How to Use Quora to Generate Inbound Leads

Is Q&A platform Quora the most underrated social platform for sales prospectors? According to Datanyze’s co-Founder Ben Sardella it just might be! In a recent webinar that we hosted, Ben advocated using Quora for lead generation and explained how to do it. With just a bit of effort, your business development team can source sales ready-leads. Ben explained that in a few short months, the Datanyze team was able to source more than 40 leads in a month (five of which turned into opportunities!)

Ready to rock revenue using Quora? Here’s your step-by-step guide.

Step 1: Create a Quora Account

It only takes moments to get started on Quora, and best of all, it’s free.

Step 2: Complete your Profile

Like any social network you’re using for business, be sure to include a professional photo and current company information.

Step 3: Follow Topics Relevant to Your Industry

To find leads in Quora, you need to follow any topics that relate to your industry. So, add any topic that contains overlap. That way you can find leads that are potential fits for what you’re selling. As an example, say you sell app analytics software. You might want to follow topics like mobile app development and product management. You can add topics form the main search. You can also edit your profile and search for topics you “know about.”

Pro tip: Add the URLs of relevant topics to your ereader (e.g. Feedly). This can help you stay on top of when potential sales-ready leads are asking relevant questions on Quora.

Step 4: Be Helpful

The moment you see someone asking a question that relates to what you sell, you should craft an answer. The rule is: be helpful. All too often, I see sales reps and marketers on Quora plugging their products and dropping links without adding value. People ask questions on Quora because they want help. You should address their question and offer a helpful response.

Step 5: Drop a Link (When Appropriate)

Try to find a relevant way to include a link to your company’s website. Most people don’t mind if you plug your company as long as you are actually offering value.

Step 6: Message Prospects Through Quora

If you encounter people on Quora that seem like they could be a good prospect (i.e. they have problems your company can help solve), don’t be afraid to reach out to them through Quora’s messenger. Again, you should always come from a place of trying to help/add value.

By taking this approach you should be able to use Quora as a powerful lead generation platform. Good luck!

For some more awesome prospecting tips check out our free on-demand webinar The B2B Prospecting Code.