A visual preference survey (VPS) is a tool that allows citizens to rate visual concepts of existing and non-existing types of building designs, landscape characteristics, community fabric, architectural styles, signs, growth patterns, etc. Visual preference surveys assist communities in determining which components of a policy, plan, or project contributes positively to a community's overall image, sense of place, historic character, and surrounding environment. Once the visual concepts are developed, an all-inclusive public forum or other specialized public gathering provides the community with the opportunity to review, study, and comment on their preferences for the features depicted by the visual representations.

Providing the public with a broad and relatively inexpensive range of options for depicting community features helps citizens, merchants, planners, and others visualize the type of growth and development that they desire for their communities. When starting the vps process it is important to set a baseline and establish a common ground from which to start. The first part of any survey should include depictions of what the community looks like now and how it appeared in the past.

These images will better prepare citizens to decide what they like or dislike about the current community fabric, and what they would like to see changed. The actual technique may rely on sketches, photographs, computer images, or similar mediums that provide the basis for participants to rate or assess each visual depiction on a preference scale.

The format for the visual preference survey can be a written ballot, a structured set of self-administered questions, a facilitated discussion, a focus group format, an online survey, or used as part of another preference collection approach (e.g., handheld/instant voting techniques such as those available at www.placematters.com). When administering a visual preference survey, importance should be placed on objective feedback by allowing the voting to be anonymous.

Public participation will be dependant on the type of outreach performed and the level of excitement generated by the process. As with most public processes, there is no strict recipe for attaining full community participation, so ensure that people's voices are heard and that their opinions make a difference.

The results of the survey will provide insights and direction to the planning agency on the preferences of the sampled group. Based on the objectives of the survey and the representation of the community in the sampled group, the planning agency may make key decisions on the preferred types of project design features, studies, or plans. The results of the survey also serve as the catalyst for further discussions, helps to educate the public about the design or plan choices, and offers an alternative form of collecting public input and feedback. The visual preference survey offers the most complete and clear picture of a community's wishes and desires regarding the fabric of the environment that surrounds them.