Dot Voting

Dot voting is a fast and easy polling system used to bring out a group's opinions regarding the highest priority items on a list. The technique is called “Dot Voting” because, in face-to-face meetings, votes are cast by placing a sticky-dot or using markers to make a dot next to an item posted on the wall. Each meeting participant gets a fixed number of votes (or dots) that they can cast however they want; they can place all their votes on the same item if they wish, or vote for several different items. This allows participants to vote for multiple options, and reveals relative priorities rather than declaring any single item a “winner.” Everyone places their dots at once. After participants place all their dots, the leader counts the dots to identify the preferred options. The items with the most dots rank highest.