reveal hidden needs and unexpected risks.[7]
How many followups to ask? In most cases, 2–3 well-placed, context-aware follow-ups are ideal to uncover true motivation. If your respondent has already explained their "why," you can automate the process to skip ahead. In Specific, this behavior is easy to customize—just set your follow-up rules and let AI do the rest. Also, best practice is to use skip logic to keep respondents engaged without burning them out. [8]
This makes it a conversational survey—not just a Q&A session, but a two-way chat that feels effortless, natural, and much more likely to surface true intent.
AI-powered analysis, qualitative insights, and full context—all the unstructured responses you collect are easy to understand and summarize in minutes using AI survey response analysis tools. No manual sifting required.
These automated followup questions are a big leap forward for anyone running SaaS customer interviews. Try generating a survey now to see how easy—and powerful—this new approach can be.
See this renewal intent survey example now
Create your own survey in seconds and see how quickly you can generate deep, actionable insights with conversational and AI-powered follow-ups—no guesswork, just real customer understanding.