Is Facebook building the new community-driven Q&A platform? Beta testers can apply now!

Is Facebook building the new community-driven question-and-answer (Q&A) platform? I think it is. I just noticed an ad on Facebook, according to which Facebook is looking for beta testers for a new product:

“We at Facebook are preparing to launch a brand new product to the world. We think it will be as exciting as Facebook Photos and Facebook Events, but we need your help to make it great.”

From the description of the testers’ role it sounds a lot like a crowdsourced answers platform like Yahoo Answers or Answers.com.

“As a beta tester, your job will be to ask great questions and provide great answers about your favorite topics. Economics? Skydiving? Relationships? Mexican Restaurants? It’s up to you. You’ll be the first person outside of Facebook to use this product. Your expert writing will be seen by tens of millions of people — including job recruiters. And we’ll bring our best beta testers out to California to tour Facebook headquarters and meet the team.”

I wonder what kind of business model will be associated with it? Is Facebook going to be selective in people answering the questions?

People who want to apply to join the beta have to ask three questions and provide three answers themselves via this page.

Facebook promises them feedback within 24 hours after their application.

Would love to hear your ideas about this news!

How Air New Zealand uses crowdsourcing and social media for a new in-flight experience


Joanne FaithJoanne Faith of Social Media News NZ, recently posted an interesting example of yet another company, using social media and crowdsourcing to engage people in a creative way. Read more about the initiative in Joanne’s post below.

Social media and interactive web sites have opened up a direct line between businesses and consumers, and Air New Zealand is ready to take advantage of this opportunity.

Read more