engagement

en-GAGE-ment /ɪnˈɡeɪdʒmənt/
nounB2IELTSTOEFL
businessgeneral

The degree of interaction (likes, shares, comments, clicks) that content receives from users.

Engagement measures active user involvement as opposed to passive views.

The story behind the word. Derived from Old French 'gage' (pledge), 'engagement' originally meant pledging oneself to a duty. In social media marketing, it signifies a user pledging their attention and effort through digital interactions.

Word relationships

  • interaction: Interaction is any mutual action, whereas engagement measures sustained digital involvement.
  • apathy: Lack of interest or active participation.

Commonly confused with

  • reach: Reach counts how many people saw content; engagement counts how many interacted with it.

Word family

  • engage (verb): To participate or attract interest.
  • engaging (adjective): Charming or attention-holding.

Collocations

  • engagement rate
  • user engagement
  • boost engagement

Example sentences

  • "Interactive polls on video stories significantly increased brand engagement rates." Marketing performance analysis

Memory hook

ENGAGE: Energy Given And Gained Everywhere. Active interaction, not just passive glance.

When not to use

Do not confuse digital engagement with romantic engagement to be married, though they share the same word.

Fun facts

  • Engagement rate is calculated by total interactions divided by total impressions or followers.

Related words

metric, impression, viral

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