A long time ago, when people had a problem, the natural solution was to talk to someone in authority.
With the development of the world wide web, crowds moved into internet forums, to write answers to every type of question (the power of anonymity). As a result, the Internet has become a place full of solutions, (un)usual advice and in-depth discussions.
And then, in the middle of the digital omniscience, something was born – something much better than the internet’s abyss, something with all the answers, Quora.
The topic diversity taken up on Quora is huge, from “how to pass the next level in a computer game”, through “the most recommended places for holidays”, to specialist fields like “the best digital platforms for publishers”.
Moving our knowledge base into the digital world resulted in the development of recommendation marketing. Today, we all look for answers, products, opinions on the Internet – we want to get answers immediately, and better yet, we want a number of responses to compare them with.
The (Growing) Quora Secret
Quora says it now has an audience of 300 million monthly users: entrepreneurs and customers; people who are looking for solutions and those who are offering it; clients who have heard about you and those who are introduced to your brand for the first time.
Let’s face it, Quora has huge marketing and promotion potential for many different companies.
To use it perfectly, it is necessary to know a few rules and tips. Are you ready to discover them? Let’s go!
What Can Quora Give You?
- Being visible for millions of monthly visitors worldwide.
- Demonstrating expertise on many topics.
- Getting insights from experts in any industry.
- Building brand awareness: giving direct answers to anyone asking about your business, products, services, or having needs you can fulfill.
The goal is….
By answering Quora questions related to your industry, you can demonstrate your expertise in this area and improve your company’s brand image, increase traffic to your website or blog, market your professional brand and your business, and be known as a specialist whom people can trust.
Quora is not a word-of-mouth marketing tool, it is a direct way of finding solutions to your problems and giving people the value they crave.
My name is Paulina and I’m an active user of Quora since February 2018. After a few months of regular publishing, I now have the first place in the Most Viewed Writers in Digital Publishing ranking.
I’m really glad I have the chance to share my reflections, observations and tactical tips with you.
This practical guide is intended for people who haven’t used Quora and for those who have, but want to achieve even better results.
One more thing!
Quora is a platform for everyone, no matter their experience. It is a long-term investment based on your patience, time and regularity.
All Roads Lead to Quora
Can I use Quora to help rank my website?
I asked Google ‘what is the best publishing platform’…
What were the results?
A Quora link was on the first page of Google’s search results.
By answering questions on Quora, there is a high chance that your answer will rank well in the SERPs (search engine results pages) and that can bring you traffic for a long time. A lot of Quora answers turn up in SERPs as individual web pages, which means you can receive much more views than before.
Hint! If you want your website and answers to rank, use the same keywords that you would use for your own website. You have the power of Quora behind you, helping you rank.
Because people usually ask similar (or even the same) questions on different web search engines, your answers to topic-relevant, keyword-rich questions on Quora have a good chance of showing up in search results. This is especially true for longer, more specific queries.
Google will (probably) grab from Quora what they feel is the best answer, based on their algorithm.
Authority in the Era of Question-and-Answer Websites
How to create a reliable profile on Quora?
Many people claim that when they meet a new person, the most important thing is the first impression. What if we transfer this theory to digital life and the reactions to the first contact with someone’s profile on an internet platform?
The first impression rule works here, too.
Behind valuable answers there should be a real person, whose business card is credible and respectable. You are representing your brand, company, and finally, yourself!
The aim is to demonstrate that you are an authority and make your profile stand out from everyone else.
Quora allows users to create profiles with visible real names, photos, credentials and highlights you can edit at any time. In the era of fake news, people look for reliable information and real people more willingly.
- Create an intriguing bio: point out the most important information or write an interesting story – in more than one sentence. Apart from your position in a company (and a link to it), add something personal, e.g. your hobby.
- Do you know that your bio box can hold photos and videos?
- Where can people meet you? Add links to your social media channels (e.g. Twitter, LinkedIn) so anyone who wants to learn more about you can click through to your social profiles.
- For a profile picture choose one with your face, preferably with a smile.
Quora users will also be able to see your profile statistics that will grow proportionally to your involvement. That is why publishing on a regular basis is so important.
Check out the most viewed authors’ profiles and get inspired. Once you have finished creating your intriguing profile, ask your friends for their opinion. Let it be a true business card that will make a strong first impression on your visitors!
Searching for Relevant Questions
How to find questions to answer?
Do you know what problems your clients are struggling with? What were the most common questions they asked you? Use this knowledge to search for questions that suit you best on Quora.
Hint! Before you start publishing answers, you should copy links to question pages to a file and create your own base. You will need this list for your daily work on Quora.
If you want to save a question(s) for later just use the “follow question” or “answer later” option.
For example, I work at a digital publishing company, so I enter the keywords I am interested in (into the Quora Search Box), and in response I get a whole set of specific suggestions.
You can look for questions by clicking “topics” or “spaces”. These are groups focused on specific subjects e.g. digital publishing.
- Focus on questions with a minimum of 1000 views and lots of followers, because of their potential to get more visibility; the more views a question has, the more exposure your answer might get.
- If you find a question which you could answer, but there’s no traffic, click “follow” to monitor the situation.
- After being active for some time, Quora will start to notify you about questions that are relevant to you.
- Be active in different fields, e.g. your hobby. Ask questions and write answers related to things you are interested in – books, movies, travelling. I recommended this not only because of the Quora moderation system and to authenticate your profile, but also because it is a great thing for the Quora community!
The Art of Writing Great Answers
How to answer questions that arouse interest
When we talk about the key to Quora success, the first thing worth mentioning is regularity in answering questions. The second is the way you respond.
Hint! Everyday answer a few of the questions from your link list. Don’t copy the same answers, change it and diversify. Apart from that, try different activities, like clicking “upvote” under other answers or publishing your own questions.
The questions written on Quora can be divided into two categories:
- questions about the best thing/solution/place… (app, book, movie, digital platform etc.)
- questions about a specific problem (how to…?).
Think about what the author of the question expects from your answer. Be aware of who your target audience is and respond to the best of your ability.
When you answer Quora questions, don’t just try to convince others how awesome your tool is. Tell people what the benefits of your solution are.
The best way to get traffic is by writing an awesome answer with sincere effort, and then sharing a link at the end of the answer.
Here is what Tristan Louis, CEO of Keepskor and writer at TNL.net says about the secret of success on Quora:
“The secret of building your reputation on Quora is to answer questions in which you have a deep level of knowledge. Your own company is obviously a thing in which you have expertise and that’s where you could start. You should then look at the area your company focuses on and provide answers to questions related to that area. Remember that Quora is not about self-promotion but about providing the best answer to a specific question. The way you build your business with Quora is by helping the Quora community. Its members will eventually notice you and, hopefully, start using your services.”
Craft your answers like a great article. Tell a cool story and show that you know the subject in depth, but without using too many words.
- Use bold for titles, or maximum twice per paragraph.
- Go visual. Insert pictures or videos – maximum 3-4 images per answer and no more than 2-3 videos per answer.
- A video answer can be a great idea.
- Add links that cover the subject in more depth (naturally anchored within sentences).
Hint! Before you write an answer, read what other users have published. Try not to write what someone else has already written.
Thanks to the ask-for-answer function, someone can invite you to comment. You can also ask someone to answer your question – Quora will suggest suitable users’ profiles. It is always worth checking who asks you for an answer and thinking why they did it. You can get to know what type of specialist others see in you.
How Many Answers is Enough?
Questions and answers on Quora are multiplying incredibly fast.
In this case (same as in inbound marketing generally) the point is not to write a specific number of answers or write something somewhere once. The point is to visit Quora regularly (preferably every day), turn the notification on, be active and curious about what is happening in your industry, groups and topics you follow.
Quora is a fountain of information about your customers and their needs, and you can use it to improve your business.
Write and Analyse
Quora enables you to carry out analysis in an easy and accessible way – by means of a diagram. You can see which of your answers are seen, upvoted and shared the most.
Based on this knowledge, you can specify which questions are the most popular, which answers people like the most, and which direction is best. And also on which days there are the most visitors.
Hint! If one of your answers has poor results, you can edit and improve it at any time!
The first sign that your answer is popular, is the growth in the number of upvotes.
You will also be notified if one of the answers is gaining views rapidly. See this answer, analyze it – why this one?
Quora Moderation is Watching You
What should you avoid?
If you’re brand new to Quora, spend some time browsing the answers and upvoting the ones you like, ask/answer about something related to your hobby. Upvotes appear on your public profile straight away and can be a good sign that you’re active on the site and your account is real.
Quora has restrictive moderation rules, so you should be careful in your activities, to avoid blocking an account or deleting your answers.
- Write and publish answers which are really helpful and valuable.
- Don’t copy your own answers, change it every time and make them better.
- If you quote, acknowledge the sources.
- Don’t make fictional accounts only to generate more upvotes.
- Don’t write answers only to promote yourself.
Quora Connects People
Why is it Good to Cooperate with Other Users?
Being an active user doesn’t just come down to creating content. Success on Quora also requires engaging with other users by upvoting their answers, following them, asking for answers or using chat to have a private conversation. Users can also collaborate by editing questions and suggesting edits to answers that have been submitted by other users.
- Find people you would like to follow by looking at the top answers’ authors or the most viewed users in a specific category. Maybe you want to ask them about something privately in Quora chat?
- Remember that on Quora you will find not only your customers but also people you can cooperate with in fields like advertising and affiliate programs.
- Once again – your profile and the quality of your answers should encourage people to follow you.
Quora has become something more than a question-and-answer website.
The best proof that this is true, is the fact that people who are active on this social platform created Quora Meetup – an informal meeting organized in different places in the world, where people can meet each other and talk face to face.
Hint! Did you know that you can blog on Quora? Writing posts on Quora will attract a big audience, no matter how many people already follow you. What is more, you can create many separate blogs in Quora domain, e.g. your_blog.quora.com.
It’s Quora Time!
Quora was founded in 2009 and has been growing steadily since that time. In my opinion, now it is the most profitable and hottest channel to promote brands and products. Aside from the business point of view, sharing your knowledge and experience with others is incredibly satisfying.
The fact is that Quora is addictive and can absorb you fully.
Add increased activity on Quora to your daily marketing practice next to posting on Twitter or Facebook. If you engage in finding relevant questions and answering them, I guarantee that you will see significant effects, especially in the form of increased website traffic.
Do you use Quora to build your brand awareness? How often do you publish your answers? Or maybe there are other ways to promote your company on Quora that you would like to share?
If you have any questions related to this topic feel free to catch me on Twitter or of course… on Quora!
