The Token Exit Poll is the quickest feedback you’ll ever collect. Everyone gets a token, and on the way out they drop it into one of two or three buckets: good and bad, or good, okay and bad. Count the tokens afterwards and you know how the session went, without a single form.
It suits events, drop-ins, conferences and open days, where people leave at different times and won’t stop to fill in a survey. Because it’s anonymous and takes seconds, you’ll usually get far more responses than from a questionnaire. Pair it with an Exit Ticket if you’d also like to know why people voted the way they did.
Method
Set up the containers by the exit, give everyone a token, and count the tokens once people have gone.
Step 1: Set up the buckets
Place two or three containers by the exit, labelled with a word and a simple face: good and bad, or good, okay and bad. Put one short question above them, such as ‘How was today?’ or ‘Would you come again?’.
Step 2: Hand out the tokens
Give each person one token as they arrive or towards the end, and explain the poll in a sentence. Remind people just before you close, so nobody leaves with a token in their pocket.
Step 3: Count and share
Count the tokens once everyone has left, and take a photo for your records. If you run regular sessions, keep a tally so you can see how the results change over time, and share them with the group or the organisers.
Outcome
A quick, honest and anonymous snapshot of how people felt about the session or event, usually with a much higher response rate than a feedback form.
Tips for Facilitators
- Keep the question simple: ask one question only, with answers anyone can understand at a glance.
- Protect the anonymity: put the containers where people can vote without being watched, and use ones with a lid and a slot if people might feel self-conscious.
- Try three buckets: a middle option gives people somewhere to go if the session was fine but not great, so the good and bad results mean more.
- Ask why separately: the tokens tell you what people thought, not why. Leave sticky notes and a pen nearby for anyone who wants to add a comment.
Variations
- Two questions: give people two tokens in different colours, for example one for the content and one for the venue.
- Score out of five: use five containers numbered one to five for a simple rating.
- Dot stickers: if you don’t have tokens, people add a sticker to a chart by the door instead, in the style of dot voting.
Accessibility and Online Sessions
Place the containers at a height everyone can reach, including wheelchair users, and use large, high-contrast labels with words as well as faces. Online, an anonymous one-question poll in the last minute of the session does the same job.
