You can spend all the money in the world on marketing and still wouldn't be able to read your audience's mind. Polls and surveys are a gold mine for learning what your audience wants and gaining other valuable information. A poll is a simple tool that asks one question, typically with multiple-choice options, whereas a survey is a series of questions that gather more nuanced answers, providing deeper insights than polls. Surveys can be used to understand the broader "why" and "how," while polls are best for quick opinions or preference. When deciding between a poll and a survey, consider customer time, question quantity, and purpose. To run effective polls and surveys, ask close-ended questions, keep them short and simple, limit options, have a "don't know"/"does not apply" option, and only ask one question. For surveys, rely on loyal customers, don't forget about prospects, tell respondents what to expect, use the right question types, lean on your survey app for help, always have a short-answer section, and use branching and logic. Automation can also be used to feed responses directly into a platform of your choosing. By understanding the differences between polls and surveys and learning how to structure them effectively, you'll be well on your way to understanding your audience.