Paying for Google Expertise

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In the background, behind your screen, next to the heaving mass that is the living Google index, resides a freelance staff of human researchers approved by Google to track down the answers to specific queries. Whereas keyword search queries display automated search results — basically page after page of links — Google Answer queries result in conversations and expert answers.

This staff of researchers is screened rigorously by Google for informational agility and communicativeness. They are paid 75 percent of the fees assigned by users to their posted questions. Google gets the other 25 percent. Researchers are not assigned to certain questions; they claim them, based on area of expertise and willingness to tackle the query’s needs.

The next section establishes how you create a Google Answers account. Creating an account allows you to participate in one free aspect of Google Answers: posting comments to questions. (Later in the chapter I offer guidelines for this type of participation.) Creating the account does not obligate you to pay a research fee or post a question. In fact, there’s no need to provide credit card information until you post your first question, at which point you’re prompted for it.

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