We’ve all seen quick online polls on news sites, in our email, and on social networking sites.

While the purpose of these polls is often for entertainment the way they are executed is often too similar to that of real surveys – anyone can take it and can take it as many times as they want.  Take this example of a Time Magazine ‘Most Influential’ poll.  While it was obvious in this case that the poll was rigged, would be as obvious in your own survey if someone with  a strong opinion – or just a weird sense of humor – decided to skew the results?

Be careful how you execute your surveys and control who can take them (and how many times).  Unless, of course, you’re only conducting research for sheer entertainment.