One of the 18 Rules of Community Engagement I outline in my book is simply “Ask Questions.” I believe that people want to express their opinions and asking questions is a sure way to get them to do so. Throw in your own personal story before asking the question and you may strike gold. I’ve gotten many great conversations started that way in the community I manage. It is quite effective.
But I am noticing a trend among bloggers, some that I really respect, and that is ending every blog post with a question.
Come on! Do you always have to ask what we think about something or ask us to contribute to the list that you’ve developed or provide additional steps for whatever it is you’re providing steps for? We will probably do that anyway, so it really isn’t necessary. Not for every post. And my favorite is “What did I miss?” If you know you missed something then maybe you should spend a little more time thinking it through and give us your complete thoughts on the topic at hand before hitting “publish.”
I know that asking questions is a way to ask for input and it really is effective in many cases but lately it has felt like you are trying to crowdsource almost everything and I am just asking you to reconsider that approach.
See what else you can do to keep us engaged. We follow you because you’re smart. Now dazzle us.
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November 21, 2009 at 3:16 am
Shane
The majority of blogs our there offer more opinion-based content than factual information; everybody already knows Oprah’s quitting in a couple of years, for instance, it’s what the pundit de jour has to say about it that generates blog traffic.
Questions may well seem like the fast route to get that comment number rising, but they’re a natural avenue to generate discourse.
From a commercial perspective, the easier marketers make it for their target audience to respond, the more time users are spent on their site, exposed to their brand and thinking about their product.
It may well seem like crowdsourcing, but is that necessarily a bad thing? (Deliberate end question intended.)
November 21, 2009 at 3:15 pm
Angela Connor
Hi Shane: Absolutely not a bad thing. Again I find asking questions to be a very effective method of engagement. What I’m saying in this post is that it would be nice to switch it up sometimes. I don’t think EVERY post should be a question. And again, that’s just me. You make very valid points.
November 24, 2009 at 1:17 pm
Martin Reed
Sometimes I’ll ask questions at the end of my articles – not to raise the comment count, but because I am generally interested in what my readers have to say.
I’ll even admit that I am pretty sure I’ve used the phrase, ‘What did I miss?’ – I don’t say that because I know I’ve missed something. I say it because I know everyone thinks differently (hopefully) and I want the comments section of my blog to create new ideas that benefit both my readers and myself.
Yes, I understand your view that always asking questions gets a little boring – however I don’t think there is anything wrong with actively prompting people to think about a specific issue and share their thoughts.
November 27, 2009 at 12:28 pm
Angela Connor
Oh you are absolutely right, Martin. I agree with you. There is nothing wrong with it and I think questions are a great tactic for engagement. I just think that some people think all they have to do is write a one-liner and then ask a question to get the ball rolling. That’s all.