A 2020 study conducted by Similarweb ranked the world’s most widely used websites. Of the top five, two were search engines (three, if you count YouTube, which has become the second most popular search engine, after Google), one was social (Facebook), and one was reference (Wikipedia). Still, few are aware of how the question-and-answer website Quora can help your Google website ranking.

Why Do People Use the Internet?

There are two main reasons people rush to the internet including to answer questions and create relations in like-minded communities. When you think about it, it’s kind of nice to think about. We ultimately want to be better informed, and we want to connect with other people. Yet with the number of users on the internet, its easy to get lost. Improving your Google website ranking, can not only help you find your community but information as well.

In 2009, two very smart guys who connected with each other at Facebook — one was the former chief technology officer, the other an engineering manager — thought, “Hmmm. What if we created a site that let people do both?”

Ten years later, Quora is worth $2 billion. It gets more than 300 million unique visitors every month. Many of them are registered users who use their full names, not aliases, and put themselves out there for everybody to see. Why is Quora so successful? What’s it all about? The answer is simple Quora is a question and answer website that provides users the ability to find information while building their community.

Quora is a place where people go to get answers. And those answers come from real people of the Quora community. Think of using Quora like being a member of thousands and thousands of Facebook groups, all at the same time, and each of them dedicated to a specific topic. You can find the topic you’re interested in learning more about and jump right into the discussion. And it is a discussion, with users who have experience and answers, and others who may ask questions you haven’t thought of yet. That’s a valuable opportunity.

Then it got more valuable. A couple of years ago, Quora introduced video on Quora. Tommy McWilliam, the engineering manager, explained why:

“On Quora, authors can write answers to questions across a wide range of topics. However, for some questions, like, How do I use a foam roller correctly?, What are some great science experiments for 6–8-year-old kids?, and How do you properly apply eyeliner?, even great written answers don’t always provide the full picture.” So Quora wanted to provide its community with a fuller picture, offering more sources for the answers they’re looking for. In short, by increasing the website’s abilities, Quora has made a huge opportunity for your business’ Google website ranking.

Google Website Ranking With Quora

Let’s say you’re in a business that qualifies you to answer a question submitted on Quora; you’re a personal trainer or a former science teacher or a makeup artist. You can make a video that answers a question, post it for the Quora community and new visitors to see, simultaneously increasing your Google website ranking, just for answering a question and being community-friendly. Cool, huh? Seems simple right? Well, here’s how it works and it’s not just about the Quora community.

Part of the genius of Quora is, because of its nature (there to answer questions, remember) it shows up a lot when someone does an internet search in the form of … a question. So a video you share with the Quora community showing how to stretch your back on a foam roller stands a good chance of ending up in the Google website ranking of someone who searches “How do I stretch my back?” — even if they’re not part of the Quora community.

Becoming a registered Quora user, posting a video that people can use that shows you know what you’re talking about, is like free advertising for your business. However, posting your video on Quora is most effective only if you do it with Quora’s mission in mind:

Quora’s mission is to share and grow the world’s knowledge. The vast majority of human knowledge is still not on the internet. Most of it is trapped in the form of experience in people’s heads, or buried in books and papers that only experts can access.

If you post something that’s just blatant advertising, it’s not going to get the response you want; mostly because Quora’s gonna pull it, and also because members of your community will see it for what it is and ignore it.

But if you’re a member of that community who uses video to show other members, “Hey, I know what I’m talking about and I want to help you with this answer you need” … well, that’s just being community-minded. That’s why people are there. A good community member knows how to be help The fact that it also boosts your Google website ranking? That doesn’t hurt, either.