Feedback for New Idea Please!

ironclaw

Atomico wrote: »

Hey RATM,

That's not what I'm looking at at all I think that the JustAnswer ship has sailed really, they are already here in Ireland with Irish solicitors, etc, so I don't know if you'd be able to (or want to) compete with their millions of dollars in advertising resources, etc.

My idea is pretty simple at this stage - it consists of a profile page where bloggers and those with a social media presence can field questions, post questions for feedback / comment, and generally interact with their followers, readers and fans to stimulate more buzz around their content - and attract more leads and inquiries as a result.

It will allow for a much deeper / longer engagement than a couple of random tweets between a business / bloggers and a prospective new customer could ever provide.

Let's say you write a blog post or give some free advice on Boards - you could have a link at the foot of your blog or in your Boards signature, linking out to your profile page and inviting people to ask you a question or continue the discussion there.

That means the focus is all on you. It would also be great for SEO, if you are someone who contributes a lot to the discussion / in terms of giving replies on your page.

Ok, so in a nutshell its like a facebook-esque profile for a blogger? With the ability to ask them questions? You can field questions and numerous bloggers can field a response for a fee?

Atomico

ironclaw wrote: »

Ok, so in a nutshell its like a facebook-esque profile for a blogger? With the ability to ask them questions? You can field questions and numerous bloggers can field a response for a fee?

The first part is pretty much it - so at the bottom of your blog post, next to your share icons, etc, you might see something like this:

'Ask Ironclaw a question on this topic!'

or

'Got a question for Ironclaw? Ask him at {URL}'

it's not for a fee though, as that model would likely not work, unless you were a very prominent blogger. It's a place to field questions / host discussions to increase your potential / make more room for you to attract leads and inquiries.

The idea is that users would see the value in a paid subscription if it was more than covering the new business they were generating via their page.

ironclaw

Atomico wrote: »

The first part is pretty much it - so at the bottom of your blog post, next to your share icons, etc, you might see something like this:

'Ask Ironclaw a question on this topic!'

or

'Got a question for Ironclaw? Ask him at {URL}'

it's not for a fee though, as that model would likely not work, unless you were a very prominent blogger. It's a place to field questions / host discussions to increase your potential / make more room for you to attract leads and inquiries.

The idea is that users would see the value in a paid subscription if it was more than covering the new business they were generating via their page.

Ok, so besides asking a question, what differentiates this from Google, the Yellow Pages or Facebook? A question can easily be asked once I found them with either of the 3.

The reason I ask is, take a solicitors office. There probably going to have a website and Yellow Pages entry. Very easily Googled with 'Solicitor in Dublin'

Take a SMB or a sole trader (i.e. A fitness coach) probably going to have a website and a facebook page.

Both those examples are for local activities i.e. I'm not going to engage a lawyer in Trim if I live in Waterford nor am I going to ask for fitness advice from a coach in Donegal if I'm from Dublin.

Granted its a whole different scene if its 'global' advice but Ireland is too small for that. If I had your idea and RATM's in front of me, I'd back RATM.

Atomico

ironclaw wrote: »

Ok, so besides asking a question, what differentiates this from Google, the Yellow Pages or Facebook? A question can easily be asked once I found them with either of the 3.

I think you're looking at it out of context. Why would someone go searching on Google or Facebook to ask a question of the person, when all they have to do to do that very thing is click a link directly from the person's blog post (or wherever it may appear)?

They have an open invitation to follow up with the person, quiz them, inquire with them or discuss the topic further, using one simple link. The person can track everything there and use it as a structured, quantifiable place for this type of activity.

There is also the SEO benefit. If someone is searching for 'tax advice', etc, and there is a bunch of content on Jim Smith Tax Advisor's page, isn't that great for Jim Smith and his ability to pop up for a search on that term?

ironclaw wrote: »

The reason I ask is, take a solicitors office. There probably going to have a website and Yellow Pages entry. Very easily Googled with 'Solicitor in Dublin'

Again, that's not looking at the idea in context. It's not about googling for businesses or for someone who can answer your question. It's about linking in with the person's online presence via blogs and social media.

You don't need to go looking for them, you've already found them. And you already know a bit about them, since you are engaging with them via their social media presence, or a blog post.

ironclaw wrote: »

Take a SMB or a sole trader (i.e. A fitness coach) probably going to have a website and a facebook page.

Both those examples are for local activities i.e. I'm not going to engage a lawyer in Trim if I live in Waterford nor am I going to ask for fitness advice from a coach in Donegal if I'm from Dublin.

You wouldn't ask a top Donegal-based trainer for fitness advice because he's based in another county? It's not location dependent, and very few instances will be so. Also don't forget that it's not about the user physically meeting with the person, it's about the user getting advice, tips, insights - and it's also about the person demonstrating their expertise to others who may be watching / browsing their page (many of whom will be local to them, if it matters).

ironclaw wrote: »

Granted its a whole different scene if its 'global' advice but Ireland is too small for that. If I had your idea and RATM's in front of me, I'd back RATM.

The intention is global, it's about blogs, social media and your online presence - which is all global. It applies to everyone who runs a business and wants to both do more business online, and grow / enhance their presence online.

Think of it as a simple tool or platform for anyone to generate more interest and exposure online. That invariably leads to more business, and if you can do that for people, then it is a business.

was.deevey

Everything has become so bloody difficult these days :P

I used to use a service to get me help on tap, any day, any hour, in realtime with web developers from round the world when I started off tinkering with sites. Silly stuff like how to set up the nameservers etc

Even managed to get a few jobs out of it then as well once I was a bit better.

The Platform: Yahoo Web design Chatroom 3 ! (they were always arseholes in Webdesign 1 and 2)

oh and that was 1998 :P