Sometimes, surveys can be fun. Of course they are more fun when completing one could result in a gift card, but even so I try to fill out as many surveys that come my way as possible. My favorites are when you get to express your displeasure – or great satisfaction – with a recent customer service transaction. I’m a big fan of giving people kudos when they’ve done a good job and alerting them when they have not.

The survey we sent out for this issue wasn’t exactly about rating a recent experience, but instead allowed us to gather information about our readers, with results that we think you’ll find rather interesting and at times unexpected. We asked some difficult questions (comparing pre- and post-recession incomes) and a few that people might not like the answers to (would you join your local association if you could sign up for the MLS elsewhere?), but in the end our goal was to get an accurate overview of some of the details about agents’ careers that they might not always want to openly share.

It’s always much easier to be honest when your opinions are anonymous, and that’s why these surveys are so useful to the magazine, as it helps us find out the truth about what agents are really thinking and doing. As an agent, I’m sure that you’ve polled your buyers to see what they thought of your service or what you can do to improve your business, and if you haven’t, now might be a good time to start.

I want to thank all of you who took our survey, and I’m anxious to hear your opinions on the results. It’s devastating to see how incomes have dropped in 2009 compared to pre-recession numbers, but perhaps when you see it has occurred across the board you can feel a little reassured. It also might be helpful to see how much other agents are spending on marketing, to determine if this is something you need to be adjusting as well. As a big proponent of continuing education, it was remarkable to see how many agents surveyed did not have any additional designations (55.28%) and also it was telling to see which were the most popular (a huge number of Accredited Distressed Property Representatives).

To see the full results of our survey, take a look at our cover story. As always, you do not have to wait until a survey pops up to let us know what you think about Chicago Agent. Shoot me an e-mail any time at zipporah@chicago.staging312.com, and you don’t even have to include your name.