Consumers are constantly using the internet to solve their daily problems and sometimes, they seek for specific advices too. If you are a professional who wants to earn some extra income, you could answer some of these questions online and get paid. Sounds pretty straightforward, but how much can you actually make? Let’s find out in this JustAnswer Expert review.
What Is JustAnswer
JustAnswer is a question and answer site that connects users to professionals in regards to specific topics. It has been around since 2003 and basically provides a 24 hour service in some of the following categories;
- Lawyers
- Mechanics
- Health Professionals
- Pet Specialists
- Home Improvement Experts
- Tech Support Specialist and so on…
Any individuals with a minimum of 4 years experience in their field can apply to become an expert on board and get paid when they accomplish a successful answering session. However the process is quite stringent and requires you to submit a resume and professional license along with your profile in order to be verified by a third party.
It takes about two weeks to process the application and if successful, you’ll be able to go live and start participating in Q&A.
How Much Can You Make
Depending on the complexity of the question and the level of your expertise, a user typically pays between $12 to $90 per question and you get to earn about 20% to 50% from that – which is about $3 to $18 – while the company keeps the remaining sum. For a minimum of $20, you would be able to cash out from a PayPal account.
The site claims that top earners could make about $1000 every month. So if you do the math, that would average to about $33 per day over the course of 30 days. That means you need to answer roughly 2 to 10 questions every day.
Sounds easy so far, right? Well, there are two ways to look at this job model and I’ll start by discussing the advantages first.
The Pros
- It’s a nice side way to make some extra cash through sharing your professional knowledge online. The service could add to your credentials as well as expand your clientele.
- Besides answering questions, the site offers two more methods to generate income. One of it is by referring an expert to the platform whereby you would receive a referral bonus between $14 to $70 when he/she is accepted and provides 20 successful answers to the customers.
- The other one is by referring customers to use the service through their affiliate program that is available through the AWIN network. Their sales average about $28 in which you get to earn 20% (or $5.60) in commissions. For that to work, you’ll need to set up a website targeting people who are interested in getting answers online through experts.
Despite the perks, there’s some reality check to consider when it comes to the value of your profession.
The Cons
- You probably figured out by now that in some cases, the customer’s problem can’t be easily solved through a simple Q&A. Therefore, it’s not always possible to provide satisfactory answers for everyone.
- This could consequently affect your rating and if the users are not happy about it, you wouldn’t get paid even after providing what you think is the ‘most appropriate’ solution.
- Most professionals are busy people and unless the nature of your job allows constant access to the internet, it would be difficult to keep track of incoming questions or to answer them promptly. For that, you may need to commit some time after work or squeeze time between hours to do some answering.
- And then, there’s the question about the value of your skills and the (limited) time that you have. Is your opinion/consultation worth more than $18 dollars per session? Is it worth investing your free time to earn $33/day? How much time are you willing to dedicate to this site versus working on your real job? These are just some of the situations to consider thoroughly when servicing Q&A sites.
- Lastly, if you do a quick search online, you may find a lot of complaints from customers who are either unhappy with the discussion/payment system or answers provided. This can actually affect the customer’s trust and thus hinder what you may want to achieve as an expert on the platform.
So, Is JustAnswer Worth Your Time?
If you are a professional who likes to share your knowledge and help out people regardless of the amount of pay, JustAnswer can be a good sideline to improve your interaction with potential clients and tackle new issues within your field of expertise. You just need to organize time around your work and personal space to make it happen.
However, if you are searching for a way to make money long term on the internet, Q&A sites don’t necessarily guarantee a constant supply of questions and even if they do have them, there will always be other experts competing with you to answer the questions.
If your aim is to create a sustainable income that can provide you with time freedom that most professionals are often deprived of, you are better off starting an online business with your existing knowledge.
Here are two ways to go about it;
1 – If you are a business owner, create a website by optimizing for local presence to attract new customers from your area. That way, you can truly build a customer base without undermining the value of your profession and can charge what you feel is most deserving for your skills and knowledge.
2 – If you are an employed professional, you can still create an online business through doing affiliate marketing which allows you to recommend physical or digital products in your field and earn online sales commissions from companies that you trust.
You’ll be sharing a lot of your knowledge through blogging and use online marketing skills to attract targeted customers from all over. The good thing about affiliate marketing is that it doesn’t cost a lot to start, you can do it during your free time and gradually move towards a sustainable online income.
Well, I hope this overview has given you a clear idea about becoming an expert with JustAnswer, what you can achieve and what you can’t. If you like to know more about turning your profession into a successful online career, please check out my recommended training platform here to get started for free.
Have you had any experience using or servicing Q&A sites before? Let us know in the comment section below.
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Hi Cathy,
I checked on the site a while ago and do agree that this could help professionals become more recognizable, to be seen and to expand their clientele. It’s okay that they want minimum 4 years of experience, because the answers will be then more detailed and useful, but I would maybe give 2-3 years of experience. As long as the person gives quality answers, there should be no problem.
As tempting as it may seems, I wouldn’t invest my time here. There are so many useful information already on blogs, sites and if someone needs help he/she can find them there. If they need some fast solution, they would go straight to a mechanic, lawyer and other similar professional within their area to get more personal help from there.
Thanks for the easy to understand review of JustAnswer. I came across the site a couple of months ago, and thinking of taking a look at it deeply. When I visited the site, they made it sound so easy.
I’m glad to stumble upon this post though. It saves me a lot of research time, figuring out if I should use it and prevent me from facing future disappointments. And like what you said, I think I will just use my knowledge to help others by creating a website that covers it.
Hi Mina. Glad I could be of help 🙂
That seems like a hefty fee for the website to keep. As someone who works in a law firm, I don’t know many lawyers who are willing to give out information for only $18 per question. Unless they are willing to be asked 50 questions a minute and have the time to answer them all, seems like it’s something better suited for retired professionals who want to make a little extra cash, maybe?
Do you know if they get paid for each follow up question to the original question? Or, does it all fall under the scope of the first question?
Hi Nicki. In most cases, they don’t need to pay for follow up questions. You can find out more through this page.
Hello Cathy,
Until now, I wasn’t aware of a website that catered specifically to peoples who need to find answers in this manner. It’s great to see that people are able to share their expertise to benefit others and solve complex problems.
I have a question regarding the quality of the information being presented on the platform. What sort of quality control is being applied to make sure that the advice presented is both sound and constructive? I am wondering why someone would use this platform as apposed to the numerous YouTube channel reviews where people also review or offer advice to specific products?
Hi Richard,
Experts need to submit their field qualification details for review before they can participate to earn through the platform. That’s one of the measures which I can see in terms of maintaining the quality of service.
As to why some people may favor expert based platform versus free YouTube channels – well, I guess it depends on the industry that’s involved and the depth of information a person requires.
Free information are scattered on the internet and in urgent situations, not many people will have the time to research so going to a professional is a better option. Plus, anyone can offer ‘free’ information online, but to have it come from a professional background will offer people more trust and confidence in using expert-based advice to solve their problems.
Hope this helps.
You have explained this program very well, I left your site feeling that I had few to no questions. This is unusual, as when I leave most sites that are offering you to work from home I feel that they have left so many grey areas. You shed light on every aspect.
The only thing that I do have a question about is, if you are unavailable to answer a persons question due to time issues, is that person shuffled to the next professional to steal your commission? Which it’s not really stealing if you do not have time, and the questioner doesn’t have the time to wait for your response.
I am not qualified to become a member on this particular platform, as I only have an associates degree in graphic design, and no degree in culinary arts (I am a professional cook). But I do find it a very insteresting platform.
Hey Cathy, I have a question after reading this article. I’m a video game and a psychology expert. It that qualification sufficient for me to join? I have been wanting to make some extra money so this might be beneficial.
Hi R.J.
One of the requirement to apply as an expert is to submit proof of qualification in a certain field. Psychology sounds appropriate, but I am not too sure about video games. I could be wrong and this is something you’ll have to look into.
Hope this helps.
I would not have even thought that a platform such as JustAnswer could be an earning option. After reading the cons, I realized that a professional could potentially be wasting their time, if they cannot solve the problem in an answer and this will subsequently lead to bad ratings and lack in customer trust. I am guessing it could be bad for any professionals reputation.
You hit the nail on the head. It is far better to set up your own gig, and this way you will be in control of keeping your reputation in tack.
This sounds like an interesting site and I am guessing, with 4 years of professional experience, anyone would be qualified to answer the questions. It sounds like it would be a great way to earn a little extra cash, but what if you can’t answer the persons question? Does that score bad on your? Because lets face it sometimes there are those questions that people will ask that you just can’t answer.
I think if you can answer, then you’ll not take on the question. If you can’t, you’ll do your very best to deliver and let the customer review your service later. All expert profile have a rating system so the quality of one’s work will certainly be reflected there.
At first I thought it was nothing more than a ‘pocket money’ internet job, but then you mentioned $12 to $90 per question and I nearly fell off my seat! This is obviously a good place to earn if you fit the profile.
How much work is on this site? Is there enough for a professional to earn a full time living?
Hi Chris, I don’t think you can rely on Q&A sites to earn a full time income as questions are random and there are other professionals contributing to the platform too. I am guessing that it could be a fair bit of work because it’s task oriented. If you don’t provide answers, you won’t get paid.