Not all are great texters. Not everyone prefers texting as their main form of communication. Some people find it hard to keep the conversation going through text. There is someone you are interested in but as soon as the conversation starts, it doesn’t last long and hits a dead end. Well, what’s the right way to keep a conversation going through text? Here are 18 ways you can keep the conversation going over text:
1. Avoid close-ended questions
To keep the conversation going, you need to know what you want to ask and what’s the best way to formulate it. Avoid questions that require short answers since there will be not enough information extracted to keep the conversation going through text. When there is no information you won’t have enough material to work with to create your questions. To keep a conversation going over the text you need to make open-ended questions. Try to create a space for them to answer elaborately. Keep your questions open-ended by avoiding questions that require a “Yes” or “No” answer. For example, instead of “Did you have a good time?” use questions such as “How did you spend your time there?” You can set up the next question or topic you want to talk about to keep a text conversation going.
2. Don’t overthink your responses
Respond to a text however you see fit. Don’t overthink it as to what the proper thing to say or if that’s the answer that they are expecting is. You shouldn’t filter it. Nonetheless, you should be careful not to be offensive or hurt them unintentionally. To keep the conversation going over text you should say what’s on your mind and be confident in yourself. You’d be surprised to know how much confidence transcends in texting. Don’t be pretentious. Be your own best self, show who you are, and share your opinions confidently. That’s how you keep the conversation going through text.
3. Avoid answering with dry responses
You might be killing the conversations unconsciously if you respond with short, dry answers, or even acronyms. To keep a conversation going over text you can use lol, Yolo, LMFAO, or cool, but be sure to follow with a question or explanation. To keep a conversation going you can share stories, send memes, and such that relate to that momentum. For example, instead of just saying “Lol” you can say “Lol. That’s what I thought too when I saw the episode. Can’t believe they made him do that!” And if they are also interested, you are giving them enough material to keep the conversation going and for them to ask questions as well.
4. Don’t end your response with a statement without asking a follow-up question
By asking questions you keep a conversation going through text. Questions are what make people want to share, not necessarily using statements only. You can share something with them, but to keep the conversation going you can ask them something following your statement. To keep the conversation going over text you can ask follow-up questions such as “What about you?” or “What’d you do if you were me?” By doing this, you are sharing something about yourself, inviting them to share their opinion as well in order to keep the conversation going over text.
5. Put value in your texts
Don’t start a conversation hoping it will keep you occupied because you’re bored. Add value to your texts instead of hoping that the other person will do the work to keep the conversation going through text. A text without value is easily noticed, making the other person sense the lack of effort and intention put into it. Thus, when you text, it needs to have a purpose. Don’t start the conversation with “what’s up” as this shows that you are not putting much effort into texting them, and the conversation will not last either. To keep a conversation over text start the conversation with a meme or a picture saying “this reminded me of you”. Once the conversation picks up, you can start making questions and presenting the purpose you wanted to talk to them about.
6. Know when to text back: Don’t let them wait for too long
The rules of texting might be the ones affecting your conversations, hence you want to keep them as healthy as possible. If you wait a couple of hours to respond, then it will lose momentum since the other person might take just as much time to get back at you. To keep a conversation going through text, you need to decide how quickly you need to respond to the text. If the text doesn’t require your immediate attention and you’re busy, you can respond when you’re less busy to not keep them hanging. If you’re busy and the text is something you can’t wait to respond to, take a couple of minutes since the other person might see it and pick up a conversation right away.
7. Send memes, funny videos, songs, or pictures that remind you of them
If you can include humor in your conversations, do so since it increases the possibility for the conversation to last longer. What you can say to them to keep the conversation going through text is something that reminds you of them. Perhaps a meme, a video, or a status that they will appreciate. Have that shared with them. By doing so, you throw another stone in the sea that creates waves that you can pick on to keep a text conversation going. There might be something that you are jotting in their memories that they want to share, thus resulting in the conversation not ending. By using humor you’re likely to keep the interest in the conversation you’re having over text and have the other person contribute to keeping it alive.
8. Try to find some common ground to know what to base your conversations around
To keep a text conversation going you need to pay attention to what the other person is talking about. This way you can identify some common interests and will know what you can ask if you feel that the conversation is coming to an end. To keep the conversation going through texts you need to find some common ground. By knowing what interests them, you can be prepared with some information up your sleeve when you see that the conversion is hitting a dead end. Finding common grounds and things to talk about will help ignite another conversation.
9. Don’t make the conversation solely about you
Be mindful of how much you share about yourself and how often you redirect the conversation back to you. Give them some room to talk about themselves as well. Although it is good to show them that you are comfortable sharing about yourself, don’t make it all about yourself. If you keep doing this, the behavior that you displayed will be why you can’t keep a conversation going over text. To keep a conversation going over text, you need to keep the other person engaged, bring them into the conversation and have them contribute.
10. Ask their opinion on something interesting
Share something interesting that happened today or you found on the internet and ask them to shed some light on it. Avoid having your questions one after the other as it can make the other person feel like they’re being interrogated. Ask your questions, but also let them flow within the conversation, don’t force it. You can always start another one next time. Be natural and genuinely interested in what they have to say. Don’t forget to pay attention to what they are letting on as you might miss an opportunity to get to know them better.
11. Let room for them to initiate and share about themselves
You shouldn’t feel like you have to be the only one to initiate the conversation and hold the burden of keeping it going. No, not at all. Give them a chance to initiate the conversation and present their questions that they are curious to know about you. If you’re always the one carrying the whole conversation, you’re going to feel burned out and also come across as overbearing. To keep a conversation going over the text you need to leave them room to carry the conversation and to get to know you a bit more as well. All you have to do is be truthful and genuine with the other person.
12. Give a brief monologue about your day
Before moving into making questions to keep the conversation going, give a brief overview of what you did today. By doing this, you’ll be giving enough information for them to pick on to keep the conversation over text, but also you’d be avoiding giving a dry response. Upon seeing this, they’re likely to mirror your behavior and you’ll end up with many opportunities to keep the conversation going. So there is an equal effort put in from both sides, and you don’t feel strained to find topics or ask questions to keep your conversation going.
13. Make arrangements to meet up
Texting is used as the main tool of communication nowadays. However, texting is not the most appropriate tool to use when you are having a serious conversation. It takes longer to text something, you have to guess the tone, and it gets boring quickly. Thus try calling each other now and then, or arranging a date or a meetup. To prolong the conversation over text, you can set a date to hang out and ask them whether they’re free on that day and time. This can keep the conversation going over text but also, help you set up a face-to-face meeting allowing you to get more comfortable with them.
14. Ask nonsensical questions
Having a conversation that is always so serious can take a toll on you and make you feel tired. Thus, sometimes you can have a light mood going on and not expect anything from each other, other than entertainment. If you sense that the tone of your conversations is too serious and sense tiredness from the other person, throw a nonsensical question to lighten them up a bit! This will create a lighter mood but also contribute to keeping a text conversation going. Some examples:
What kind of insects would you combine to create a new one? You got banned from your favorite Caffe. Why? What is the symbol for zero in roman numerals? Who tests dog food for it to know how it tastes?
15. Inject a pattern break to spice things up
A lot of times texting can get boring and tiring, especially after a long day at work or school. Combining the conversation with different mediums will help keep a conversation going through text. When they share something funny, send a voice memo of your reaction or you can respond by following up with a funny GIF. This will make things more interesting and break the pattern of texting, restart with some more enthusiasm and a lighter mood. Don’t avoid using voice memos, GIFs, funny pictures/videos as they can be an interesting, humorous way to keep a text conversation going.
16. Share your experience/stories
To keep a conversation going over text, it is essential to share something about yourself as well. Refusal to do so will leave them with the impression that you are treating them as an acquaintance and not someone you want to get to know better. If you share something personal, it will create a safe space for them to do the same. By opening the opportunity to open up about yourselves, it will be easier to keep the conversation going through text, since now you are also allowed to ask personal questions.
17. You can play a question game
Texting can be fun and you can learn a lot about the other person if you know how to integrate games. To keep a conversation going through text you can play the question game by taking turns to ask questions to one another. By doing this, you are sharing the responsibility of keeping the conversation alive, making room for flirting and connecting further. Not all of the questions need to be personal and serious. You can ask some funny questions just to help lighten the mood. By agreeing to such a game, you will get the opportunity to know the other person more, and also comment on what they are sharing with you. Ask the right questions, expand on those, and when there is nothing left to discuss anymore, move on to the next question.
18. Repeat the last text in a questioning tone
This is something you can use only when you have nothing left to say anymore, and you just want to keep the conversation going. Keep in mind that this will not help you go a long long way. You can repeat the last words of their statement in a questioning tone by adding the question mark at the end. This will stimulate them to elaborate further on their response. Avoid overusing this as it can be tiring to the person on the receiving end, and if they identify the pattern, it might create room for negative interpretations.
What are some questions that make a text conversation longer?
The struggle is real when your mind goes blank and you run out of things to say to keep the conversation going over text. What you can say to keep the conversation going is to ask thoughtful questions. You can ask their opinion on something you need help with, advice, or a topic you know has enough material you can expand over. Here are some questions you can ask to make a text conversation longer:
What was your favorite thing about our date? What’s your least favorite thing when you text me? What’s the best advice you’ve taken? Why? What do you think of the new solution presented today at work? How did you like [birth place name] growing up? What’s one song that you really hate? What’s your favorite historical fact? Why? If you could change one thing about the world, what would it be? Why? What’s one thing that you can never tolerate? Why?
To keep the conversation going over text you need to listen and pay attention to what the other person is saying to catch on to what you can talk about. Furthermore, you need to ask questions, respond truthfully and engage them in having a conversation with you. Sincerely, Callisto
