It is possible to survey your customers unobtrusively
in your place of business, via the use of simple survey cards. A classic
example is to present a survey survey with the bill in a restaurant. The only draw-back
of this approach is the reliability of data, due to the lack of control
over sampling, which can create negative bias in your results. However,
it's easy to run and so worth considering.
The proactive approach involves contacting customers directly with a survey. This can be done via the phone, mail or by a researcher at your business location. This is better for sampling and allow you to include more questions, but it does have the disadvantage of increased cost.