Rant: I tried two ways to get people to ask real questions and one actually worked

For months, I just said 'ask me anything' at the end of my posts and got maybe one reply. Last week, I tried something different and ended a post with 'What's the dumbest question you were too scared to ask when you started?' Got 27 replies in two hours. The difference was giving a specific, weird example that made it feel safe to admit you didn't know something. Has anyone else found a prompt that actually gets people talking?

3 comments

3 Comments

craig.john19d ago

Read a marketing blog that called this "question priming." The idea is a totally open prompt makes people overthink. Giving a weird example gives them permission to be a bit silly or vulnerable. Your dumb question prompt is a perfect example of that in action. It frames not knowing as a shared experience instead of a weakness.

jamesf4119d ago

Oh great, now my dumb questions are a marketing tactic.

young.nora19d ago

Calling it "question priming" makes it sound so planned out. Honestly, most of the time someone just asks a weird question because they're actually curious. Turning everything into a strategy takes the fun out of it. It feels like we can't just be confused together anymore without someone calling it a tactic. The blog post is overthinking it. Sometimes a dumb question is just a dumb question.