Quora: the Quality Solution to Blogger’s Block

This guest post is by Jeremy Brown of Varoonix.

Have you been using Quora as a tool to power your blogging efforts? No? You’re missing a boatload of content ideas.

In this post, we’ll discuss why you need to be using Quora as a blogger, and look at an example that shows the usefulness of Quora.

Are you ready to tap into a never-ending stream of content ideas? Awesome, here we go!

Why you need to use Quora

In case you’re not familiar with Quora, it’s a platform on which users can ask questions about any topic that’s on their mind.

For example, a blogger might ask a question like, What’s the best WordPress tool that optimizes SEO for a blog post?

Users who see your question can then answer it. This is where the social element comes into play. It’s not uncommon to see some great debates going on at Quora.

It’s important to mention that Quora is free and you can sign up using either your Twitter or Facebook account, or through the standard signup form.

So now that you have a basic understanding of what it’s all about, but why do you need to be using it? Well, most blogs have at least one of these three aims (some blogs hit all three effortlessly):

1. to educate
2. to inspire
3. to entertain.

The majority of blogs aim to hit the first point: they seek to educate readers. Why? So they can build authority and trust.

An important part of educating people is listening to their pain points and crafting content that alleviates that pain. For example, if I run a fishing blog and notice people talking about how much of a pain it is when their lures get snagged on weeds, I can create a post that talks about the top ten weedless lures.

Quora allows you to see exactly what people are looking for in question form. Then it’s up to you to give it to them. It doesn’t get much easier than that.

Side note: other tools are out there for bloggers to listen in, including Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn groups, Yahoo answers. The list goes on. It’s time for you to start using them proactively.

But now, let’s see how you can use Quora to get content ideas for your blog.

Quora in action

Let’s say my niche blog covers freshwater fishing. I cover a range of topics using how-to and list formats, but I’ve hit blogger’s block. For the life of me I can’t seem to come up with anything fresh (no pun intended).

I don’t want to create content just for the sake of creating something. I want to craft something that will alleviate someone’s pain point.

Whatever shall I do?!

Quora to the rescue! First, I type “fishing lures for bass” into Quora’s search bar to see what questions people are asking, since I cover the topic:

And the results pop up:

Right off the bat, I have a spark for some new blog posts. For example, I can take these questions:

• What is the best month for bass fishing in Florida?
• What temperature range is best for largemouth bass fishing?
• What is the best size hooks to use when worm fishing for largemouth bass?

And I can turn those ideas into these blog post headlines:

• Want to catch more bass? Fish during this month
• Why I fish in freezing water and catch more Bass
• Worm Fishing for Bass 101: The Best Hooks, Weights, and Sizes

Get the idea?

The general rule of thumb is, if someone has a question, most likely someone else has the exact same problem. You’ve heard that before right? So it’s worth answering questions!

Here’s the best part: you can fuse Quora and your SEO strategy together to form a pretty efficient way of figuring out people’s pain points.

The result? Some killer blog posts that actually help people.

Now you have an understanding of Quora and how it can be weaved into your blogging strategy. All that’s left is for you to go and use it!

Now it’s your turn

Just like most digital platforms, Quora is a tool. What other tools have you used to find out people’s pain points to create new blog posts? Share your favorites with us in the comments.

Jeremy Brown is a self-proclaimed social media dissector and is the creator of the video game review site, Varoonix. Throughout his digital life, he’s been a blog starting, social media junkie. He may or may not need to go to a BA meeting (Blogaholic Anonymous). Connect with him on Twitter: @socialjeremy