8 Instagram poll ideas to get followers’ attention

Clicking through Stories, scrolling through pictures – it’s easy for Instagram users to interact with the accounts they follow passively.

Unexciting content is swiped past and forgotten without a second thought. But if you’re a content creator or business aiming to build relationships with your followers, enticing them to engage with your posts is crucial. After all, engagement means a stronger relationship with your audience and a bigger platform on the app.

Instagram Story polls are a great way to grab viewers’ attention and refresh your feed. They’re quick and easier to interact with – all it takes is the press of a button – and each tap boosts the Story within Instagram’s algorithm.

Not sure where to start? Check out these eight attention-grabbing Instagram poll ideas to improve your engagement.

What are Instagram polls?

In August 2016, Instagram launched its “Stories” feature, a close copycat of the popular Snapchat function with the same name. Unlike posts, which are permanent fixtures on your profile (until you delete them), Stories are photos and videos that last just 24 hours before disappearing forever. Users view stories by tapping on an account’s profile photo or clicking through content in the top bar of the app’s home screen.

Within Stories, users can create interactive posts using Instagram’s poll feature. Polls are “stickers” you add to a Story slide that allow viewers to offer their opinions on a topic. There are several types of polls, including “this-or-that” style questions, multiple choice quizzes and longer-form written responses.

Why you should use polls for Instagram

Unless you answer all your DMs and reply to every comment and tag, chances are your Instagram audience feels a little disconnected from you. Polls are an excellent way to bridge that gap – they’re simple to create and don’t require hours spent responding to people one-on-one.

Most importantly, Story polls increase engagement. It’s one thing to skip past a Story slide after a second-long glance and another to stop, read and share your opinion. When your audience frequently spends time on your Stories, your brand becomes more recognizable and your content more valuable. In other words, people will start paying closer attention to you. This means more likes and shares and a better appeal to Insta’s algorithm.

You can also learn more about your audience through polls and glean free, invaluable feedback. For example, a design brand that asks followers which they prefer on their latest piece of furniture learns about its potential customers’ preferences. This information can help the business make products that sell.

Even influencers stand to benefit. With the right Stories, you can learn whether followers dig your latest content, are open to buying merchandise, or have had positive experiences with your brand.

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Instagram poll formats

There are four kinds of Instagram polls, each with a unique purpose. Knowing your audience, you can decide which type of content is most valuable to you and engaging to followers.

• Question sticker polls: This feature prompts your audience to provide a written answer to a question. Simply pose a query and wait for responses. This option is excellent for gathering broad feedback and making your followers feel heard.
• Quiz sticker polls: Quizzes are multiple-choice surveys in which you can ask followers a question and provide up to four tap-friendly options (and designate one as the correct answer). With this feature, you can test your audience on a topic of interest and give them an opportunity to flex their knowledge.
• Emoji slider polls: The emoji slider allows viewers to rank their reactions on a sliding scale. You set the emoji (like 🔥, 💕, or 🤯) and your audience replies with the degree to which they support that feeling. For example, you could post a picture of a new product with a 😍emoji slider to gauge how much your followers love it.
• Classic survey polls: This type of sticker is perfect for yes or no poll questions or queries with up to four possible answers (such as “yes, “no,” “sometimes” and “I don’t know”). Survey polls help you quantify target responses, like the percentage of your followers who drink coffee in the morning.

How to create a poll on Instagram

Launching your first poll only takes a few taps. Here’s how:

1. Open the Instagram mobile app and log in to your account.
2. Tap on your profile icon in the upper-left corner of the home screen to create a new Story.
3. Upload or take a photo or video.
4. Tap the sticker icon at the top of the screen (a smiley face on a peeling square).
5. Select the poll option you wish to use. They are labeled “QUESTIONS,” “POLL” and “QUIZ,” while the slider appears as an animated icon.
6. Fill out your poll as prompted. Add any necessary additional text or stickers to the Story.
7. Once finished, upload the content by tapping “Your story” at the bottom left of the screen.

8 Instagram poll ideas

Keep your Story content fresh by switching up your polling style. Here are eight ideas to add engaging surveys to your personal or professional social media marketing strategy.

• Guessing games: Using the survey sticker, ask viewers to guess between a few options. For example, if your brand is launching a new product, you could post a close-up image and ask your audience what they think it is. This approach creates anticipation and keeps viewers coming back to see the answer.
• Contests: Run a contest with user-generated content and have viewers use the survey sticker to vote. For example, you could ask users to submit creative videos of themselves using your products and ask followers which clips they like best. You can reward the winner with a free product bundle.
• Content ideas: Achieve two goals with one poll by asking your followers what type of content they’d like to see from you. You perform market research, and your followers feel listened to. Leave the query open-ended with the question sticker for more comprehensive and creative responses.
• True or false: Help users get to know you or your business by offering up fun facts and encouraging them to vote on whether it’s true or false with a quiz sticker. This creates a sense of familiarity between you and your audience.
• Start a conversation: Have followers share their opinions with fun Instagram poll questions. For example, if you’re a food influencer, you could use the slider sticker to find out what people think about the latest trends in the culinary world or encourage written answers with a question sticker.
• Ask me anything (AMA): Make your followers feel like they’re part of your inner circle by allowing them to ask about your life or business. The lucky people whose question sticker responses you share to your Story will feel extra special.
• Read the room: Ask your followers how they feel for an opportunity to connect. You can pose a question like “How’s your day going?” and offer poll sticker responses like “great” or “could be better.”
• Drop knowledge: Provide industry advice and use the survey sticker to encourage followers to interact. You could as them to rate the advice on a sliding scale or poll them on whether or not they learned something new.

FAQs about Instagram polls

Still have lingering questions about polls and how they work? Here are the answers to frequently asked queries:

Can people see Instagram story poll results?

Yes, you can choose to share poll results on your Story. Doing so can be an excellent opportunity to encourage your audience to return to your account and view poll results. To post, tap on your profile icon in the top left corner of the app’s home screen and open the Story with the poll. Swipe up, and tap “Share results.”

Are Instagram polls anonymous?

Poll responses are not anonymous. The content creators can see who participated in a poll and what their responses were. However, if a user posts the results of a survey (like the percentage of people who voted for each answer), viewers can’t see who cast their votes where.

Become an Instagram expert with Linktree

Instagram is a powerful marketing tool. We can show you how to make the most of it.

Our blog is an excellent resource for established brands, casual users, and everyone in between. Learn essential skills like how to add music to your posts, repost user-generated content, see who has viewed your story, and mute other users.

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