Choosing the Right Survey Workflow: Public Link, Participant List, ASI, Survey Queue, and Alerts
REDCap offers several tools that can automate survey distribution, participant progression, and study notifications. These tools are powerful, but they are often confused because they solve different parts of the workflow. This page is designed to help you quickly determine which tool to use and when.
Core Principle: Before configuring automation, decide whether your primary need is to share a survey, send an invitation, guide participants to the next survey, or notify someone when data conditions are met.
Important: These tools can work together, but they are not interchangeable. Most setup problems happen when a study team uses the wrong tool for the job.
Quick Decision Checklist:
- Use Public Survey Link when you need one shared link
- Use Participant List when you know who should receive the survey
- Use ASI when survey invitations should be sent automatically
- Use Survey Queue when participants need to move through multiple surveys in sequence
- Use Alerts & Notifications when someone should be notified based on data conditions
On this page
The Big Picture
These REDCap tools serve different purposes:
- Public Survey Link gives you a shared survey URL
- Participant List gives you one-time participant-specific invitation links
- Automated Survey Invitations (ASI) schedule and send survey invitations automatically
- Survey Queue controls what survey a participant sees next
- Alerts & Notifications send automated messages when defined conditions are met
Simple framework:
How do I share the survey? → Public Survey Link or Participant List
How do I send it automatically? → ASI
How do I guide people to the next survey? → Survey Queue
How do I notify someone based on data? → Alerts & Notifications
How do I share the survey? → Public Survey Link or Participant List
How do I send it automatically? → ASI
How do I guide people to the next survey? → Survey Queue
How do I notify someone based on data? → Alerts & Notifications
Automation Comparison Table
| Tool | Main Purpose | Best For | Sends Email? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Public Survey Link | One shared survey link | Anonymous or open-access surveys | No |
| Participant List | Participant-specific links | Known participants and response tracking | Yes |
| ASI | Automatically send survey invitations | Follow-up invitations and scheduled outreach | Yes |
| Survey Queue | Guide participant progression | Multi-survey workflows in one record | No |
| Alerts & Notifications | Send messages based on data conditions | Internal workflow notifications and conditional messaging | Yes |
Public Survey vs Participant List
| Feature | Public Survey Link | Participant List / Invitation Log |
|---|---|---|
| Main purpose | Shared survey access | Participant-specific invitations |
| Best for | Anonymous or broad distribution | Known participants and tracked responses |
| Unique link per person | No | Yes |
| Tracks who responded | No, unless identifiers are collected in the survey | Yes |
| Supports reminders | No | Yes |
Simple rule: Use Public Survey Link when you do not need to track who responded. Use Participant List when you need to send surveys to specific individuals and track response status.
Important: Once you use participant email addresses or identifiers to support follow-up surveys, the workflow is no longer truly anonymous.
Survey Queue vs ASI
| Feature | Survey Queue | ASI |
|---|---|---|
| Main purpose | Control what survey appears next | Control when a survey invitation is sent |
| Sends emails | No | Yes |
| Best for | Participant navigation through multiple surveys | Scheduled or logic-based invitation delivery |
| Typical use case | Eligibility → Consent → Baseline | Send follow-up survey 7 days after baseline |
Simple rule: Use Survey Queue to guide participants through surveys. Use ASI to send surveys automatically.
Alerts vs ASI
| Feature | Alerts & Notifications | ASI |
|---|---|---|
| Main purpose | Send automated emails or notifications based on data conditions | Send automated survey invitations |
| Requires a survey | No | Yes |
| Typical use | Notify staff or participants based on data | Deliver survey invitations on a schedule |
Simple rule: Use ASI when the goal is “send this survey.” Use Alerts when the goal is “notify someone that something happened.”
Common Workflow Patterns
1. Anonymous one-time survey
Use Public Survey Link.
2. Invite known participants by email
Use Participant List.
3. Send a follow-up survey automatically after baseline
Use ASI.
4. Guide someone through multiple surveys in one workflow
Use Survey Queue.
5. Notify study staff when a participant meets criteria
Use Alerts & Notifications.
6. Public recruitment followed by tracked follow-up
Use Public Survey Link for the first contact survey, collect a validated email field if appropriate, then transition to Participant List and/or ASI for subsequent linked surveys.
Best Practice: Most complex studies use more than one of these tools. The key is knowing which tool solves which part of the workflow.
Common Mistakes
- Using Survey Queue when the study really needs ASI
- Using Alerts as a substitute for survey invitations
- Using a Public Survey Link when individual tracking is needed
- Assuming Participant List workflows remain anonymous after identifiers or email linkage are introduced
- Combining too many automation tools without mapping the workflow first
Important: If the team cannot clearly explain why each automation tool is being used, the workflow is probably more complex than it needs to be.
Which One Should I Use?
- I need one public link anyone can use. → Public Survey Link
- I need to email specific people and track responses. → Participant List
- I need REDCap to send the next survey automatically. → ASI
- I need participants to move through multiple surveys in sequence. → Survey Queue
- I need a notification when something in the data happens. → Alerts & Notifications
Final Takeaway: The best survey automation workflow is usually not the most advanced one. It is the one that clearly matches the study’s needs, minimizes confusion, and is easy for the team to manage consistently.