Hi again informationseeker-ga,
I’m glad to see you’re enjoying Google Answers as a repeat customer.
But hey, asking us to point you to our competition? C’mon! What are
you thinking? :-)
Ok, I’m kidding. It’s a fair question, so I’ll point you the way.
I do understand that there are instances where a person would require
a confidential answer, either for personal or for business reasons.
Sometimes the protection of a screen-name is still not enough when
your question has to be very specific.
There are a number of other companies that offer similar services to
Google Answers, each with its own unique take on the process. They
seem to fall into 3 categories; those offering ADVICE those offering
online RESEARCH, and those offering the services of EXPERTS.
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ADVICE SITES
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YAHOO LIVE ADVICE
Yahoo Live Advice offers confidential email and telephone
consultations. You may choose your volunteer advisor by looking over
previous questions answered, checking star-ratings, comparing price
charged per minute, and reading the advisor’s profile.
They offer advice in about 10 main categories, most related to
household and personal needs, but do offer services in some legal (eg
small claims) and business matters.
YAHOO LIVE ADVICE
http://www.yahoo.liveadvice.com/
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KEEN
Keen works very much the same way as Yahoo, and in fact, the interface
and advice categories are strikingly similar.
KEEN – YOUR PERSONAL ADVISOR
http://www.keen.com/default.asp
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KASAMBA – EXPERT ADVICE LIVE
http://www.kasamba.com/
==============================
HIRE AN EXPERT – PROJECT BASED
==============================
SMARTERWORK
For projects beyond the simple question, SMARTERWORK offers you the
ability to post your project, select your expert, and pay for your
results.
5 simple steps to getting the job done –
* Client posts Project and receives quotes
* Client selects Service Provider based on price, reputation and
rating.
* Client and Service Provider develop project in "My Office", a
private online workspace.
* Client gives final approval of project.
Payment is released from escrow holding account and Client and Service
Provider provide mutual feedback.
SMARTERWORK
http://www.smarterwork.com/
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ELANCE
Again, project oriented, you post your project and experts bid to do
the work. You choose your expert not only based on bid price, but on
qualifications, stars, and project history. Project categories include
web design, writing, business strategy, and administrative support.
ELANCE
http://www.elance.com/c/home/main/index.pl?
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CONTRACTED WORK
http://www.contractedwork.com/
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HIRE AND EXPERT – QUESTION BASED
=======================================
ALLEXPERTS
Free service offered by the folks at About.com.
“Pick a category and click on a volunteer's name to ask a question!
Thousands of volunteer experts are here to answer all your questions!”
You can select your expert based on credentials, ratings in multiple
areas (knowledge, politeness, timeliness, and clarity of response),
and customer reviews.
ALL EXPERTS
http://www.allexperts.com/
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ASK ME
http://www.askme.com/
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ONLINE RESEARCH
==========================
ASK DOWN UNDER
This service is strictly for finding information online. You ask a
question and researchers bid to answer it. You choose your researcher
based on price and a point-rating system. Then, via a “live” online
exchange (appears to be an “instant message” type service) you receive
information as the researcher accumulates it. When you are satisfied
with the result, you rate the researcher and close the dialog box.
They offer two levels of service – Free and Paid Premium. Prices are
not posted.
ASK DOWNUNDER
http://www.askdownunder.com/i.n?b=vfljv1&g=a
ASK DOWNUNDER - INSTRUCTIONS
http://www.askdownunder.com/How%20to%20use%20askdownunder.pdf
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GET EXACTLY
“GetExactly helps sales, marketing, and research professionals make
effective and efficient use of their time by providing quick, easy and
cost-efficient answers to hard-to-find questions. Most research
requests can be returned in 48 hours or less.”
You may not select your own researcher, web-based research only,
pricing via packages – depends on number of hours of research and
quantity of data, correspondence via email.
GET EXACTLY
http://www.getexactly.com/aboutus.asp?mmid=3&cmid=3
-----------------------------------------
Then there are research services that target specific customers. Many
examples can be found here --
VIRTUAL REFERENCE DESK – “ASK-A” LOCATOR
http://www.vrd.org/locator/subject.shtml
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GOOGLE ANSWERS
==============================
Now, indulge me in a little shameless self-promotion on behalf of
Google Answers. I would like to point out that of the 3 requirements
you posted in your question, GA can provide two of those.
REQUEST A PARTICULAR RESEARCHER:
It is always permissible for you to request a specific researcher.
Merely put the name of the researcher you want in the subject of your
question, for example; “QUESTION FOR ANSWERER-GA ONLY”. Then you can
reiterate in your question that you will only accept an answer posted
by that particular researcher. There is honor among the researchers
and nobody will jump in uninvited. The beauty of the system here is
that if your selected researcher is unable to answer the question
he/she (with your permission) will turn it over to the rest of the
group. I can assure you there is more cooperation than competition
amongst Google Answers researchers and your question will get answered
one way or another.
ALLOWING MORE THAN ONE RESEARCHER TO WORK ON A QUESTION
There are a couple of ways to do that here. The best way would be to
post the question more than once, explaining in it that you are
willing to pay say, 3 different researchers, to work independently to
come up with answers for you. This works especially well for questions
that require original thought, ideas, or opinion. For example: “How
can I market my new invention?” or “Where is the best place to stay in
Paris?”
The obvious downside to doing this for a “factual” question is that it
will likely result in duplicate references. For that case, I’d
recommend posting the question once, then after it is answered, post
it again with a link to the previous question, and specify that you
don’t want duplicate information. This does, of course, defeat the
purpose of “simultaneous,” as you specified.
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FURTHER INFORMATION
=====================================
Comparative review of Yahoo, Keen and Google Answers
SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE
“Expert advice online at a price”
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2002/09/23/BU33420.DTL&type=business
CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR
“Paying for answers online”
http://www.csmonitor.com/2002/0722/p14s01-wmcn.html
GOOGLE WEB DIRECTORY OF “ASK AN EXPERT” SITES
http://directory.google.com/Top/Reference/Ask_an_Expert/?il=1
That should give you a good look into the world of online research
services. Naturally I hope that Google Answers can continue to meet
your research needs.
If anything I’ve said isn’t clear, please feel free to ask for
clarification.
-K~
search terms:
I searched all combinations of :
online internet web research freelance experts advice “ask
questions” and much more … |
