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An AMA (Ask Me Anything) lives up to its name: It's a casual Q&A session where you answer questions from supporters and fans. These conversations are great ways to share news or promote your work. It’s also a chance to help your audience know you on a personal level and make them feel like they have a stake in your content.
AMA sessions can be written via comment threads or a forum’s message board, pre-recorded audio or video, or a live video stream. Read on for advice for choosing your AMA goals and format, and tips on how to have a rewarding conversation.
Set a goal for your AMA
When doing an AMA, it’s best to map out what you want to get out of your session, even if your goals are broad. This will help you promote your session and prepare for the discussion. It also ensures your audience knows what to expect from the conversation.
You don’t need a special occasion to do an AMA. In fact, some people feel more connected to their followers by having regular check-ins. However, an AMA is a particularly good thing to schedule when you:
Have exciting news to share: Followers like hearing news directly from you, because it feels more personal.
Want to promote something: Doing an AMA can give supporters a chance to ask you questions about your content and make your audience feel special by giving them real-time access to you.
Are looking for opinions from your followers: If you’re considering trying something new and want feedback or you’re trying to gauge the response to a new initiative, you can get insights quickly.
Decide which AMA format to use
Not everyone is comfortable talking off-the-cuff or being on video. Thankfully, AMAs can also be written out, recorded in advance, or audio-only.
The concept of a written AMAs became popular thanks to the online forum Reddit. A Reddit AMA involves someone partnering with the platform and making themselves available for an interview at a specific time. Users join and type in questions for the guest of honor to answer.
Today, all sorts of creative people take part in AMAs, and if you want to host a Reddit AMA, it’s easy and open to anybody with a registered and verified Reddit account. You can also run an Ask Me Anything session on Instagram. The platform offers an easy template for Instagram Stories where you can ask people to submit questions. You can post reminders leading up to your AMA so followers know when to ask questions. You can also host an AMA in the comments on your posts or via Instagram Live.
That said, AMA sessions can happen on any platform you want. For example, you could:
Live stream with a webinar tool and invite people to pop in and out
Take questions and answer them on a live or pre-recorded podcast
Share a written AMA on your own website or newsletter
Squarespace makes it easy to turn AMAs into a premium content feature in a paywalled Member Site. This also helps you build more personal relationships with your dedicated subscribers. You can take questions from followers and then answer them in any format, then post your answers in this paywalled area. Or you can schedule a live Q&A in this area as a regular perk or bonus.
5 tips for running an AMA conversation
There’s an art to doing interviews, even if you’re naturally outgoing. When doing an AMA, this is doubly true, because you might be talking about your content or business in addition to sharing more about yourself.
Here are five tips for a successful AMA:
Do a practice run. It can be intimidating to go live on a social media platform, because technical issues do happen. Don’t be afraid to do a practice run, especially if it’s your first time.
Don’t feel pressured to go it alone. The Q&A format encourages creators to speak directly to followers. However, you might be more comfortable having a friend or peer acting as moderator or on hand for technical help.
Set conversation boundaries. It’s always helpful to set guidelines to structure your conversation and stay on track. For example, maybe you only have 30 minutes to dedicate for an AMA, or you are only looking to answer questions about a certain topic.
Be sure to listen. A good conversation involves a give-and-take between two people. Above all, pay attention to the questions (and follow-up responses) during an AMA, so you’re tailoring your answers accordingly.
Approve questions in advance. It’s not a requirement, but you can take questions for your AMAs in advance. This is helpful if there are specific topics you want to avoid.