Tip Tuesday: Struggling to get replies? Try framing your questions like this...

EmilyN
EmilyN HLV Staff
edited October 29 in Talk Community #1

Hey Vanilla Community,

It’s Tip Tuesday, and today’s tip comes from my perspective as a content marketer, pulling from some copywriting techniques. Let’s talk about how to drive better engagement from your community posts.

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Whether you’re prompting a conversation or genuinely looking for advice, try opening with a specific example or scenario. It grabs attention and gives people something concrete to relate to.

Here’s an example:

  • Broad: "What’s the best way to welcome new members?"
  • Specific: “If a new member joins but doesn’t post in their first week, what’s worked for you to encourage that first interaction? Do you have a specific message that gets a response?"

Notice how the second version gives just a bit more context, making it easier for others to jump in with their experiences. Here’s another:

  • Broad: "How do you encourage members to share feedback?"
  • Specific: "If you're rolling out a new feature and getting crickets from your power users, what tactics have helped you drive meaningful feedback? Have you used polls, direct outreach, or other strategies to get them talking?"

A few things to keep in mind:

  • This works best when asking for best practices, rather than technical questions.
  • Apply this to the body of your post. For titles, you have fewer characters, so keep it concise but descriptive. Framing the title as a question helps invite more input, e.g., "Engaging members during product launch" vs. "How are you engaging members around your upcoming launch?"
  • Stick to the copywriting rule of one: focus on a single topic or goal. Asking too much at once dilutes the post and makes people less likely to respond.

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Comments

  • Kelly D
    Kelly D Vanilla Bean
    #2

    These are really great tips, thanks for sharing 😃

  • Hopoatem
    Hopoatem Vanilla Sprout
    #3

    I like the best practice vs technical distinction here. @borme

  • HollyR
    HollyR Vanilla Flower
    #4

    Good tips! When doing member interview-style blogs, another trick that has worked well for me is to start with a statement and then add the question. I've found it helps the interviewee to frame their thought process and answer.

    There are multiple ways to solve problem XYZ. What approach has worked well for you in ABC scenario?

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