Engagement Questions for Social Media: Types and Examples

Have you ever experienced the “engagement question trap”?

It’s easy to spot: You’re scrolling through your feed and stop by a post that combines a video or picture with an eye-catching question. It’s usually a vague question, like “What is wrong with this picture?”, or “What do you see here?”.

Then, you pause and click into the comments to see what others say as you consider your answer. But as seconds pass, you realize there’s nothing intriguing about the video or picture.

You just experienced the engagement question trap, a common engagement farming tactic to make you linger long enough for the algorithm to notice.

And yet, engagement questions are more than bait.

They can be used to start conversations and drive growth, and that’s what we’ll explore today: Different types and examples of engagement questions.

Before we break down the types of questions that work – and how to craft them – let’s look at the concept of engagement in social media.

What is engagement in social media?

Social media engagement refers to how users interact with content. It can be quantified by likes, shares, comments, clicks, niche metrics like saved posts, and advanced ones like share of voice (SOV).

There are different tones of engagement, at least in terms of importance.

For instance, likes and shares are easy to track but they aren’t the most meaningful interactions.

Comments and conversations, on the other hand, tend to indicate deeper engagement (and that’s why we say that the comment is the content).

In short, social media engagement is more about actions and behaviors that reflect connection and participation, and less about quick clicks and doom scrolling.

What are engagement questions for social media?

Engagement questions are prompts that encourage users to interact with your social media content.

They drive people to take action (i.e. replying, sharing, and checking other people’s responses), which turn into the metrics social platforms crave.

How questions drive engagement on social media

Questions are an effective engagement driver because they flip the script from passive consumption (scrolling, watching) to active participation (liking, sharing, commenting).

When people come across a question, they’re inclined to respond: It’s human nature to share opinions, advice, and experiences.

This participation turns posts into conversations (at least, in the “eyes” of algorithms).

So, the strength of engagement questions lies in their capacity to:

• Encourage user-generated content: When brands ask questions, some share their stories, photos, and ideas. At times, you’ll get insights in the responses.
• Create conversation space: Questions are designed to provoke thought, generate back-and-forth discussions, and make people feel involved and connected.
• Build community: Questions bring people together, invite participation, and make them feel like their responses matter – all catalysts for engagement.

Types of engagement questions (with examples)

Since we’re here to inform and assist your creative process (hopefully), let’s look at different types of engagement questions and real-world examples.

Interactive questions (polls or surveys)

These questions encourage users to make quick decisions, giving them a sense of involvement in your brand’s direction.

Polls are low-effort but high-reward in terms of engagement. Below, an example of a poll posted by Reddit on LinkedIn:

Opinion-based questions

These questions invite users to share their thoughts and preferences. They boost engagement and also allow you to gather valuable feedback.

An example of an opinion-based question, courtesy of the freelancing platform Upwork:

Experience-sharing questions

These questions are designed to tap into shared experiences and personal takes. Relatable questions often lead to higher engagement because they feel personal.

Fun/trivia questions

Trivia and fun questions are meant to break the routine. While not necessarily industry-specific, they encourage people to interact without overthinking.

A recent example from AI company Turing, below:

In short, using a mix of questions is a good way to keep content fresh and audiences engaged. You won’t always hit gold, but the right question can open the floodgates to user interaction, providing insights into your followers’ preferences and opinions.

Conclusion: Best practices for using engagement questions

Like any tool, engagement questions must be used with intention – and ideally, with good intention.

It’s tempting to ask gimmicky questions and rack up metrics, but this can easily erode trust.

Real questions are more likely to turn into real conversations, encourage community participation, and provide value (even if just quick entertainment value) to the audience.

To conclude – when crafting engagement questions, keep these tips in mind:

• Make your questions easy to understand: Your audience’s time is valuable. Straightforward questions will naturally get more responses.
• Understand the goal behind your question: Each question serves a purpose. It can be gathering feedback or just lightening the mood, but it’s important to get this before posting a question.
• Test and experiment: Try different types of questions and see how your audience responds. You’ll soon discover the formats and tones that work best.

Finally, don’t hesitate to draw inspiration from real-life examples. Look at how top brands use questions to connect with their followers.

And remember: The best engagement questions make your brand look genuinely curious, and your audience feel heard.