How to Link People to Your Ask Box on Tumblr

By Alan Sembera

Use the Ask box to exchange messages in Tumblr.
i Thinkstock Images/Stockbyte/Getty Images

Tumblr's Ask feature allows your blog readers to send questions and comments directly to your Tumblr mailbox, where you can respond to them either publicly or privately. However, readers may not know this feature is available unless you provide a link to the Ask box in your sidebar. You can add the link manually, or you can use Tumblr's "Add a Page" feature to create the link automatically.

Create Link Manually

Go to your Tumblr dashboard and click "Customize" to open your theme settings page.

Click inside the Description box in the left pane at the point where you want the link to appear in your sidebar.

Enter the following line of code: <a href="/ask">Ask Me Anything</a> Replace "Ask Me Anything" if you prefer to use another word or phrase for the link.

Click "Save" and then "Exit."

Create Link Automatically

Go to your Tumblr dashboard and click "Customize" to open your theme settings page.

Scroll to the bottom of the left pane, and then click "Add a Page" to open a page creation window.

Change the URL in the new window to "username.tumblr.com/ask". Use your own Tumblr username instead of "username."

Enter a page title such as "Ask Me Anything." What you enter here appears as a link on your sidebar.

Enter anything in the description field -- it doesn't show up on your Ask page, but Tumblr won't let you proceed until you enter something.

Move the toggle switch at the top of the window to the right. This tells Tumblr to add the page title as a link in the sidebar.

Click "Save," and then exit the customization page. The link to your Ask page appears in the sidebar along with links to any other pages you create.

Tips

Before readers can submit questions, you must enable the Ask feature in your blog settings. To enable the feature, click the gear icon on your dashboard and select the name of your blog. Check the box next to "Let People Ask Questions," and also check "Allow Anonymous Questions" if you want to allow this option. Click "Save" when done.

×