Guest post: How to get targeted traffic from Quora and Yahoo Answers

Yahoo Answers (Photo credit: TadDonaghe)

The following is a guest post by Catie Keeler. Her bio is at the end of the article.

Marketing your blog or website is key to its long-term success. Finding ways to increase your traffic will help you increase your sales and protect your brand longevity.

Quora and Yahoo Answers are both simple question-and-answer sites. Some users post their questions, and other users post answers. The site covers every topic you can think of, and the answers range from general to in-depth and authoritative.

While seemingly simple, both sites are excellent sources of free, targeted traffic for your blog or website. Here’s how:

Quality backlinks

When you answer a question on either site, you can link to your website or to your profile (which can include a link to your website, as well as more information about you as an authority). Every question you answer can become a link back to your site, sending you more visitors. The more visitors you get, the better you site will rank in search-engine results, boosting your traffic even more.

Targeted keywords

The questions on these sites are created in much the same way that users enter their search terms into Google and other search engines. Therefore, when you answer the questions and leave your link behind, you are targeting long-tail keywords that will help your site rank better in search results. You are not only getting more traffic to your site, you are also getting an authoritative link.

Authority building

When you answer questions on Quora and Yahoo Answers, you can establish yourself as an expert in that topic. Consider your answer to be an example of the content that readers can expect on your blog. Showcase your best writing and back up your explanation with research, if applicable. Use your answer to show that you are knowledgeable and experienced with the topic at hand.

If you are able to establish yourself as a credible source, readers are likely to visit your blog to learn more about you or about the subject at hand.

Hot Topics

Even if you never answer a single question on Quora or Yahoo Answers, you can still use it to drive traffic to your website. Browsing the questions asked on the site will give you a good idea of what topics are of interest to your readers right now. You may find a new way to cover a topic on your blog, or you may stumble upon a related topic that compliments your content.

By covering the topics that you know readers want to learn about right now, you are sure to attract more traffic to your blog.

Both Quora and Yahoo Answers bring together a community of people who are looking for information right now. They represent a captive audience to whom you can promote yourself as an expert. You can glean insights about customer needs, then use the sites to offer that information and market your site as an authority. Both sites also rank well in search engine results, meaning that any links you include with your answers will get a lot of exposure quickly.

Have you used Quora or Yahoo Answers to promote your site? Tell us about your experiences in the comments!

Catie Keeler is the primary researcher and writer for mortgagerates.info. Her most recent accomplishments include graduating from the Universityof North Carolina in Chapel Hill with a degree in business and communications. Her current focus for the site involves home loan interest and mortgage rates seattle.