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Best questions for ask me anything attendee survey about discussion topics

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Adam Sabla

·

Aug 21, 2025

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Here are some of the best questions for an ask me anything attendee survey about discussion topics, plus practical tips on crafting the right ones. With Specific, you can instantly generate conversational surveys like these and analyze feedback in-depth.

Best open-ended questions for ask me anything attendee survey about discussion topics

Open-ended questions let people respond freely in their own words, giving us richer, more specific insights about what matters. They're a great fit if you want detailed feedback or to spark new ideas for future sessions. That said, open-ended questions can increase nonresponse rates—one Pew Research Center study found nonresponse rates as high as 50% on some open-ended items, compared to just 1-2% for closed questions. [1] So we aim to use a handful of high-impact open-ended prompts, not overwhelm respondents.

  1. What discussion topic resonated with you the most during the session, and why?

  2. Were there any points in the discussion that you felt needed more exploration?

  3. Which questions or themes came up that surprised you?

  4. What additional topics would you have liked to see addressed?

  5. Can you share an example of how something from the discussion applies to your own experience?

  6. What were your key takeaways from today’s discussion topics?

  7. Is there a topic you wish had been covered in more depth?

  8. Were there any moments where you felt the discussion went off track? Please elaborate.

  9. How did today’s topics inspire you to think differently, if at all?

  10. If you could shape the agenda for the next session, what would you focus on?

Keep in mind, surveys with more open-ended questions may see lower completion rates. In fact, completion drops from 88% with one open-ended question to 78% when you ask ten. [3] Identify the questions that matter most and use AI survey tools like Specific to optimize placement or follow-ups for better engagement.

Best single-select multiple-choice questions for ask me anything attendee survey about discussion topics

Single-select multiple-choice questions shine when you want to quantify opinions or quickly identify trends. They're easy for attendees to answer and help you segment responses for fast analysis. Sometimes, they're the best way to get the conversation started—selecting an option is less intimidating than answering in full sentences, especially when you follow up later with a deeper question. Not surprisingly, closed-ended questions achieve response rates above 98%. [1]

Question: Which discussion topic did you find most engaging?

  • Topic A: [insert actual topic]

  • Topic B: [insert actual topic]

  • Topic C: [insert actual topic]

  • Other

Question: How relevant were the session’s topics to your interests?

  • Extremely relevant

  • Somewhat relevant

  • Not very relevant

Question: Would you like to see a more focused or broader range of topics in future sessions?

  • More focused

  • Broader range

  • No preference

When to follow up with "why?" If a respondent selects "Somewhat relevant" or "Not very relevant," that's the perfect moment to dig deeper. We’ll use a follow-up like, "Can you share more about which topics were less relevant or what you’d prefer instead?" Following up with "why" clarifies intention and uncovers actionable insights—often revealing root causes that structured choices alone can't surface.

When and why to add the "Other" choice? Always add "Other" if the options might not cover everyone's perspective or if you want to discover something outside your expectations. Follow-up questions to "Other" answers regularly lead us to fresh insights or ideas we hadn’t considered.

Using NPS-style questions with ask me anything attendee surveys

NPS (Net Promoter Score) is a proven way to measure overall satisfaction and attendee advocacy with a single, powerful question: "How likely are you to recommend this session to a colleague or friend?" This metric is easy to quantify and great for benchmarking over time. For discussion topic sessions, it’s especially valuable—it tells you not only if the content resonated but how strongly people are willing to promote it. You can instantly generate an NPS survey tailored to these attendees, with follow-up questions tuned to promoters, passives, and detractors for deeper feedback.

The power of follow-up questions

Follow-up questions are game-changers—they turn a simple answer into a rich, contextual conversation. With Specific, our automated follow-up feature uses AI to ask smart, context-aware clarifying questions that dig much deeper, all in real time.

  • Attendee: "I liked most of the topics, except maybe the last one."

  • AI follow-up: "What was it about the last topic that didn’t work for you, and how could we improve it for next time?"

This way, you don't end up with half-answers that leave you guessing.

How many followups to ask? We’ve found that 2-3 targeted follow-ups per open-ended question is a sweet spot. More can feel intrusive, while less often doesn’t cover enough ground. Specific lets you set this dynamically or allow skipping once the core info is captured.

This makes it a conversational survey: It’s not just a list of static questions; it’s a back-and-forth dialogue that feels natural for the respondent, giving you the kind of feedback you’d get in a live interview.

AI response analysis: Even with lots of unstructured responses, using AI-powered analysis means you can instantly summarize, theme, and search everything with ease—the heavy lifting is done for you.

Automated follow-up questions are a new paradigm—try creating a survey and experience how much richer your data can be.

How to use AI prompts to generate great discussion topic survey questions

If you want to use ChatGPT or another GPT-based AI to spark new ideas for your attendee survey, the secret is asking clear, focused prompts. Start simple:

Start by asking:

Suggest 10 open-ended questions for ask me anything attendee survey about discussion topics.

AI always works better with more context. Try:

Our session covers trends and challenges in product management. The attendees are experienced PMs. Suggest 10 open-ended questions for our ask me anything attendee survey about discussion topics, focusing on extracting actionable feedback for future events.

Next, ask AI to sort and organize your list:

Look at the questions and categorize them. Output categories with the questions under them.

Find the categories most aligned with your goals, then go deeper:

Generate 10 questions for these categories: session relevance, actionable takeaways, unmet needs.

What is a conversational survey and how does it compare?

Conversational surveys (like those you build with Specific) are interactive, chat-like feedback sessions that adapt to respondents’ replies. Unlike traditional manual forms, which are rigid and impersonal, AI-powered conversational surveys are quick to build and feel more like a dialogue—so you get honest, nuanced answers without interview scheduling headaches. Here’s a quick comparison:

Manual Survey Creation

AI-Generated Conversational Survey

Builds on static forms; slow setup; linear structure

Rapidly generated; dynamic flow; context-aware

Generic questions, harder to personalize

Tailored prompts, adaptive logic, personalized

Typically no follow-ups unless pre-scripted

Automated, intelligent follow-up questions by AI

Manual analysis of responses

AI-powered summaries, instant insight extraction

Why use AI for ask me anything attendee surveys? It’s the fastest way to get quality, in-depth feedback. You can see an AI survey example in action and easily create a survey that guides attendees through a natural, relevant feedback conversation at scale. When compared to form-based surveys, AI survey generation makes even complex surveys effortless, and the results feel like expert interviews, not forms to be filled out. Specific delivers a best-in-class user experience for both creators and respondents, ensuring conversational surveys lead to more honest, actionable feedback.

See this discussion topics survey example now

Ready to see what these questions could look like in a real conversational survey? Give it a try and unlock deeper, more actionable insights from your events—fast, engaging, and powered by AI-driven follow-up for the richest feedback yet.

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Try it out. It's fun!

Sources

  1. Pew Research Center. Why do some open-ended survey questions result in higher item nonresponse rates than others?

  2. SurveyMonkey. Tips for increasing survey completion rates.

  3. AskAttest. Open-ended survey questions: definitions, best practices and examples.

Adam Sabla - Image Avatar

Adam Sabla

Adam Sabla is an entrepreneur with experience building startups that serve over 1M customers, including Disney, Netflix, and BBC, with a strong passion for automation.

Adam Sabla

Adam Sabla is an entrepreneur with experience building startups that serve over 1M customers, including Disney, Netflix, and BBC, with a strong passion for automation.

Adam Sabla

Adam Sabla is an entrepreneur with experience building startups that serve over 1M customers, including Disney, Netflix, and BBC, with a strong passion for automation.