justanswer.com FAQs

The payment process on JustAnswer can be summarized in five steps:

1) You answer a customer's question and/or request.

2) The customer gives you a positive rating. A positive rating is defined as three stars or higher.

Customer View of Rating Systems:

3) Credit for the value of the question, any bonus, or any applicable Premium Service is applied to your JustAnswer Expert account.

4) Configure payout options:Configuring your payout iseasy and only takes a few minutes. Once you have earned $20 or more you can request payment by following these steps:

-Visit the Request Payment page by clicking the "Current Earnings on Account" link located on the My Accountpage.

-Specify whether you would like to transfer all, none, or a specific amount of your earnings from your JustAnswer Expertaccount to your PayPal account, specify your PayPal email address, and click "Submit."The payment schedulethat you configure will automatically be usedfor future months and you will be eligible to have earnings paid out as long as your earnings areat least $20 at the end of each month. Make sure to make any changes before12:00am UTCon the firstday of the month missing this deadline may cause your payment to be delayed until the next cycle.

5) Experts Will Need to set up aPayPal Accountand collect their payoutsfrom theirPayPal accounts. Expert paymentsare processed directly to your PayPal account within the first four (4) business days of the following month.

To setup a PayPal account,follow the directions on PayPal's website and be sure to use the same email address that you usedin your JustAnswer Payout schedule.

VERY IMPORTANT:It is your responsibility to check your PayPal email address before JustAnswer issues payments. Any change to pay requests must be completed before 12:00am UTCthe first day of each month. Absent error by JustAnswer, we reserve the right to correct erroneous payments in the next month and not before. No payments may be issued outside of regular payment cycles.

Refunds: If a customer requests a refund within 30 days of payment, Justanswer will honor the customer's refund request. Justanswer also reserves the right to process refunds requested after 30 days. The customer's payment to you will be drawn from your earnings and returned to the customer at the time that the refund is issued.

Respond to questions wherever you are.

The JustAnswer Mobile App for Experts helps busy Experts stay on top of questions and connected with customers. Available on iPhone and Android, the JustAnswer Mobile App for Experts will give you the flexibility and convenience of responding to questions on-the-go and getting push notifications for customer replies.

JustAnswer Mobile App for Android phones

Available for iPhone and Android

Whether you have an iPhone or Android phone, you can download and start using the app for Experts right away. Click on the appropriate link below from your smartphone to download the app or go to the app store on your phone and search for 'JustAnswer Experts.'

JustAnswer Mobile App for iPhones

Get push notifications

With the app, you will get push notifications instantly alerting you of customer replies on questions you've responded to.

Respond to questions

Whenever and wherever you are, simply open the app to find available questions in your categories and select ones you want to respond to. When responding to a question, you can select whether you'd like to reply as an IR or Answer.

Search or continue where you left off

You can search for questions with specific keywords or category, making it easier for you to find questions that fit your skillset. Questions that you've started working on elsewhere will automatically be added to the Priority or Recent view.

More to come!

Please share your feedback with us as you use the mobile app. We will continue to make further improvements including premium services, more push notifications, and more visibility into your app activity. Stay tuned!

Your success as an Expert on JustAnswer depends on the quality of your answers and how they are delivered

this article

As a new Expert, you may be a little nervous about helping your first customers but worry not because the crux of being an Expert on JustAnswer is: The more helpful you are at answering the question, the happier the customer should be with the experience. This translates into better ratings for you, and a greater chance that the customer will add you to their list of favorite Experts.

Being added to a customer’s favorite list is a significant value to you. The customer can then ask you questions directly, and you already have a rapport with the customer. The result is more questions for you to answer, and that means more money in your pocket.

Now, it should be pretty obvious that customer service is important in a customer-facing position. As an Expert, you have probably worked within your industry for a while and helping customers shouldn’t be new to you. But not everything you do to deliver a great customer experience in real life translates over to how you help customers on JustAnswer, so we want to share some not-so-obvious-tips that will help your success on the site.

Helping for an audience

When you help someone in person, whether you are replacing the muffler on a Honda Civic, restoring an Acer laptop to factory settings, or describing how to determine the gender of an iguana, the customer is gaining the benefit of your knowledge. When the customer leaves, the conversation ends and the experience is unique to only that customer.

When you help someone on JustAnswer, the conversation is transcribed into a web page that other people can read and learn from so your expertise not only helped the original customer, but it continues to help others with similar problems.

Rather than water down the value of your knowledge, these online conversations ultimately benefit you. On JustAnswer, over half a million people are reading through the transcripts of existing questions every day. Because the specific details of each question are so different, even closely related questions will have different answers. The result: roughly 30 percent of the new questions that are generated start from existing Q&A sessions.

Each time you help a customer, you’re solving their specific problem, but you’re also helping other readers struggling with similar problems. If the original question that you answered doesn’t resolve the new readers problem, they will still be left with questions to ask. And you have just demonstrated your knowledge on the subject to that person, and the link to your profile is right there.

When you are helping your customers, you should try to keep these two goals in mind:

Providing the most helpful information during the conversation

Thinking about what value you might be offering to other readers

Restating the customer’s question

“So, if I understand correctly, you need to know how to change the parental control settings on your Samsung TV.”

This is a simple and powerful customer service tool. It’s actually very challenging for customers to figure out how to phrase their questions, and misuse of terminology can further complicate a question. One of the fastest ways for a question to take a wrong turn is to completely misunderstand what the customer wants, and spend your time giving answers that aren’t useful and confuse the customer. If you start your conversation by explaining what you think your customer wants to know, you can resolve these kinds of misunderstandings before they start.

When you repeat the customer’s question back in your own words, you are doing several things, including:

Showing the customer that you are listening and trying to understand.

Providing the customer with a chance to explain their situation in more detail.

Helping other people with similar problems find your Q&A conversation.

Taking the time to restate the customer’s question back to the customer demonstrates your commitment to their satisfaction and will help you keep your conversations focused and valuable.

Delivering deeper content

Once you have identified the exact needs of the customer, you want to address them as clearly as you can. But you also want to provide peripheral information that will be relevant and useful. This extra information helps the customer, demonstrates your knowledge, and provides context for other readers, at the same time. Some kinds of deeper content you should consider discussing include:

Alternative solutions: If you are helping a customer with an injured cat, you would, of course, suggest that the cat be taken to the vet for treatment, but the customer may not know that a paste made of turmeric powder can help keep the wound clean and reduce pain for the cat while you wait for the vet. While the easiest answer to your customer’s question may be the best one, it can sometimes be worthwhile to mention other solutions that exist. You never know when that alternative answer will fit a customer’s needs, or when it may help another reader.

What to avoid: You can explain to a customer how to clean their MAF sensor, but they won’t know how fragile the wire connections can be unless you tell them. Damaging those wire connections would break the sensor, costing the customer extra money. If there are additional concerns that could affect the customer’s chances of success, they will need that information!

Troubleshooting tips: It’s easy to explain how to adjust the closing depth settings on a garage door opener, but what happens when the customer’s garage door still won’t shut all the way? Most problems can have multiple causes, and the customer will need to know what to do next if they are still struggling. By offering some troubleshooting tips during your conversation, you are simultaneously preparing the customer for contingencies, and presenting additional options to other readers.

Ask for additional information: Your customer may know that they need to factory reset their laptop but may not be aware that they can create a recovery drive to salvage their data before they do. By taking the time to ask if they have made a recovery drive, you may uncover a concept they didn’t know existed. This is a wonderful way to offer additional value and demonstrate your expertise!

These are great ways to add extra depth to your conversations and provide real assistance to your customers. They allow you to take a question with a simple answer and turn it into one that will be meaningful and valuable, both to the customer you are chatting with and any future readers.

Including links to additional information

If you are helping a customer decide how to handle a friend with an addiction, they may not have an immediate need for information on rehab programs, but they may want the information later.

While it’s important to provide additional value during your conversations, stay focused on information that will be immediately useful to the customer in the situation. Sometimes, there is background information that is interesting and relevant, but that isn’t required for the solution you are explaining. This is where links to good articles addressing these topics become invaluable.

If you are concerned about your ability to identify quality links to offer, by the Georgetown University Library can help you out.

When you offer these kinds of relevant links during the conversation, the customer can go back and access the resources when they do become relevant. These kinds of links can also be a great way to address other closely related situations, which can make your conversation more valuable to other readers.

Identifying sections of your answer with headers

Some of the questions that you will run into on JustAnswer will be complicated and may involve many different steps. The pages generated from these kinds of questions can be long and hard to follow. This is when using headers can make the conversation easier to understand.

While the rest of these tips have been focused on identifying the information that your customer needs, using headers is a purely formatting tip. The purpose is to make specific important information easy to find in a long Q&A thread.

When you describe how to do something to your customer, if you start by adding a bold heading on its own line, it will be much easier to locate.

Some sample headers:

How to change a Moen shower cartridge

Testing the voltage of a throttle position sensor

Calculating your body mass index

Using multiple bold headings to locate and identify the different stages of the process that you are explaining in the question will help anyone trying to follow your directions.

Building an audience

The goal of these tips is to help you find a group of customers that appreciate your answers and come back to you with their future questions. Adopting these tips into your conversations will help you to create the kinds of experiences that build your own audience of customers. Every question is an opportunity to earn a customer for life, and to continue finding you new customers over time!

Thoughts? Share ideas and tips from your own experience with others in the Expert community below.

With Expert Mobile Web, you can offer phone calls to customers, fulfill Auto Phone Call requests, and initiate calls with customers. Below is information to help you get started. To learn the basics of the Expert mobile web, click here.

How do I send a phone call offer to customers?

As you're corresponding with your customer using Expert Mobile Web, you will see an option to "Offer Phone Call" right above the message text box.

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When you tab on "Offer Phone Call," you'll get a Premium Service modal similar to the one you see on desktop. The type and description of service have already been filled out for you. Enter the service value you'd like to offer and tap on "Submit offer."

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How do I accept an Auto Phone Call request?

When a customer sends you a phone call request, you will see an in-line request on your mobile phone. You'll have 5 minutes to accept the request before it's opened to other Experts in your category. To accept, tap on "Accept this request."

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Can I initiate an Auto Phone Call request through JustAnswer?

Yes! After accepting an Auto Phone Call request on your mobile phone, you will be asked to enter your phone number. After doing so, tap on "Initiate customer call now" and our integrated phone call feature will dial out to both you and the customer at the same time. Calls initiated through our system will mask your phone number and are recorded for quality purposes.

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Welcome!

One of the first things you want to get done, is get your profile pages set up! Customers see your profile before they meet you, so it's essential to create a strong first impression.This is your opportunity to showcase your experience and personality.

best practices for greetings

Creating a complete profile includes editing your main profile as well as your mini profile(s). Budget 10-15 minutesfor completing this process.

Main Profile

Your main profile references of all of your essential expert information. It lists registration details, contact information, work experience, licensing and education, personal information, and your expert portrait. Personal information like address, phone, email are for internal purposes only, for things like emailing you when your customers reply to you. Customers and other Experts do not see this information.

To edit your main profile, please visit your expert profile page.

In your main profile, enter the following information:

Registration Details

Username

The main username you use to sign in. If you would like to change your username, that is done administratively, and you can simply submit a request in this ExpertHelp Center by clicking the red Submit an Inquiry button above.

Public Profile Name

This name appears as a part of your profile page link. We ask that there be no spaces. Favored examplesinclude "DoctorNormSmitt," "MCheng," and "MFreemanCPA."

Email Address

Be sure to use an email address that you check regularly because this is where you'll receive important notifications, including customer replies.

Contact Information

Your contact information is visible only to you and select JustAnswer staff. Customers and other experts do not have access to your personal information. See our privacy policy for more information.

Work Information

We'll use this information to fill your customer-facing profile. To protect your privacy, wedo notshare your current employer. All other work-related fields are public.

Current Job Title

Examples include:Doctor of Ophthalmology,ASE-Certified Mechanic, andInformation Systems Manager.

Current Employer

Please specify your current employer. Rest assured, this informationwill notappear on your profile.

Work History

Summarize your work experience in a short but descriptive phrase. Here are some examples: "14 years practicing immigration law," "5 years working in an automotive garage," and "12 years as a CPA."

Hobbies, Volunteering, & Other Skills

Including your hobbies makes you more personable. Examples include:fishing, hiking, playing the violin, or volunteering in a soup kitchen.

Education, Licenses & Experience Information

Upload or Change Your Resume

Your resume information is displayed only to you and select JustAnswer staff. Remember to always keep a current resume on file because we’ll use it to determine if you qualify for other categories. Admittance into other categories means you’ll have more opportunities to earn money by helping customers.

Other education, license and experience information

Be sure to include the following:

School

Major or Emphasis

Graduation Year

Expert Licenses

Issuing License Agency

State License Issued

License Agency Website

Certifications, Awards, Patents, Publications & Other Education

Personal Information

Your Picture

Studies show that high-quality photos build trust and create a positive first impression with customers. For an expert like you, this means that your picture should be high resolution, friendly, and show that you are a real expert in your designated field. Remember, your picture is the very first thing a customer will see.

Here is a handy checklist to ensure that your picture meets our minimum standards. Your picture must:

Uniforms or expert attire, in an expert background were the most trusted.(Examples: lab coat and stethoscope for a doctor, suit for a lawyer, or coveralls for a mechanic.)

Be high quality with good lighting

Be cropped tightly below the shoulders so the focus is on your face, which should show a friendly or caring expression.

Be betwen 500x500 pixels and 1000x1000 pixels. (Some cropping tools are available during the upload process.)

Smiling works wonders

Signature Text

This field is not currently used any longer, but it may return in the future so we encourage you to fill it out. It will allow you to have a custom signature for every answer. Here is a guide to best practices for signatures.

Attach Signature in Q&A (On/Off)

If you'd like to use a custom signature in the future, be sure to turn on the feature now.

Mini-Profiles

Mini-profiles contain category-specific information. You can have one mini-profile for each category to which you have been admitted.

To edit your mini-profile(s), please visit your My Account link and select Edit Mini Profiles. Want a tutorial? Here you go! How To Change Your Mini Profile Name

On the far right side of the screen, you will see an "Edit" link for each category. Click that link to begin customizing your first mini profile.

For each mini profile, you'll want to enter the following information:

Your View Name

Select a username you'd like your customers to see in each category.

In the rare instance that you have been admitted to two very distinct categories, such as Medical and Antiques or Legal and Car, you can use this field to indicate a specific view name for one of the categories. For example, if you are a doctor who is also an antiques appraiser, your main profile name can be "Dr. Norm Smith," while your view name for antiques can be simply "Norm Smith."

Your Title

Select or enter an expert title to appear after your view name. For example, if you choose "Boat Mechanic," customers will be introduced to you as, "Allen Jones, Boat Mechanic." Recommended titles appear in the drop-down menu.

Qualifications

Enter a short summary of your qualifications for your category. Customers will look at this field to confirm your expertise, so be sure to highlight your top qualifications such as years of experience, and relevant certifications

Here are a few examples: "15 years as an HVAC technician," "MD in Pediatrics with 10 years' experience in emergency care for infants and toddlers," and "Honda Platinum Certified mechanic with 8+ years' experience."

Greeting Text

This field is a great tool for Experts! Any greeting text you enter here will automatically populate to the reply box on questions you've decided to answer when you click the green "Send" button on the question page. This allows for your customers to get a speedy reply and know you've engaged with them while you're typing up or researching their answer. Something like: "Hello, I'm Sophia. Welcome to JustAnswer! I'm reviewing your question now, and will post back in a moment with my reply." Then once you post that greeting, you relock the question page and begin typing up your reply immediately. Here is a guide.

Once you've entered your greeting, please Submit an Inquiry to Expert Support with the red button above, and we can get itturned on for you. It can take up to one week to activate, so please be sure to let us know as soon as you have it ready!

Greeting (On/Off)

If you'd like to use a custom greeting, be sure to turn this feature on.

Favorite Testimonial

Positive reviews can help you build trust with new customers. After you receive positive feedback, be sure to enter it in this section so other customers can see it.

Congratulations on editing your main profile and your first mini-profile! Your customers will appreciate the time you invested to show them who you are and how eager you are to help them solve problems and live better. And don't forget to edit your other mini-profiles, if you have them - remember, you have one mini-profile per category. Happy hunting!

It's easier now than ever before for customers to initiate premiumservice requests with Experts. Withthe launch of the Auto Phone Call and Auto Secure Remote Assistance features, we made it even easier by suggesting phone calls or secure remote assistance to customers. For you, customer initiated requests validate the amazing quality of information and serviceyou've provided, and take the pressure off of you to upsell.

While customer-initiated Premium Service requests are great for most Experts, we do understand that not all Experts are available when the request is made or they may not be willing to fulfill a Premium Service request. Experts always have the option to decline any Premium Service requests. When declining a request, make sure you follow the site guidelines and policies.

Please keep these things in mind:

Experts have the option to fulfill or decline premiumservice requests for any reason. If you are unable or unwilling to fulfill premiumservice requests, simply let customers know. For Auto Premium Service offers, you can let customers know that other Experts can assist if you are unable to.

Avoid making any statement that disparages the site. It is against the Expert Agreement and will put you at risk for removal. Please review this section of the Expert Agreement here.

Q&A conversations and Premium Services are defined as "information only" services under our Terms of Service. Customers are presented withthe Terms of Service when using JustAnswer, and must agree that all information received through JustAnswer, including through premiumservices, are for "information only." You can review this section of the Terms of Service here.

There are four general types of Expert replies that are permitted: (1) Answers to questions, (2) Legitimate requests for information, (3) Polite replies prompted by customer posts, (4) Communications letting the Customer know you are working on an Answer.

If you have any questions, please contact Expert Support.

Premium Services areadditional services a customer may elect to upgrade to at either a prompt from JustAnswer or a prompt from their Expert. It is a service in addition to the traditional written answer they are already receiving from their Expert, and they pay an additional fee for it.

There are two types of Premium Services that can be offered to a customer on JustAnswer: Auto Premium Services and Expert-Initiated Premium Services.

What is an Auto Premium Service?

JustAnswer will automatically offer customers two different types of additional services:

Auto Phone Call - where the customer is offered an upgrade to have a phone call with an Expert. If they accept the offer, a request is sent out to the Q&A Expert to let them know the customer is requesting a phone call. The Expert can accept the request or decline it. If they decline it, the request opens up to all available Experts.

Click here for more information aboutthe Auto Phone Call service!

Auto Secure Remote Assistance - where the customer is offered an upgrade to have an Expert remote into their computer to solve the issue. If the customer accepts the offer, a request is sent out to the Expert on the question page to let them know the customer is requesting remote assistance. If the Expert declines the request or does not accept it, the request opens up to all available Experts.

Click here for moreinformation about the Auto Secure Remote Assistance service!

What is an Expert-Initiated Premium Service?

When an Expert is corresponding with a customer on their question page and they determine that they’d like to offer the customer a service beyond the scope of the original written answer they’re already providing, they can initiate a Premium Service upgrade offer by clicking the orange “Offer Premium Services” button on the question page’s reply box.

Some examples of Expert-Initiated Premium Services are:

Phone Calls

Remote Assistance

Skype video conferencing

X-ray review

Legal document review

Click here for more information on Expert-Initiated Premium Services.

If you have any additional questions regarding Premium Services, please search the help articles in the search bar above, or click the red "Submit a Request" button above.

In an effort to improve the overall auto premium service fulfillment experience for both customers and Experts, we have added a way for Experts to indicate whether an auto premium service (Auto Phone Call and Auto Secure Remote Assistance) request has been successfully fulfilled.

When you open an Auto Premium Service request, you will see a revised landing page with a form that asks whether you were able to connect with the customer. You MUST successfully fulfill the Auto Premium Service request AND submit the report within 36 hours of accepting the request in order to get paid.

Note: If you were not able to reach a customer at first, please make several more attempts BEFORE indicating 'no' on the form. If you have any issues, please contact Expert Support. The Fulfillment Reportonly applies to Auto Premium Services (Auto Phone Call and Auto Secure Remote Assistance) and NOT Expert-initiated Premium Services.

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Once you've accepted an Auto Phone Call request or an Auto Secure Remote Assistance request, you will have up to 36 hours to indicate on the form whether you were able to fulfill the service. Do NOT submit the form before you've successfully fulfilled the request or made several attempts. As noted, you MUST indicate that you've successfully fulfilled the auto premium service request to be paid.

While we understand that this is an extra step to your premium service fulfillment workflow, it is a step that will help resolve some of the concerns we've heard back from you about not being able to connect with customers. By giving you the opportunity to indicate whether an Auto Premium Service is fulfilled, we can better serve customers and when necessary, use your feedback to help dispute complaints from customers. This feedback loop feature is similar to an Uber driver indicating on the driver's app of when a ride is completed or an Amazon email indicating that your package has been received.

For your convenience, all accepted Auto Premium Service requests will be added to the Priority view in your Request Center with an appropriate prefix. You can easily open the landing page from here and complete the form.

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In the scenario where you were not able to connect with a customer, please indicate as such and complete the rest of the form to give us more information. Your feedback will help us take necessary steps to contact the customer and resolve any issue.

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You can check your Answer Earnings Report for any Auto Premium Services you've accepted. If there is a $0 in the earnings column, it means you have not filled out the report yet, or you've already filled it out and indicated the service could not be fulfilled.

If you have any questions about this feature, please click the red Submit an Inquiry button at the top of this page. Thank you!

The Active Request pageis an all-in-one interface that allows you to manage and respond to multiple questions, and offer premium services. You can access the Active Request Pageby going to http://professional.justanswer.com.

Below, you will find descriptions and examples of every major components of theActive Request page.

ActiveRequests

The Active Requestssidebar lists all requestsyou'verecently engaged that have notbeen marked as Closed. You can identify the status of the requestsby the following icons:

click here

Requestsare organized by date and time indescending order. The order could eitherbethe last response or, in the case of a requestto which you have not yet responded, when the requestwas posted.

Here's an example of the Active Requestssidebar:

At the top of the sidebar, you can toggle requestlists by clicking on the appropriate tab.

Shows all conversations

Shows pending conversations (filters out positively rated questions)

Shows only priority conversations

RequestDetails

This section contains information about the request, immunity, opt out options, and more.

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Elements of RequestDetails

Customer name: This links to the customer profile.

Number of open requests: This links to the requestsearch page.

Country: The country that the customer is currently located.

Rating: This will let you know whether the customer has rated your answer.

Status: This gives you the current status of the request.

Last viewed: This lets you know the date and time the customer last viewed the request.

Category and Optional Details:When the optional details are too long to display in the allotted space, a gray "More" button will appear. Clicking this button will toggle the full display of the Optional Details.

Value: This tells you how much your payout will be if the customer accepts your answer.

Immunity option: check to be granted immunity from negative ratings on an immunity-eligible request.

Close: Remove the requestfrom your sidebar after receiving a positive rating.

Remove From List: Clicking this link will remove the requestfrom your conversation list without opting you out. You will not be able to perform this action on requeststhat are in a priority or abandoned state.

Opt Out: Clicking this link will opt you out of the requestand will remove it from your list.

Alerts: Formerly know as "Reports," the Alerts pop-up gives you the option to report various issues to JA.

Messages

The full thread of the conversation is here. As the thread gets longer, you should see the messages scroll such that the most recent messages in the conversation are always visible.

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Responses from other Expertswill have a red flag icon on the right for creating alerts (formerly "reporting") pertaining to responses. Some old alerts are being retired. Those are displayed but not clickable.

To edit a response, click on the blue pencil and square icon on the right side of your message in the conversation box. Keep in mind that this feature is only available in Q&A and you can only edit your latest response.

Lock

The Lock area has a Lock and Unlock option.

Clicking on the Lock button will Lock or Re-lock the current request, and start/resume work timer.

Clicking on the Unlock button will pause the work timer.

There are 5 possible lock states you might see in the area above the Lock/Unlock icons:

You are not locked to this request: This means you have no competing locks and that this requestis available for locking by you.

You have customers waiting: This means that you have one or more requeststhat must be answered before you can lock this request. Those requestsare highlighted in red in the conversation list.

You are locked to another request: This means you are currently locked to one or more other requests. For a text-based question, this means you already have 5 chat locks. For a non-text-based question, it means you are locked to another non-text-based question. You can still lock this question, but just be aware thatclicking Lock will unlock another question.

Locked by XXX: This requestis locked by another expert or mod and cannot be locked by you.

X min XX sec remaining in lock: This is your lock count-down. When 30 seconds are remaining, typing in the text box will automatically re-lock the requestfor you. Also note that, when your lock is 30 seconds from expiring, the lock icon in the Conversation List (Active Questions) will begin to flash orange. Thus, even if you are viewing another request, you should see that your lock is going to expire.

Post

The Post area supports basic formatting options: bold, italic, underline, lists, hyperlinks, and attachments) and file uploads.

Here are some things to know:

Auto-save: The text you type is auto-saved every 2 seconds. If you switch to another requestand return to a partially completed answer, whatever portion of your answer was auto-saved will be restored to the text area. However, please note that the auto-saved text is saved within your browser, not to any long term storage location. Thus, if you refresh your browser, any saved "state" information will be lost. The application is designed to be fully self-updating, so there should never be a need to manually refresh the page (but see the Other/FAQ section for more on this).

Auto-relock: When 30 seconds are remaining on your current lock, typing in the text box will automatically re-lock the requestfor you. In fact, if you have been typing any time in the previous 30 seconds, auto-relock will be triggered.

Editor Size: By default, the size of the editor area is set to Small to maximize the space available for viewing the previous messages. Choosing Small/Medium/Large in the toolbar will resize the text area for the current request.

Answers and IRs: By default, when you click the 'Send' button, your response will be sent as an answer. However, we do let customers know that they should only rate once they're satisfy.

Paste:To paste in the PQA, left-click into your response textbox and use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+V to paste.

Spell Check:Spell check in PQA is now dynamic, similar to Microsoft Word. If you type a word the editor doesn’t recognize, it will include a red line underneath and you can right click for spelling suggestions.

File Upload:You can upload files by clicking on the paperclip icon in the toolbar. This opens a modal attachment dialog from which you can choose the files you wish to upload. Clicking on the red x will remove the file from the upload list. The selected files will be included with your message when you click the 'Send' button.

Premium Service

Premium Service gives you the abilityto offer premium services to customers. If a customer accepts your offer, you are given an automatic 5-star rating.

The Premium Service button is locatedunder the Messages section of PQA. You can only offer premium services once you've submitted an initial message.

Clicking on the "Offer Premium Service" button will trigger a pop-up where you will be able to select from an existing list of services or create your own, enter a description, and specify price.

After you submit anoffer, the status of that offer will be displayed near the "Offer Premium Service" button, and an inline message will contain information about your proposed offer. Your customer willget a modal that notifies them of your offer.

The status of the offer will be updated automatically. If your offer is rejected by the customer, you will be notified in Messages.

If the customer accepts your offer, you will be notified in Messagesand the “Offer Premium Service” button will be disabled. As mentioned, you are automatically credited for answering the customer's original request.

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Private Contact Info

After a customer has accepted your offer for Premium Service, you can send private contact information to each other. Click on the "Enter contact info" link to the right of the Offer PremiumService button to activate the pop-up. Enter your contact info and click on the Save button to send.

After saving your private contact info, your contact information will be displayed in Messages. The same goes for when the customer sends contact info.

FAQs

To get frequently asked questions about the Active Request page, .

Feel free to comment below or submit a ticket if you need additional help.

The My Requests page is your window to all questions you've responded to in the past 30 days. Here, you can see the status of your responded questions and take any needed actions.

You can get to the My Requests page from the Request Center.

On My Requests, you'll see a table of your responded questions in the past 30 days.

A summary of each column:

Question:This lists the first 60 characters of each question that you've responded to.

Customer: This lists the customer's username and you can also see the customer's question history. For example, a "(2/2)" tells you that this customer has asked 2 questions and given a positive rating on both.

Value: This lists how much you'll earn for the question when a positive rating is given.

Status: This tells you whether you or the customer is waiting for a response, premium service has been offered or accepted, and a rating has been given. From here, you can also offer customers premium services.

Most Recent: This gives you the timestamps of the most recent action taken by you or the customer.

If you want to filter the list of My Requests, you can do so by either selecting a specific category from the "Category" dropdown or the "Unrated questions" slider.

The Request Center is where Experts go to find and fulfill available requests such as Q&A and premium services. You can go to the Request Centerby going to http://professional.justanswer.com

Below, you will find descriptions and examples of every major componentofthe Request Center.

Navigation Panel

The left-hand navigation panel is similar to that of your favorite email client. When you open the Request Center, the default view will be Inbox. The different views available on the navigation panel:

Inbox: Displays Priority, new and availablerequests.

Priority: Displays requestscurrently locked by you, waiting for your response or customer request.

New & available: Displays requestsnot locked by you or any Expert.

PS requests: Displays only available Premium Service requests.

Sent: Displays requestsyou're awaiting customer response.

learn more here

You can hide the sidebar by clicking on theicon.

Requests

This column shows a list of requestsin your category(ies). Each row contains the requestpreview, category, time since the requestwas posted, and See more link to expand the question. The requestsare color-coded with orange being a Priority question and green being a New & available request. Standalone premium service requests, such as phone calls, are prefixed with the appropriate tag.

Requests are sorted in chronological order from most recent to oldest by posted time.

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When you click on a request, the row will expand to show the full requesttext.

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If you see a Q&Ayou'd like to respond to, click on the"Reply" link. If you see a premium service request, click on the "See more" link. Doing so will open and lock the request on the Active Request page.

JustAnswer has two types of customers: Members and pay-per-question customers. Members are subscribed on monthly plans and are more likely to rate positively because they know how to use the site. Member questions can be spotted on the Request Center with red payout values and have a Member label.

Some questions will have purple payout values. These are Peak Time questions aimed specifically to reward you for responding to questions during busy times. You can hover your mouse over the purple payout value to learn how you can earn more for responding to that question.

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Customer and Latest Activity

When you click on a question to expand it, you can learn more about the customer and recent activities. Every customer's username is hyperlinked to the customer's profile. You are also able to see whether the customer is online/offline, a member, and how long ago the customer viewed the request(if available).

TActivities include actions performed by Administrator such as re-categorize or adjust payout and Experts such as opt-outs. This column also shows time since the requestwas posted and the number of replies from Expert(s).

Question Payouts

This column shows the payout amount for each request and gives you the ability to hide/unhide individual request.

If you've hidden some requests, you will see a link above this column labeled "Show hidden questions" to unhide the hidden requests.

Customers have the option to request specific Experts to answer their requests.When you see "Originally for X" under the payout amount in your list, it means the customer may have originally requested an Expert but the request lock has expired and the requestis now open for any Expert to reply.

Show Filters, Show Notifications and Sound Alert

If you click on the "Show Filters" button at the top of the Request Center, you will see a list of categories and partner sites that you are active in. By default, questions in all active categories and partner sites are shown when you load the Request Center and are listed under the "Active Categories" Header. If you'd like your list to show questions posting in a specific category or categories, click on their buttons and they'll move up above "Active Categories." While they're there, you will see only questions for those categories. If you'd like to see questions for all categories again, click the buttons and they'll move back down below the "Active Categories" header.

The Show Notifications feature will notify you of new questions via an in-app modal. You can learn more about Show Notifications here.

The Sound Alert will play a sound whenever there's a new question available in your category(ies). You can toggle the sound alert on or off.

Top Menu

The top menu of the Request Center contains helpful links and access to your account information. Below is a highlight of what you can find on the top menu:

Secure Remote Assistance:This is for Experts in the Computer categories, the Secure Remote Assistance feature allows Experts to access customers' computers to troubleshoot computer-related issues. You can .

Expert Help Center: The Expert Help Center (EHC) is a self-help hub for Experts to get more information about how to use JusetAnswer, news and announcements, and get help from the Expert Operations team.

Your Username: When you hover over your name, you will see a drop-down menu with access to some of your account information:

My Requests

Private Messages

Reports

Account

Sign Out

Flag: For international Experts and those admitted in multiple partner sites, You can switch between partner sites from here.

If you have questions about the Request Center or need technical support, contact Expert Support by clicking the red "Submit an Inquiry" button above.

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The content in the graphic above are some suggested ideas on how to write 5-star answers. They’re not scripts and only meant to be used as inspiration.

If an Expert needs assistance with anything Expert related -- policies, procedures, earnings,bugs, etc. -- they will contact Expert Support via the "Submit a request"button located atthe top right of the ExpertHelp Center homepage.

All Expert communications to the site shouldbe made throughthe ExpertHelp Center.

Ifattempts to log into JustAnswer or use the "Submit a request" form fail, the Expert mayemail Expert Support directly at [email protected] so the log-in or submit formissue can be resolved.

**Important Note** Unsolicited communications toJustAnswer employees, moderators, contractors, or other JustAnswer representatives outside of Expert Support isnot permitted at anytime. This helps JustAnswer tomaintain parity and track requests andissues from multiple Experts. Expert Support will escalate any issues as needed to other departments.

At this time, JustAnswer does not report your income to tax authorities such as the Internal Revenue Service. Experts are not independent contractors or employees, and are site users like customers.

Please be sure to consult with your own tax professional if you have any questions about how your earnings on JustAnswer should be reported and taxed.

NOTE: This policy is still up to date in 2019.

What makes up a quality experience on JustAnswer? Let’s take a look at one and see!

When we talk about creating strong customer interactions, the suggestion quickly gets vague and generalized. This makes it hard to imagine how to put the ideas into action during your own conversations with customers. In this article, we’ll be looking at an existing question to see how the Experts’ decisions improved the quality of the experience.

Introducing the question

One of the busiest categories on JustAnswer is medical and health. When a person has symptoms, they find it invaluable to have quick access to medical professionals to set their minds at ease and suggest the steps they should be taking. This scenario is exactly what is happening on this question:

In this instance, the customer has a strange pain in her side, and is looking for information. The Expert, Dr. Steve, does an excellent job of helping her. Throughout the conversation, he continuously finds ways to set the customer at ease and provide the best information he can.

This resulting question received over 40,000 search engine visits in the last year, and has generated dozens of new questions during that time. Let’s take a look at what Dr. Steve did to make this happen!

Opening with questions

Rather than jumping to a conclusion, Dr. Steve begins by asking a series of questions:

This is very important. When someone has a problem, it becomes easy to default to the simplest or most common possible answer. While this makes your job easier in the short term, it also means potentially missing related evidence pointing to similar but less common problems. By taking the time to be thorough with his customer, Dr. Steve is showing that he won’t let that happen.

Value to customer: The customer will, of course, appreciate the consideration that Dr. Steve is putting into his response, and the effort he is making to gather all the information before writing his answer.

Value to readers: When someone is having a medical problem, odds are it’s related to other problems with similar symptoms. By taking the time to ask these questions, people searching for the related symptoms he mentions will have a chance to find this question and read his responses. Even if they don’t have the exact same problem as the original customer, the related information can still be valuable. As an added bonus, if readers are still left with questions, they have just had a chance to see how Dr. Steve would handle it.

Responding with options

When Dr. Steve gets the answers to his questions, his response is to list several possible causes and suggest some tests that the customer should have done:

Just like in our first point, Dr. Steve’s listing of these possible problems is just as important. It demonstrates the depth of his expertise, and shows that he’s giving the customer’s problem his full consideration.

By taking the time to carefully write each of these entries on its own line, and separating them with bullets, he’s also making it very easy to see each of the entries in the lists. This time spent on formatting allows the customer, and any other future readers, to find these possibilities easily on the page created from the question.

Value to customer: This is another demonstration of Dr. Steve’s commitment to the customer’s understanding and comfort.

Value to readers: Customers with similar symptoms are probably going to have some of the problems that Dr. Steve lists here, and this can give them places to start their own research.

Addressing all concerns

When presented with Dr. Steve’s information and suggestions, the customer responds with a series of questions, looking for additional clarification. Dr. Steve responds with a numbered list, making sure to answer each of these new questions:

The use of the list here makes it so much easier to make sense of these answers, and to see that each of the customer’s questions has been answered. This is a great way to make sure that you aren’t missing any of them in your answer, too.

Value to customer: The customer sees clearly that Dr. Steve has paid attention to each of her questions. This kind of customer service goes a long way towards getting a 5-star rating for your answer, and increases your chances of getting added to the customer’s favorite list.

Value to readers: Future readers may also be able to associate with some of the customer’s concerns, and find Dr. Steve’s answers informative. This is an additional way that he is helping people with his answers.

Showing sympathy

After these questions have been answered, the conversation is drawing to its conclusion. In this instance, though, the customer opens up about the fact that her professional knowledge makes having symptoms more difficult. Because she is a nurse, she knows too much about the horrible things that can go wrong with the human body. Dr. Steve’s response to this is both personal and affirming:

“I can sympathize with your angst [believe me--I've been there too: 'Med Student Syndrome'].”

This is something that offers the same value to the initial customer and any future readers. Dr. Steve is showing himself to be a sympathetic and considerate person. He is exactly the kind of doctor we would want to have answering our medical questions. This is the indefinable human part of the equation that will gather you the most favorites and new direct questions.

Improving this session

We’ve spent the bulk of this article talking about everything that Dr. Steve has done right in this example, but it’s worth considering some of the ways that it could be improved. Some possible ways to improve the conversation include:

Definitions: Dr. Steve and his customer are both inside the medical profession, and as a result they casually use medical terminology. While this is fine in the moment, and a good way to connect with the customer, it can leave other readers without the same background in the dust. If Dr. Steve had taken a moment to define a few terms, this coversation would be a little more valuable to general readers.

Linking: This is also tied to the insider status of the customer; they mention procedures and conditions that they recognize, but that other readers may not understand. These are great opportunities for links to additional authoritative resources. They don’t interrupt the original customer, who can choose to read or not based on her own level of understanding, but they can be a great way to help future readers follow a complicated topic.

Boldface: While Dr. Steve has worked to create answers that are clear and easy to follow, he has chosen not to use one of the strongest visual formatting tools. The extra spaces and bullet points make the answers stand out, but making them bold would have had the same effect and might look a little cleaner on the page.

Repeating the customer’s questions: When Dr. Steve responded to the series of customer questions with his numbered list, he was leaving the customer and the readers to sort out which questions are tied to which numbered response. It’s easy enough to figure out the correlation, but using cut and paste to repeat the correct question before his related answer would be easier to follow.

Of course, none of this is meant to detract from Dr. Steve’s work in this example, and the results speak for themselves.

The important thing is to avoid becoming complacent; you can tell when a customer service worker is phoning it in, and your customers will as well. Learning to look for ways to improve your questions will help to keep you focused on the customer, and the other people who will read the those questions. This focus ultimately translates into more questions, and more money for you.

Try these suggestions with your own customers and let us know how they worked out for you. Share your own suggestions below.

Pros are prohibited from discussing pricing, bonuses, ratings, or a customer's rating history with customers unless expressly permitted, in writing, by JustAnswer. Doing so is a violation of the JustAnswer Expert Agreement. Instead, we ask that you use the reporting tool to relate these types of issues to our site moderator teams. JustAnswer reserves the right tosuspend or terminate your Pro account privileges or account if aviolation of any portion of this policy is discovered.

Question Pricing

If the customer’s question remains unanswered and is closed without a response, the customer may receive an automatic email suggesting that they evaluate the value of their question and adjust accordingly. Instead, we ask that you select the "Underpriced" report via the question reporting tool. A moderator will contact the customer on your behalf to see if the customer wants to raise the value.

Customer Bonuses

While it's acceptableto include a note stating your appreciation of bonuses in your signature line, you are prohibited fromspecificallydiscussing the provision of a bonus with your customers.

Prompting for a Rating

While it's acceptable to answer a question and prompt for the customer to rate at that time through your signature line, you may not reply to a customer simply to remind the customer to rate you, either expressly or under the guise of seeing if they need more information. Reminding customers that a rating has not been provided is our job. We send multiple email reminders to the Customer once 48 hours have passed since the last activity on a Q&A,and we ask that you leave the reminders to us.

Rating History

It's the customer's choice whether or not he or she wishes to rate an answer. Before answering a customer’s question, you can review the customer's rating history for past questions.If you feel they are abusing the system, your only option is to use the question reporting tool to bring it to the attention of Customer Service. They will review the customer’s account and, at their sole discretion, contact them about the matter if deemed appropriate.

There are two ways to respond to a customer's question:

1. Information Requests

When you begin replying to a customer and you need additional information from the customer in order to provide a complete answer to a question, leave the "Answer" checkbox unchecked when sending your replies. Use cases:

a) Posting an initial greeting;

b) Asking the customer a clarifying question;

c) Verifying information with the customer; or

d) Giving any other sort of non-answer response.

2. Answers

When you are providing any portion of an answer -- content that can resolve the customer's issue if they try your troubleshooting step or lead them to a resolution-- check the "Answer" checkbox beforesending your reply. The customer is notified on their screen and via email that their answer is ready, and the customer's rating scale is enabled so they can provide their rating if your answer helps.

Tip: Before you check the "Answer" box and send your reply, you're welcome to add on a quick sentence to your reply to let the customer know their satisfaction is your goal, that you welcome any follow-up questions they may have, and that their 5-star rating at the conclusion of theircorrespondence with you is most appreciated.

Private contact information policy

Depending on the nature of the premiumservice, the Expertand customer may exchange private contact information, such as phone numbers and email addresses, but only through the PremiumServices "private information" field. Failing to use the private information field may exposeprivate information to the public, as Q&A posts are publicly available.

Limited Exception to theNon-Solicitation Policy

Section 8 of the Expert Agreement prohibits Expertsfrom negotiating payment with customers unless expressly allowed by JustAnswer. PremiumServices is the only approved platform in which Expertsmay discuss pricing with customers, and only for the specific service(s) being offered. You may also discuss price over the Q&A before the offer is sent, but all descriptions of premiumservices provided, and payment for those premiumservices, must occur through the PremiumServices program.

Fees

For the PremiumServices model, the Expertproposes a set fee for a specific premiumservice that customers may choose to accept. Once a customer accepts the offer, your answer on the original question is automatically given a 5-star rating, you are paid for that original question, and the customer is charged for (and you are paid for) the premiumservice before you actually provide the premiumservice. Itis possible that the customer may request a refund of either the original question price or the premiumservices payment. If a refund is requested, the amounts will be automatically reversed out of the Expert'searnings account.

At any time, without notice, for any or no reason, and in its sole discretion, JustAnswer reserves the right to modify or discontinue any portion or all of the Service including the PremiumServices tool.

If you have any questions,"Submit a Request" usingthe button on the top of the Expert Help Center pages.

Think about this: if you make 20 successful offers this weekend at $60 a pop you could make $600 in 48 hours. And that’snotcounting the original question earnings.

If you're not convinced yet, consider this: according to the trends we've observed, you should also see a considerable positive spike on your Achievements dashboard metrics. Why? Nearly every customer who accepts a premiumservice seems to be absolutely over-the-moon with his or her expert. We even had a person call Customer Care to try and give their Expert even more money, beyond what he had already paid for the premiumservice.

Now, before you go and fling an offer at the next customer you see, a word of caution:PremiumServices must be offered carefully. There’s a way to offer services and make a lot of money, and there’s a way to offer services and waste your time.

We looked at the highest converting, highest paid PremiumServices Experts across all categories, and they all seem to be using a three-step process:

Providing value with a thorough, well-thought-out answer.

Highlighting complexity of the problem to the customer.

Explaining the offer informally within the Q&A, then followed up with an official offer.

That’s the basic flow that we’ve seen work well now let’s get into a little more detail for each step.

Step 1: Provide value first.

Keep in mind the customer’s perspective in these delicate initial stages they just paid for an answer, and they want to get some value for that question before getting asked to pay again. Before you send the customer the PremiumServices offer, engage with them to both build the relationship and understand the scope of their problem.

Consider providing a high-quality greeting that outlines your credibility. That’s crucial to showcasing the value they’re getting, as well as building your new relationship.

Example:“Hi there, I’m Bob, and I am a licensed family therapist. I see you’re asking about couple’s counseling I think I can help you, as I have over 20 years of experience in this area and have helped hundreds of couples to rekindle their relationships.”

While you’re following your normal process for giving a great answer, be on the lookout for signs of complexity. From what we’ve been seeing, questions that are highly complex appear to be the best candidates for a premiumservice, and we’ll show you why in just a second.

Step 2: Highlight the complexity of their question within your answer.

So now you’ve given them a staggeringly awesome, thorough, complete answer that outlines all 27 steps of the task that could certainly be done DIY-style, by anyone with the time and motivation. So installing an operating system will take them several hours? Good!

Here’s the thing: In cases where the situation is complex, you actuallywantthe customer to understand that what they are asking is a very complex thing that will take considerable time and effort to complete or understand,so that they immediately see the value in hiringyouto help.

Example:

Step 3: Offer to ease their pain informally first, then officially through the tool, treating the description of your service seriously.

Once you’ve clearly demonstrated your value, a quick sentence at the end of your answer will be enough to get the ball rolling:

Example:“So those are all of the 27 steps needed to change out your operating system. I know that can be overwhelming, and I’m here to help for a premium $100, I can have it up and running for you in a couple of hours. I know you’re in a time crunch. Would you rather do that?”

Imagine the customer’s relief, as you have likely felt yourself when a service is offered at the perfect moment. “YES!” they’re thinking. “Please do this awful task for me! I’ll pay whatever you want!” And now you’re closer to that $600 in weekend pocket money.

Even if the customer doesn’t have that YES reaction at first, the offer you send stays ever-present on their customer homepage,so treat the description as seriously as you would an answer, because the customer can come back and take the offer at any time.

The private information field only appears after a customer has accepted the offerfor PremiumServices - for both customers and professionals.

Many customers ask for a phone call immediately upon connecting with their Expert, but if they try to submit a phone number in the Q&A, it will appeared XX'ed out.

Let your customer know that they need to accept the PremiumService you've submitted (if you haven't submitted your offer, now would be a good time to do so) in order to exchange private contact information.

For policy and procedure-related questions, please reference our Premium Services Policy.

If you have any questions,Submit a Request in the Expert Help Center.

Since startingJustAnswer's membership program in 2009, we get new members signing up every day and hundreds of thousands of member questions a year.

Members are often loyalcustomers, understand the value of JustAnswer, and know how to use the site. Help us impress members by responding to their questions in 30 minutes or less.

Who are members?

Members are loyal customers who are on a monthly subscription plan.Subscription plans give members the ability to ask unlimited questions.

What do you mean by a "response?"

A response can be an information request to get more detail or a greeting to acknowledge the question. We find that members often just want to know that someone (you) are there to help them.

Why is it important to respond in 30 minutes or less?

While we encourage Experts to respond to all questions quickly, we foundthat members are more likely to ask repeat questions and rate positively when they get a response in 30 minutes or less.

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To learn more about customer speed expectations, click here.

How do I find member questions?

On your Question List, questions from members will have red payout values. You mayalso see a 30-minute countdown timer below the payout value. This timerindicates when a member posted the question.

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Still got questions? Click on the "Submit a request" button at the top of this page and let us know.

Active Request Page

The Active Request Page is an all-in-one interface that allows Experts to manage and respond to a cusotmer's question, offer Premium Serivices, and access previous questions they've replied to.

Answer

A reply that contains anyportion of an answer to the customer's question; the Expert checks the "Answer" box as soon as they post any portion of an answer so that if that helps, the customer can rate when they're ready.

Answer Earnings Report

The Answer Earnings Report report that shows the Expert their Answer earnings and bonus earnings

EHC

Expert Help Center (see below)

Expert Help Center

The Expert Help Center is a self-help platform with how-to articles, demos, and an option to submit to Expert Support any technical support tickets or inquiries you have

Information Request

An Expert's reply which is arequest for clarification or more information. It contains no portion of an answer

IR

An Information Request (see above)

No-Click Rating

A No-Click Rating is a procedure where Experts' Moderators process a rating on behalf of a satisfied customer in the event they don't rate on their own.

NCR

ANo-click Rating (see above)

Payment Page

The Payment Page is where the Expert states how they want their earnings transferred to their PayPal account each month.

Premium Services

A Premium Service type of offer that allows Experts to go beyond the regular Q&A and provide additional help for customers via phone, video chat, secure remote assistance and other services agreed to by the customer.

Request Center

The Request Center the main destination for Experts to find new questions, standalone premium service requests, and more.

RC

Request Center (see above)

Your amazingExpert Support Teamis Lori, Victoria, Oleksandr, and Amber. As an Expert on JustAnswer, you have this extremely knowledgeable Expert Supportteam available to answer your questions and help you do well on the site. They are dedicated to Experts and are ready to assist you seven days a week with anyquestions or concerns you have related to the site, your account, oryour use of the site: bugs,policies, procedures, earnings, account settings, etc. Simply click on the "Submit a request" button at the top of this page (or any page in the Expert Help Center) to contact them, and they'lltake good care of you!

Natalia Senyk Lori Jones Expert Support Manager

Victoria Zviagina Expert Support Associate

Oleksandr Ilyn Expert Support Associate

Amber Hankins Expert Support Associate

The site's Category Moderatorsare thesuperstars in charge of the site's categories. They help customers get their questions answered by makingsure theyare properly categorizedand by reaching out to Experts who may be able toanswer those questions.If you have an inquiryabout the categorization of a question, or you'd like to be added to the list of Experts who Category Moderators reach out to, feel free toPrivate Message (PM) them anytime!Remember to contact Expert Support for anything outside of category issues (e.g. account assistance, site issues, policy & procedure)

Please only contact the Category Moderator(s) in charge ofyour category. Clicking the link on their name below will take you to the Private Message feature so you can communicate with them.

Michelle William : Computer, Consumer Electronics

Walt Thompson : Cars

Camille : Medical, Health, Veterinary, Pet

Gina King : Computer, Consumer Electronics

Wendy Weast : Legal

Roman Kostiuk : Home Improvement

Rachel Webb : Tax

Jo Taylor :Appraisals, Homework, Engineering,Legal (support), Medical/Vet (support)

Lindie Kemp : Cars

Myroslava Yatskiv : General, Legal (support)

Uliana Gerun : Boats, Heavy Equipment

: Home Improvement

We have a special New Expert-only Hub where new Experts could network with the Expert Moderators and each other. This space is a great place for new Experts to get the right resources and support to be successful.

Click here to access the New Expert Hub >>

(Note: This space is for New Experts only)

A great profile photo can be a powerful tool for Experts to quickly build trust and communicate quality with customers. It welcomes customers, engages them quickly, and creates comfort to share whatever problems they came to you about.

Your profile photo should inspire customers to trust in who you are, your experience, expertise, and most importantly, that you are here to help them. It helps to create that very important a human-to-human connection, as opposed to the customer thinking they're talking to a computer. If you're not sure what to use for your profile photo, here are some tips:

Use a photo that takes up at least 60\% of the frame

Customers want to see the face of the person that they're talking to. We recommend that you choose a photo of yourself where you're facing the camera and your head takes up at least 60\% of the frame. If you need to, you can use image programs such as Paint to crop larger photos. There is also a cropping tool available on the upload page.

Example:

Show what you do

Whether you're helping patients, treating animals, working out on the road, or fixing problems in the shop, using a photo of you in your environment shows your authority and expertise in the field.

Example:

Don't forget to smile

JustAnswer is a service company and customers come to JustAnswer with the expectations that they can get fast, quality information and friendly service from Experts. When customers see an Expert photo with a warm smile, they are more likely to feel connected to the Expert from the get-go.

Example:

Try these profile suggestions for yourself and see if you notice the difference in how customers respond to you.

Note:Your photo file needs tobe between 500x500 and 1000x1000 pixels. If you need help, feel free to contact Expert Support via the Submit an Inquiry button above!

What is the ACTIVE REQUEST PAGE?

The ACTIVE REQUEST PAGE is an all-in-one interface that allows you to manage and respond to multiple requests, and offer premiumservices. It works with all types of requests.

Which OS and browsers work best with ACTIVE REQUEST PAGE?

ACTIVE REQUEST PAGE is optimized for Windows OS and Chrome browser. However, it should work well on Firefox and iOS with Chrome or Firefox. ACTIVE REQUEST PAGE is not optimized for Internet Explorer or Safari and we strongly recommend that you install Chrome for your computer to avoid any potential issues. To prevent interruptions in your workflow, please use Chrome, and avoid Internet Explorer and Safari.

Click here for more ACTIVE REQUEST PAGE FAQs

Which devices work best with ACTIVE REQUEST PAGE?

ACTIVE REQUEST PAGE works best on a laptop or desktop computer. Currently, ACTIVE REQUEST PAGE is not optimized for mobile or tablet but it is in the works. If you must use ACTIVE REQUEST PAGE on a mobile or tablet device, we suggest that you hide the My Requests sidebar so that the customer’s request and your response are focused on the screen, making it easier to answer requests.

What are the minimum and recommended system specifications for ACTIVE REQUEST PAGE?

What type of requests can I answer using ACTIVE REQUEST PAGE?

ACTIVE REQUEST PAGE was built for Experts to manage and answer all request types on one interface.

Google Hangouts

For new Experts or Experts new to premium services, live phone calls with customers can be intimidating and full of what-ifs. What if they reject my phone call offers? What if I cannot answer their questions on the spot? What if they are located in another country?

While these are valid concerns, there are major advantages for fulfilling phone calls as well. Phone calls are a great way to earn additional money, offer more value and build trust with customers.

To help you get started, we’ve buzzed a few phone savvy Experts to chime in with their best phone call tips and they answered in a HUGE way.

1. Let ushelp

Many Experts are reluctant to offer phone calls simply because they don’t think customers would accept. Nathan, Tech Expert, admits, “I sometimes feel guilty sending a phone support offer myself if I feel that the question isn't worth the cost or it is simple enough that a call really just shouldn't be necessary.”

With Auto Phone Call, we initiate the ask and let you know if customers are interested in phone calls. “The auto phone call offer excels at putting phone support on the table at a reasonable price for the novice user,” says Dustin, Tech Expert.

2. No phone? No problem

We surveyed Experts on why they wouldn'taccept phone call requests and a large percentage said it’s because they don'thave goodalternatives to their personal phones. Luckily, there's an integrated phone call feature on JustAnswer that allows you to call customers through the site! After accepting a phone call request, all you have to do is enter your callback number and initiate the call through the site. Our system will then dial out to both you and the customer. Once both sides are connected, then you can start your conversation. Click here to learn more >>

3. What about international fees?

We get thousands of questions from international customers every week so chances are, you’ve seen a few of them. But what do you doif those customers request phone calls? Dustin answers, "I use Skype. The great thing about a Skype subscription is that regardless of what country a customeris in, Skype has affordable pay-as-you-go and flat rate plans that will allow youto call."

If your customer also has a Skype account, you can make free Skype-to-Skype calls. This is the same for and Apple FaceTime, depending on which service both you and the customer have.

We plan to expand our integrated phone call feature to support international calls soon. Stay tuned!

4. Get over the fear

It’s natural to feel a little anxiety when talking on the phone with people you don’t know. But it may help to remind yourself that your customers are dealing with personal problems and counting on you to help guide them. Nathan advises, “Don't be afraid. Talking to a customer on the phone is really no different than in person. Treat them as if you were there with them.”

How do you do that? He adds, “Show the ‘smile’ in your voice and have a positive attitude. Too often we are getting into a call after a tense or difficult exchange via Q&A and they are frustrated. You need to be able to calm them down, show empathy, and express a genuine desire to help them.”

5. Identify the right customers for phone calls

With the auto phone call offer feature, the customer initiates the request rather than Experts. But, you decide whether you want to fulfill the request or not. How do you know if you should accept the call? One way is by reading the customer's cues. “Many customers, especially the tech-phobic and older crowd just don't like to type. They don't understand what you mean when you ask for more information, and being on a call helps you to better direct the conversation where it needs to go to collect the necessary information,“ offers Nathan.

Experts are really good at sensing the depth of questions. If you feel that too much time will be spent going back and forth on Q&A or if you’ve shared a document, suggest a phone call to better help and follow up.

6. Know your stuff before you make the call

You are all Experts in your fields and we are truly confident of that. However, there are still times when you're caught off-guard by a question or simply need to double-check some information. With phone calls, you don’t really have the luxury to research. Dustin recommends, “My first piece of advice would be that before you accept the phone call offer, ask yourself ‘how comfortable are you talking about the specific problem and explaining the solutions to it?’ If you feel very confident, absolutely accept the phone call offer. You will save yourself and the customer a lot of time as well as generate more income for the company, and yourself.” James agrees, “If you really know your stuff, I would recommend you try phone calls at least once! You may find it's easier than you think.”

We suggest that if you do get into a situation where you’re unsure of how to answer a question on the phone, let the customer know you will verify the information and confirm in detail via Q&A after the call. This will give you a chance to do more research while showing the customer that you are thorough.

7. Cut right to the chase

Time is money for Experts so a frequent feedback we getabout phone calls is that they take up a lot of time. But James, Car Expert, counters, “When you speak with customers on the phone, you can save hours of typing back and forth.”

How? James adds, “You always run into some questions that may be a little confusing. It's easier to understand a customers’ temperament and answer their questions if you speak to them. Cutright to the chase and deal with their main issues.” To James’ point, if you realize quickly that a question is too complicated to resolve over Q&A, it may save you time to hop straight to the phone.

8. Do more with phone

The great thing about mobile technology today is that you’re no longer limited to just voice calls. With services likeSkype, Google Voice and Apple FaceTime, you can take phone calls to the next level by integrating video. “Skype video can be a major asset when it comes to troubleshooting hardware issues. Just have them point their phone or webcam at the problem so you can visually see it,” notes Dustin.

9. Make more money

While this is not a phone call tip, we liketo remind Experts why you should fulfill more phone call requests. “I like the one on one with the customers plus the money that comes with it,” says Tan. When you fulfill a phone call request, you are automatically given a 5-star rating, payout for the original question and payout for the premium service. James adds, “I feel if I was able to take every question and make it an premium service call, I would double my actual income with JA.”

Thoughts? Got your own tips? Share them below.

Sometimes a customer will post the same question twice, or post a follow-up reply on a new page instead on the original page. These are referred to as "duplicate questions."

If you come across a duplicate question, and there's no Expert Reply on it yet:

Click the red flag in the upper right corner of the question page

Choose the Duplicate Question report.

Look at the bottom of the report, and find the link to the original question page.

Copy the link

Paste it into the first field in the report.

Submit the report

The page will automatically close and the customer will be redirected back to their original page to follow up with their Expert there.

If you come across a duplicate question, and there is an Expert Reply on it already:

This rarely happens, but if it should, in this case, the duplicate report will not be available and the question page will remain open. The Expert will corresponding with the customer on the duplicatepage. We encourage you to submit a peer-review report to Expert Support via the Expert Help Center's Submit an Inquiry button so that Expert Support can discuss replying to duplicates with the Expert. If there is only a request for information on the duplicate page (no Answer yet), but there is an Answer on the original, we may be able to close the duplicate manually. So be sure to get that report submitted!

As set forth in the Expert (Pro) Agreement, Section 3(e), professionals in the Legal, Medical, Health, Veterinary, Pet or Large Animal categories shall provide general information only, not specific advice, to customers on JustAnswer.Professionals are liable for all activities and answers provided under their usernames and passwords, including the answers they provide to Customers.Except as detailed in the Premium Services Policy, professionals are prohibited from soliciting customers on the site or providing personal contact information.

While JustAnswer cannot provide you with legal advice regarding these or any other terms of the Expert (Pro) Agreement, or your local rules and regulations, we have posted some potentially relevant material below. Please feel free to contact us via the Pro Help Centerwith others you’d like us to include here, especially those that show actual versus suggested language.

________________________________

“Lawyers’ Participation in Chat Room Communications With Internet Users Seeking Legal Information” -DC Bar Legal Ethics Opinion 316

"It is permissible for lawyers to take part in on-line chat rooms and similar arrangements through which attorneys engage in back-and-forth communications, in ‘real time’ or nearly real time, with Internet users seeking legal information, provided they comply with all applicable rules of professional conduct. To avoid formation of attorney-client relationships through such chat room conversations, lawyers should avoid giving specific legal advice.

The relevant distinction is that between legal advice and legal information. Providing legal information involves discussion of legal principles, trends, and considerations the kind of information one might give in a speech or newspaper article, for example. Providing legal advice, on the other hand, involves offering recommendations tailored to the unique facts of a particular person’s circumstances. Thus, in discussing legal information, lawyers should be careful to emphasize that it is intended as general information only, which may or may not be applicable to an individual’s specific situation.

Consistent with that analysis, lawyers wishing to avoid formation of attorney-client relationships through chat room or similar Internet communications should limit themselves to providing legal information, and should not seek to elicit or respond to the specifics of particular individuals’ situations lawyers should advise information seekers to obtain legal counsel to determine what law would be applicable to their unique circumstances. Where a communication is lengthy or otherwise might leave room for misunderstanding, lawyers should remind inquirers that the chat room communication is not a substitute for specific legal advice, and that the lawyer is providing general legal information only." See full opinion here.

________________________________

The Opinion provides the following example of an actual online communication that may run afoul of the information versus advice distinction:

"Q: I am in the US on a visa waiver from UK [that] expires on 8thSept. I have been told by an abusive husband not to return. I am therefore homeless he has told immigration officials about me-they told him that I won’t be allowed to re enter the States. This is the only place I have a home!!!!!! Please help?...

A: Based upon the statements you made, it appears that you are in-status and your visa expires on September 8, 2001. It is difficult to change status from the visa waiver. Additionally, you might want to apply for a nonimmigrant visa, such as a student (“F”) visa. You will probably be required to leave the United States to obtain it. If you have no interest in education you might want to apply for a nonimmigrant work visa. Without knowing more about your background, I do not know if you are eligible for any work visas. If you know of a specific visa for which you want to apply. Or if you would like to discuss this with me. I offer a 10 minute free telephone consultation. XXX-XXX-XXXX is my direct line."See full opinion here.

________________________________

After evaluating the attorney's response to the Internet user's question, the DCBar provides the following suggested alternative response and explanation:

"A: Generally, persons who are in the U.S. on non-expired visa waivers are in status. Such persons, however, may often find it difficult to change status from a visa waiver. They might try to apply for a non-immigrant visa, such as a student visa, but they would probably be required to leave the United States to obtain such a visa. Another possibility some persons in this situation explore is to apply for non-immigrant work visa. I cannot give you legal advice on your particular situation, but if you would like to discuss your specific case with me, you may call me for a consultation"See full opinion here.

Such wording makes it more clear that the lawyer is not purporting to give legal advice than did the repeated "you should..." statements contained in the attorney's response quoted earlier in this opinion."See full opinion here.

________________________________

This chart pulls from the above DC Bar Legal Ethics Opinion examples:

Answer Example

DC Bar Suggested Alternative Answer

Based upon the statements you made, it appears that you are in-status and your visa expires on September 8, 2001.

Generally, persons who are in the U.S. on non-expired visa waivers are in status.

It is difficult to change status from the visa waiver.

Such persons, however, may often find it difficult to change status from a visa waiver.

Additionally, you might want to apply for a nonimmigrant visa, such as a student (“F”) visa.You will probably be required to leave the United States to obtain it.

They might try to apply for a non-immigrant visa, such as a student visa, but they would probably be required to leave the United States to obtain such a visa.

If you have no interest in education you might want to apply for a nonimmigrant work visa.

Another possibility some persons in this situation explore is to apply for non-immigrant work visa.

Without knowing more about your background, I do not know if you are eligible for any work visas.

I cannot give you legal advice on your particular situation .

Please click here to access the full opinion.

DISCLAIMER: This FAQ is not intended to, nor shall it, take the place of your own research or the advice of an attorney licensed in your jurisdiction with respect to compliance withthe relevant rules and regulations of your profession orJustAnswer’s Expert (Pro) Agreement.

Watchfor questions withbonus cashamountslisted after the price (see below)to earn extra duringbusy times.

Cash perkquestionshavepurple or green payoutamounts andeither “Answer now” or “Respond now” below, depending on whether they require an answer or merely a response.

When you send alegitimateanswer or response, you will earnthe additionalcash bonuson top of the shown payoutamount.The additional payout will be calculated and we will manually adjust your total payout at the end of thepayment period.

Response (IR = information response)

Initially responding to the customer with your greeting and a follow-up message

Answer

Sending your answer to the customer while checking off the "Answer" or "Completed" box.

In today’s socially connected world, areferral is arguably the best confirmation of trust. When you refer someone to something, like a gig, you have a personal interest in their success. At JustAnswer, we highly encourage and incentivize Experts to refer similarly qualified people who would make great Experts and fit in well with the community.

Meet Pete and Derek. They are automotive technicians, friends, and former coworkers based out of Missoula in Montana. Pete, who is a longtime Expert and one of the top Car Experts, referred Derek to join JustAnswer in late 2015. Since then, Pete has taken Derek under his wing and is serving as a mentor. We asked Pete and Derek to share theirhistory, referral experience, and how they've helped each other to be successful.

Let us know

Know someone who would make a great Expert? Let us know and you will earn a $25 Amazon gift card when your referred candidate meets program requirements.

JustAnswer: How do you guys know each other?

Pete: I would say I have known Derek for around 3 years and met him while working at a GM dealership in Missoula. We were both technicians there.

Derek: Before meeting Pete, I was working at a Volvo dealership out of Salt Lake City. When I moved to Missoula and started working at the same GM dealership, I met Pete and we became good friends. He was instrumental in getting me accustomed to GM vehicles.

JustAnswer: Are you still working at the same dealership?

Derek: No, I left the GM dealership to gain more experience working on other car brands. Currently, I am an Electrical Diagnostic Technician at Unique Auto Service in Missoula working on just about all makes and models. This experience also allows me to help more customers on JustAnswer.

JustAnswer: Speaking of which, how did you become an Expert on JustAnswer?

Derek: I didn’t know about JustAnswer until Pete told me about the site and how much he enjoyed it. For him, it’s a great way to help people save money on repairs.

Pete: Back when we were working together, Derek was very smart at what he did on vehicles. From diagnosing to repair, he became my right-hand man at the dealership for a lot of vehicle issues. I just sensed that he was someone who could help here on JustAnswer with the knowledge he has, as well as his quickness.

JustAnswer: Derek, tell us a little bit more about your experience so far.

Derek: The experience has been amazing. I did really well during my first month on the site. The extra money has allowed me to pay off some debt and it’s been very rewarding to help people. The Expert Help Center is a great resource to get started and all of the moderators are very friendly and informative. The wide variety of car questions on JustAnswer has also forced me to learn new things and expand my knowledge.

I really like the fact that I can work on JustAnswer at my own hours and put in as much work as I like. I usually work on JustAnswer on the weekends and this allows me to have the much-needed family time after work.

JustAnswer: Did Pete share any of his best practices with you?

Derek: When starting out, I did not get many replies back from customers. I wasn’t sure why until Pete taught me how to gauge customer knowledge and follow up with appropriate and timely responses. He showed me the importance of giving a good introduction, quick responses, and how ratings and payments work. To just have him as a resource has been awesome.

Pete: It’s better for the whole community when Experts support one another. I told Derek he can always reach out to me if he has any questions or PM the moderators. I've also let him know about the importance of member questions and I gave him some tips on how to give good responses. His ratings and earnings will be just fine if he focuses on those things and continues to improve.

Derek: It’s inspiring to see how successful Pete is and he makes me want to work even harder on JustAnswer. Now that summer is approaching, the site is much busier so I call and text Pete all the time. He has been extremely helpful.

JustAnswer: You guys inspire us with how supportive you are with each other. That’s not always the case between Experts in the same categories. Pete, why is it important for you to help Derek?

Pete: I think when there isn't a lot of work to go around on JustAnswer, more experienced Experts may not want new Experts to be added. I see a lot of new Experts who seem to be lost and not aware of the rules and etiquettes of the site. Because of that, I think it’s even more important to take new Experts under our wings and help them understand how the site works. When I first joined JustAnswer, I was lucky to have the support of a longtime Expert. That helped a lot. I don't think I would still be here if that did not happen.

JustAnswer: Derek, how helpful would it be if every new Expert has a "Pete" to help them learn the site?

Derek: It would bring our community closer together. We are all are working for the same common goal. It can be overwhelming to learn the website and not knowing who to ask for advice. Having that information from Pete has been awesome.

Pete: I agree that it is a good idea for all of us to get along and be supportive of each other. I know that this can be difficult in some cases but it’s like any other workplace, you have to get along with the others or it can be difficult to work.

We would like to thank Pete and Derek for sharing their story with us. If you know someone who would make a great Expert?!

The customer thanked me but did not rate. Can I still be paid?

If a customer indicates satisfaction with your answer, but they forget to return to the site to give you a positive rating, you may be eligible to receive payment for the answer. This is commonly referred to as a "No-Click Rating" (NCR).

Guidelines for NCR Payment:

It has been72 hours (3 full days) since the customer’s last post on the page.

The customerindicates satisfaction in the question thread.

In the event two or more Experts have provided answers, thecustomer hasclearly indicated they wish to pay you for your answer.

Tosubmit an NCR request,usethe red "Submit an Inquiry" button on the top of the Expert Help Center pages and select "No-Click Rating." Be sure to include a link to the PQA page. You can also Click here.

Easier way to submit No-Click Rating (NCR) Requests

Starting on 8/16/17, we're excited to add a new feature to make it easierfor Experts to submit NCR requests from both the Active Request page and My Requests. This method is available after 72 hours. If it is the last two days of the month, and this method is unavailable, please send your NCR using the traditional method outlined above. We want to get you paid in the same month whenever possible.

On the Active Request page, you will see a new link labeled "Request NCR" located on the top-right corner of the page. This link allows you to submit an NCR request while you still have the question opened.

Click here

So how do you find questions that could be NCRs? You can visit the My Requests page which now shows questions you've responded to in the past 30 days and has a switch to only see unrated questions.

Frequently Asked Questions:

How long does it take to review my NCR request after submitting it?

Requests are generally processed within 72 hours, but may take up to one week. Please do not inquire about a submitted NCR until 7 days.

If I send in an NCR requestin the last few daysof themonth, will itbe processed before month-end?

Every effort will be taken to processNCR requestssubmitted before month-end.

Should I send in a duplicate request if I don't see the rating process?

No. Ifyou don't hear from us after 7 days, you may send the question page link as an earnings inquiry, and we'll be happy to investigate for you.

What are somereasons my request did not qualify?

The customer did not express satisfaction with your Answer; their deposit forthat page was refunded; they contacted Customer Service to say they did not need the answer.

Additional Information:

Payments gained under this policy will be paid under the usual ratings-related percentages; however, payments cannot exceed the dollar amount on deposit in the customer’s account

An Expert shouldsubmit an NCR requestwithin 30 calendar days from the posting of the question. If the request is submitted after 30 calendar days, the request may be denied

If you have any questions about this policy,"Submit a Request" at the top of the Expert Help Center page and choose "Policy," or.

August 8, 2019

1. Acceptance of Terms

Welcome to www.JustAnswer.com (“Service” or “Site”) owned and operated by JustAnswer LLC (“JustAnswer”).

By applying to become an Expert on the Site, you are agreeing to comply with and be bound by the terms of this Expert Agreement (the “Agreement”), the Privacy Policy, Expert Community Guidelines, and all rules, policies and disclaimers posted on the Site or about which you are notified (collectively “Terms”). Please review all of the Terms carefully before applying to become an Expert on the Site.

By using the Site, you: (i) agree to be bound by the Terms; (ii) represent that you are over the age of eighteen(18) and able to form legally binding contracts; (iii) agree and acknowledge that by using the Service you are accepting a benefit that cannot be disgorged; (iv) acknowledge that the Service is subject to U.S. export controls and agree that you will comply withU.S. export controls; and (v) represent that you are neither located in a sanctioned country nor aprohibited person.

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The words “User,” “you” and “your” refer to the individual or entity that creates a JustAnswer account. “JustAnswer,” “we,” “us” and “our” refer to JustAnswer. “Customer” refers to the person who asks a question on the Site. “Expert” refers to the person who answers a question on the Site.

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JustAnswer reserves the right to change, revise or modify the Terms (including, but not limited to, fees) at any time by posting the amended terms on the Site. All amended terms shall automatically be effective upon posting; provided, however, that those changes that JustAnswer, in its sole discretion, deems material changes to the Terms will be effective upon the earlier of: (1) the agreement of the User; or (2) thirty (30) days after notice to the existing User via an email from an @justanswer.com email address to the User’s email address on file with JustAnswer or via other means including, but not limited to, a banner, message, or other conspicuous notice on the JustAnswer website. Your continued use of the Service will signify your acceptance of the changes regardless of whether you actually saw or read the notice regarding such change(s). If you do not accept the changes, your sole and exclusive remedy is to discontinue using JustAnswer.The latest Terms will be posted on the Site, and you should review them prior to using the Site.

4. The Website

The JustAnswer Site is an online venue for informational and educational purposes, owned and operated by JustAnswer, that exists solely to broker relationships between Experts and potential Customers of those Experts who are interested in purchasing their Expert services. JustAnswer is not in the business of providing or selling information or education that is within any Expert’s area of expertise. Users of the Site, not JustAnswer, provide the content in Posts (defined below). The Experts determine, in their sole discretion, which questions to answer. Experts are not employees or agents of JustAnswer. Rather, they are independent service providers using the Site to sell their Expert knowledge to Customers and, as such, are along with Customers simply Users of the Site.

JustAnswer is not involved in the conversations between Experts and Customers and does not refer Customers to or endorse or recommend particular Experts. JustAnswer shall not be liable for any acts or omissions of Experts, content in Posts, the ability of Experts to answer questions, or the ability of Customers to pay for answers. We cannot ensure that a Customer will complete a transaction. Notwithstanding the foregoing, JustAnswer reserves the right, but is not obligated, to refuse to post or to remove any content on the Site.

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5. Posts Are Not Private or Confidential; Anonymity

The Site is an Internet-based forum.Information and materials submitted in the content of questions, answers, requests for information, responses, profiles, signatures, qualifications, comments, and posts in the Expert Forum and other places where Users communicate on the Site (collectively “Posts”)is not private or confidential, nor is it protected by attorney-client, doctor-patient, or any other privilege, and it may be read, collected, and used by others.For example, search engines may index questions, answers, and other Posts to allow them to appear in search engine results (e.g., if someone does a search on google.com or another search engine, questions, answers, and other Posts on JustAnswer.com that relate to the search may appear in the search results list).

6. Expert Representations and Covenants

By agreeing to this Expert Agreement and completing the online registration process, you are representing and agreeing that:

(a) All information you provide in your registration with JustAnswer relates to yourself only and is accurate, complete, and not misleading.

(b) You accurately describe your background, skills, knowledge, and your level of experience (including professional licenses, certifications, education, employment, etc.).

(c) You will not misrepresent yourself, such as, but not limited to, using or creating a misleading username.

(d) (1) You will maintain and update the information described in subsections (a) (d) above within twenty-four (24) hours of any changes so that it remains true, accurate, and complete. In addition, if any change to such information alters the status of any of your credentials that have been verified for purposes of being an Expert on the Site (e.g., active license becomes inactive or suspended, disciplinary investigation is opened, etc.), you will notify JustAnswer of such change by sending an email to [email protected] within twenty-four (24) hours of the change. In addition, if such change makes you ineligible to be an Expert on the Site, then you must immediately cease answering questions on the Site.

(2)JustAnswer reserves the right, and Expert agrees to comply, to periodically audit the credentials of any Expert on the platform.

(e) You will not answer questions in any of the other categories or subcategories if you do not meet the requirements of those categories or subcategories. As an example, you will not answer questions in any of the Legal, Medical or Veterinary categories or subcategories unless you are a licensed attorney, MD/DO or veterinarian (or the local equivalent), respectively, with an active license in good standing. If you are unclear about the requirements for Experts in particular categories or subcategories, please email [email protected]. A listing of acceptable credentials for the categories is available on the category-specific “Become an Expert” page of the Site, accessible at http://www.justanswer.com/expert.aspx.

(f) You will provide competent answers that are within your realm of expertise and any applicable credentials only, and will use at least a reasonable standard of care in providing answers. A reasonable standard of care is the higher of: (i) the standard you apply in your profession not conducted on the Site; or (ii) the standard of care required by the applicable profession.

(g)Experts in the Medical, Health, Veterinary, Pet, or Large Animal categories shall provide general information only, not medical or veterinary advice. They shall not diagnose, treat, or recommend treatment or a course of action that should only be performed or recommended after an in-person examination or meeting, and they shall not act in a manner or engage in a form of communication that would establish a professional-client relationship on the Site; however, they may do so outside of the Site.

(h)Experts in the Legal categories must be attorneys licensed to practice law, and be in good standing, in at least one jurisdiction in the United States or foreign country. Such Experts shall provide general information only, such as providing descriptions of general principles of law, and shall not provide legal advice. In responding to questions, Experts in the Legal Category shall not apply their legal knowledge or skills to resolve or advise on the Customer’s specific factual circumstances described in the question, such as by proposing a specific course of action (other than advising the User to seek the advice of an attorney licensed to practice in the relevant jurisdiction). Experts in the Legal Category shall not form an attorney-client relationship on the Site; however, they may do so outside of the Site.

(i) You will not do anything to manipulate, undermine, or disrupt the integrity of any Customer, Expert, or other feedback ratings, reports, or systems on the Site, including, but not limited to, by filing false reports about other Experts. You will not harass or threaten any other User of the Site.

(j) As explained in the FAQs, you will not post as an “Answer” (which a Customer will be prompted to rate) any information that is classified more aptly as an “Information Request.”

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7. Duration and Termination of Agreement

(a) This Agreement shall be for an initial duration of thirty days after JustAnswer approves the Expert’s request to use the Site as an Expert, and will automatically renew for thirty-day intervals on the thirtieth day of the initial duration and of each successive term thereafter (each a "Duration"), unless and until one party gives the other at least ten days' written notice before the end of the then-current Duration of its intention not to renew this Agreement. You may terminate your service and account by written notice via e-mail to [email protected]. Terminations typically will be effective within seven (7) business days after our receipt of your termination notice, at which time your account will be closed, and you will no longer be able to access your former account. Any payments accrued as of the effective date of termination will be payable according to the Terms.

(b) JustAnswer can terminate this Agreement in the event of a breach of this Agreement by the Expert, provided that JustAnswer gives the Expert notice of the breach of the Agreement (with notice of temporarily suspended access to the Site), with a reasonable opportunity to cure the breach within twenty days, in situations involving, for example, failure to qualify to provide services as an Expert in the approved subject matter, or JustAnswer’s good faith belief that the Expert poses a risk to the safety or health of others; or the Expert’s engagement in fraud, gaming, or other improper use of the Site or the Services with or through a Customer that has a Membership, which allow Customers who are “Members” to receive the benefits of the Site for multiple questions on the Site for a monthly or other-period recurring fee.

(c) Either party may terminate the Expert Agreement immediately and without notice upon a material breach.

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9. Content and License

Any information or communications provided in questions, answers, requests for information, responses, profiles, Expert signatures, qualifications, comments, and posts in the Expert Forum and other places where Users communicate with one another on the Site (“Posts”) will not be considered confidential and may be used by JustAnswer for any purpose. This may include, but is not limited to, using your signature and/or profile information in emails sent to Customers alerting them to your postings. You understand and agree that JustAnswer may send Customers emails pertaining to their questions and your answers that are signed by your username (but sent on your behalf from a JustAnswer email address). For example, JustAnswer may let the Customer know that you have sent the Customer an email, have responded to their question, and/or have not been paid for an answer (and the Customer should therefore remit payment). As between you and JustAnswer, you will maintain whatever ownership interest you have in and to the Posts you provide on the Site. JustAnswer reserves the right to remove any or all of your Posts, in whole or in part, at any time with or without notice.

You grant to JustAnswer a non-exclusive, irrevocable, perpetual, worldwide, royalty-free, sublicensable (through multiple tiers) right to exercise the copyright, publicity, and database rights, including the right to use, reproduce, display, edit, copy, modify, transmit, publicly perform or create derivative works thereof, that you have in your Posts, in any media now known or not currently known, with respect to any such Posts.

To allow JustAnswer to assist you in protecting your copyrights in your Answers, at its sole discretion, you grant JustAnswer the right to act on your behalf solely in submitting DMCA takedown notices to other websites to remove copies of your Answers on JustAnswer.com from other websites. You agree to notify JustAnswer at [email protected] within twenty-four (24) hours of posting any portion of your Answers on another website or granting permission to another person or entity to do so, so that JustAnswer does not submit a DMCA takedown notice for such content. If you do not wish JustAnswer to assist you in protecting your copyrights in this manner, please send an email to that effect to [email protected]. You agree that JustAnswer has no obligation to make any searches or submit any DMCA takedown notices on your behalf.

10. Fees

Customers on JustAnswer may be presented with one or two payment models: (1) pay-per-question (“PPQ”) model; and (2) membership model. Question values are based on the Customer payment amount and other factors including but not limited to, Customer-related needs and estimated costs to JustAnswer, which factors are determined and may be changed from time-to-time by JustAnswer in its sole discretion, as well as the factors explained below. Expert may receive fees as follows: (a) when a Customer rates an answer 3 (out of 5) or higher, the question value is placed into the Expert account. Payments to Experts from Customers do not accrue interest; or (b) in select categories of questions, tiered pricing shall determine what an Expert receives in fees for each question. An Expert qualifies for a pricing tier based on the following: (a) Each answer an expert provides to a customer will be rated based on either a Customer rating or a rating from an independent third party (the “Answer rating”). Each expert receives an aggregate rating (the “Expert Rating”) based on the percentage of questions the Expert answered and the average Answer Rating and access to different pricing tiers is based on such Expert Rating.

You acknowledge that JustAnswer has no control over, and makes no representation or warranty of any kind, as to the ability or willingness of other Users to pay for the answers provided by Experts. In addition, you acknowledge that you are never required by JustAnswer to answer any questions on the Site.

Once you have more than Twenty U.S. Dollars (US$20) of payments from Customers in your account (you cannot place funds into your account to reach $20; it must be accumulated through Customer payments), you may request payment via the link in your tools menu. JustAnswer transfers properly requested Customer payments to Experts via PayPal by the fourth (4th) business day of the upcoming month (or, in its discretion, JustAnswer may choose to forward Customer payments even without an Expert’s request for payment). You agree that JustAnswer has the right to resolve Customer complaints as it deems necessary or advisable, including, in JustAnswer’s sole discretion, issuing refunds to Customers to settle disputes. If JustAnswer decides to issue a refund to a Customer, JustAnswer may seek reimbursement from the Expert for such refund, or JustAnswer may offset any refunds against any future Customer payments to be forwarded to the Expert. JustAnswer also reserves the right to resolve accounting discrepancies with Customers in its sole discretion.

If JustAnswer believes, in its sole discretion, that any Customer funds were paid to an Expert under suspicious circumstances or that funds were derived from a suspicious Customer account, JustAnswer will investigate the situation until it has reached an adequate resolution, as determined by JustAnswer in its sole discretion. The investigation or resolution may require the involvement of certain third parties, such as an applicable credit card company. Such an investigation may require JustAnswer to put a hold on an Expert’s account. JustAnswer will make commercially reasonable efforts not to exceed a 90 day hold on an Expert’s account during such an investigation.

JustAnswer disclaims any warranty that its billing and payment system is without error. If an Expert believes there is a problem with JustAnswer’s billing or payment system, the Expert should notify JustAnswer by email to [email protected] within thirty (30) days of such problem. Upon receipt of the notification of such a problem, JustAnswer will, in good faith, work to remedy any alleged payment errors.

11. Question Value

You are prohibited from negotiating payment with a User, regarding answers you post to the Site, unless expressly allowed by JustAnswer.

12. Expert Accounts and Relationship to JustAnswer

You may not share your account with, nor use the account of, anyone else. You will be solely and fully liable and responsible for all activities and answers provided under your username and password. In addition, if any JustAnswer account of yours has been suspended or terminated, you may not open another account on the Site.

No relationship (such as partnership, agent, joint venturer, or employee) between you and JustAnswer is created by this Agreement or your participation on the Site. You acknowledge that you are not an employee or agent of JustAnswer but are, like Customers, only Users of the Site. You shall act in accordance with this status and shall not hold yourself out as an officer, employee or agent of JustAnswer, nor make any claim based on any right or privilege applicable to JustAnswer’s employees. Under no circumstances shall you look to JustAnswer as your employer, or as a partner, agent, or principal. Nothing regarding your participation on the Site will be considered as an endorsement, referral or recommendation by JustAnswer of you or the answers you provide and you will not, either on the Site or in any other forum or by any other means, suggest such an endorsement.

It is the express intention of JustAnswer and the Expert that the Expert be an independent contractor. Nothing in this Agreement shall in any way be construed to constitute the Expert as an agent, employee, or representative of JustAnswer. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the Expert is not authorized to bind JustAnswer to any liability or obligation or to represent that the Expert has any such authority. Expert agrees to furnish all tools and materials necessary to answer questions on the Site and shall incur all expenses associated with such performance. Expert further agrees that any use of site tools, JustAnswer’s mobile application or any other tools (“Tools”) offered by JustAnswer is optional and such Tools are purely offered for Expert’s convenience and usage of such Tools are not mandatory. Expert acknowledges and agrees that Expert is obligated to report as income all compensation received by JustAnswer pursuant to this Agreement. Expert agrees to and acknowledges the obligation to pay all self-employment and other taxes on such income. Expert will receive no JustAnswer-sponsored benefits such as, but not limited to, paid vacation, sick leave, medical insurance, and 401k participation. If Expert is reclassified by a state or federal agency, court, or arbitrator as JustAnswer’s employee, Expert will become a reclassified employee and will receive no benefits from JustAnswer, except those mandated by state or federal law, even if by the terms of JustAnswer’s benefit plans or programs of the Company in effect at the time of such reclassification, Expert would otherwise be eligible for such benefits.

13. Limited Exclusivity and Other Agreements

By agreeing to this Expert Agreement and completing the online registration process, you are agreeing that:

(a) You will not post or authorize anyone else to post any portion of your answers on JustAnswer or any other fee-based question-and-answer website, unless that question-and-answer component is via the JustAnswer referral program or it is a website on which you are the only person answering questions. This does not prohibit you from providing the same substantive answer to a question, but only from providing it using the same words as used on the Site.

(b) The provisions of this Agreement are not intended to prevent you from practicing your profession, but only from engaging in the limited activity described therein.

(c) You will not make any statement that disparages JustAnswer, its services, products, directors, officers, employees, shareholders or agents, except as required by law or in communications exclusively to JustAnswer.

(d) You will not provide information on any other websites about JustAnswer, unless you expressly state that your statements are not made on behalf of and have not been approved by JustAnswer.

(e) You will not use any automated programs to automatically lock questions that are posted on the JustAnswer website.

14. Confidentiality

You acknowledge that JustAnswer and its licensors and suppliers own the rights to the JustAnswer website and the content displayed on the Site other than Posts. You shall not modify, reverse engineer, decompile, disassemble, or attempt to derive the source code of the JustAnswer website, any software distributed by or assist any other person or entity in doing so. You acknowledge that all content, including, but not limited to, text, software, music, sound, photographs, video, graphics or other material contained in listings, sponsor advertisements or email-distributed, commercially produced information presented to you by the Service, by JustAnswer, Users, or JustAnswer advertisers or other content providers, is protected by copyrights, trademarks, service marks, patents or other proprietary rights and laws. You may not modify, copy, reproduce, republish, upload, post, transmit, or distribute in any way content available through the Service, whether done directly or through intermediaries (including, but not limited to, by means of spiders, robots, crawlers, scrapers, framing, iframes or RSS feeds), including, but not limited to, code and software for commercial purposes. For permission to use third-party materials appearing on the Site, please contact the copyright owner. You do not acquire ownership rights to any content, document or other materials viewed through the Site. The posting of information or materials on the Site does not constitute a waiver of any right in such information and materials.

Any access to or use of JustAnswer to design, develop, test, update, operate, modify, maintain, support, market, advertise, distribute or otherwise make available any program, application or service (including, without limitation, any device, technology, product, computer program, mobile device application, website, or mechanical or personal service) that enables or provides access to, use of, operation of or interoperation with JustAnswer (including, without limitation, to access content, post content, cross-post content, re-post content, respond or reply to content, verify content, transmit content, create accounts, verify accounts, use accounts, circumvent and/or automate technological security measures or restrictions, or flag content) without the prior written authorization of JustAnswer is prohibited. This prohibition specifically applies to, but is not limited to, software, programs, applications, and services for use or operation on or by any computer and/or any electronic, wireless and/or mobile device, technology, or product that exists now or in the future.

If you access JustAnswer or copy, display, distribute, perform, or create derivative works from content displayed on the Site or other intellectual property in violation of this Agreement, your access, copying, display, distribution, performance, or derivative work is unauthorized. Circumvention of any technological restriction or security measure on JustAnswer or any provision of this Agreement that restricts content, conduct, accounts or access is expressly prohibited. For purposes of this paragraph, you agree that cached copies of JustAnswer webpages on your computer or computer server constitute “copies” under the Copyright Act, 17 U.S.C. 101.

You agree that Posts on the Site, materials, ideas, comments, and testimonials that you submit on the Site or other venues, including, but not limited to, the JustAnswer blogs and the JustAnswer venues on www.facebook.com, www.twitter.com, www.linkedin.com, www.youtube.com, www.pinterest.com, plus.google.com, www.flickr.com, or to the Site administrator or any employee, officer or agent of JustAnswer (“User Content”), will not be considered confidential and may be used by JustAnswer, in its sole discretion, without any obligation to compensate you for the use of or to return any submitted materials. You also agree that JustAnswer owns, and has the right to register in its name, trademarks and service marks for any category names that you create on JustAnswer, so do not use a category name that you want to reserve for your own benefit. JustAnswer may use other trademarks or service marks in lieu of the category names that you create.

You grant to JustAnswer a non-exclusive, irrevocable, perpetual, worldwide, royalty-free, sublicensable (through multiple tiers) right to exercise the copyright, publicity, and database rights, including the right to use, reproduce, display, edit, copy, modify, transmit, publicly perform, extract and create derivative works thereof, that you have in your Posts and User Content, in any media now known or not currently known, with respect to any such Posts and other User Content.

Notwithstanding the above, please note that Experts are granted access to the Site beyond the access granted to other Users and, as such, have access to information not known by non-Expert Users of the Site (“Confidential Information”). Experts shall maintain all Confidential Information in confidence; shall use such Confidential Information in confidence; shall use such Confidential Information only in connection with their legitimate activities on the Site; shall not use Confidential Information for the purpose of developing, operating, or participating in any competing service; and shall not disclose Confidential Information to non-Experts unless required by law.

15. No Endorsement of Non-JustAnswer Entity; No Relationship with Users

JustAnswer may endeavor to offer to its Users products and services offered by non-JustAnswer entities. The Site may contain links to third party websites and service providers (collectively, “Third Party Services”) that are not owned or controlled by JustAnswer. JustAnswer has no control over and assumes no responsibility for the content, practices, and privacy policies of such Third Party Services. JustAnswer encourages you to, and you acknowledge that you are solely responsible for, reviewing and complying with any third party terms and conditions and privacy policies. JustAnswer cannot and will not censor or edit the content of any Third Party Service. Placement of information, logos, links, or names of such non-JustAnswer entities on the Site does not constitute an endorsement or warranty of these entities, their products or services. By using this Site, you agree that JustAnswer is not responsible for, and you take full responsibility for, a decision to visit or patronize any such Third Party Service or entity, you hold JustAnswer harmless from any and all liability arising from such actions, and you expressly relieve JustAnswer from all liability arising from your use of Third Party Services. IT IS THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE USER TO EVALUATE THE ACCURACY, COMPLETENESS, AND USEFULNESS OF ANY OPINION, ANSWER OR OTHER CONTENT AVAILABLE THROUGH THE SITE FROM THIRD PARTIES OR OBTAINED FROM A LINKED SITE. PLEASE SEEK THE ADVICE OF PROFESSIONALS, AS APPROPRIATE, REGARDING THE EVALUATION OF ANY SPECIFIC OPINION, ANSWER, PRODUCT, SERVICE, OR OTHER CONTENT.

16. Information Control and Storage

We do not control the information provided by Users, which you may find to be offensive, harmful, inaccurate, or deceptive. Please use caution and common sense when using the Site. There are also risks of dealing with underage persons or people acting under false pretenses. Additionally, there may be risks dealing with international trade and foreign nationals. By using this Site, you agree to accept such risks and that JustAnswer is not responsible for the acts or omissions of Users on the Site.

The amount of storage space per User is currently limited. You agree that JustAnswer is not responsible or liable for the deletion or failure to store content and/or other information.

17. Exclusion of Warranties

JUSTANSWER SERVICES, SOFTWARES, AND RELATED DOCUMENTATION ARE PROVIDED “AS IS” AND WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY OF ANY KIND EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. NO INFORMATION, WHETHER ORAL OR WRITTEN, OBTAINED BY YOU FROM US THROUGH THIS SITE SHALL CREATE ANY WARRANTY, REPRESENTATION OR GUARANTEE NOT EXPRESSLY STATED IN THESE TERMS. JUSTANSWER DOES NOT REPRESENT OR WARRANT THAT THE SERVICE WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED OR ERROR-FREE, THAT DEFECTS WILL BE CORRECTED, OR THAT THIS SITE OR THE SERVER THAT MAKES IT AVAILABLE, ARE FREE OF VIRUSES OR OTHER HARMFUL COMPONENTS. JUSTANSWER DOES NOT WARRANT OR REPRESENT THAT THE USE OR THE RESULTS OF THE USE OF THE MATERIALS AVAILABLE THROUGH THE SERVICE, FROM THIRD PARTIES OR A LINKED SITE WILL BE CORRECT, ACCURATE, TIMELY, RELIABLE OR OTHERWISE. SOME STATES OR OTHER JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OF IMPLIED WARRANTIES, SO THE ABOVE EXCLUSIONS MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU. YOU MAY ALSO HAVE OTHER RIGHTS THAT VARY FROM STATE TO STATE AND JURISDICTION TO JURISDICTION.

UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES WILL JUSTANSWER BE LIABLE FOR ANY LOSS OR DAMAGE CAUSED BY A USER’S RELIANCE ON INFORMATION OBTAINED THROUGH THE SITE, FROM THIRD PARTIES (SUCH AS EXPERTS OR OTHERS) OR A LINKED SITE, OR USER’S RELIANCE ON ANY PRODUCT OR SERVICE OBTAINED FROM A THIRD PARTY OR A LINKED SITE. USE OF THIS SITE IS AT USERS’ SOLE RISK.

NO ADVICE OR INFORMATION, WHETHER ORAL OR WRITTEN, OBTAINED BY YOU FROM JUSTANSWER OR THROUGH OR FROM THE JUSTANSWER SERVICES SHALL CREATE ANY WARRANTY.

18. Right to Discontinue

At any time, with or without notice, for any or no reason, and in its sole discretion, JustAnswer reserves the right to modify or discontinue any portion or all of the Site or the Services. Expert has no rights in and to the Site and Services.

You are never required to answer any questions posted on the website.

19. Press Releases and Third-Party Press about JustAnswer

The Site may contain press releases and other information about JustAnswer. While this information was believed to be accurate as of the date prepared, we disclaim any duty or obligation to update this information or any press releases. Information about companies other than ours contained in the press release or otherwise, should not be relied upon as being provided or endorsed by JustAnswer. Likewise, third-party press about JustAnswer or the Site should not be relied upon as being provided or endorsed by JustAnswer.

20. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify and hold JustAnswer, any and all parent, subsidiary and affiliate organizations, officers, directors, agents, shareholders, consultants, employees, successors, and assigns harmless from and against all losses, costs, liabilities and expenses, including reasonable attorneys’ fees, asserted by any third party that are in any way due to, or arising out of, your use of or conduct on the Site, including, without limitation, that results from any answer provided or relied upon on the Site.

21. Dispute Resolution: Mediation and Arbitration

This Section 21 may be referred to as the parties’ “Dispute Resolution Agreement.”If you have a dispute with JustAnswer or if JustAnswer has a dispute with you and such dispute cannot be resolved informally, such dispute will be resolved on anindividual basisin accordance with the provisions set forth below:

(a)Informal Resolution. Prior to initiating mediation or arbitration, the party with a grievance must:

(1) Notify the other party, in writing, of the facts of the dispute and all damages claimed. Such a writing must be sent to (a) the Expert’s email address on file with JustAnswer, or (b) JustAnswer LLC, P.O. Box 29045, San Francisco, CA 94129, or [email protected], whichever is applicable (“Dispute Notification”).

(2) The party receiving the Dispute Notification has thirty (30) days from receipt of the Dispute Notification to respond.

(3) The other party then has 15 days to reply to the response.

(b)Mediation. If the dispute is not resolved informally, either party may make a demand for mediation, with the other party’s consent, by filing either a (i) Request for AAA Online Mediation for Claims under $10,000 with the American Arbitration Association (“AAA”); or (ii) Request for Mediation with the AAA. To file a request for mediation for a claim under $10,000, you must go to the following website: http://services.adr.org/eroom/faces/welcome_and_steps.jspx http://www.aaamediation.com/. If that link does not work, please contact [email protected] at JustAnswer for updated information. If you are requesting mediation for a claim that is worth $10,000 or more, you must go to the following website to file such a claim: https://www.adr.org/aaa/faces/services/disputeresolutionservices/mediation?_afrLoop=116582556835025&_afrWindowMode=0&_afrWindowId=null#\%40\%3F_afrWindowId\%3Dnull\%26_ afrLoop\%3D116582556835025\%26_afrWindowMode\%3D0\%26_adf.ctrl-state\%3Dkgte21xx_4&_afr.ts=1449619920720. If that link does not work, please contact [email protected] at JustAnswer for updated information. If either party requests mediation and both parties consent to mediation, the costs of mediation will be borne equally by the parties.

(c)Arbitration.

(i) Mutual agreement to arbitrate. If mediation does not occur or if mediation does not resolve the dispute, then both parties agree that all disputes between them, including without limitation, those disputes arising out of or related to this Agreement, the Services provided under this Agreement, the termination of this Agreement, the use of the Site, and the “Terms” as defined in the Agreement, shall be determined exclusively by final and binding arbitration before a single, neutral arbitrator as described herein.

(ii) Covered claims. Claims subject to arbitration under this Dispute Resolution Agreement include, but are not limited to, the following types of claims between and among Expert on the one hand, and JustAnswer, its subsidiaries, affiliates, shareholders, officers, directors, employees, benefit plans, or agents, any alleged joint employers, and any of JustAnswer’s Users (including Customers and Experts), on the other hand: breach of contract; discrimination, harassment, or retaliation; wrongful discharge; negligence or other tort claims including defamation, libel, slander, fraud, invasion of privacy, and infliction of emotional distress; claims for wages, overtime, benefits, or other compensation; and all other statutory, regulatory, contractual, or tort claims or claims of violation of any international, federal/national, state/provincial, or local statute, ordinance, governmental enactment, common law duty, provision, or doctrine. Except as provided below, the parties voluntarily waive all rights to trial in court before a judge or jury on claims between them. Judgment upon the arbitrator's award may be entered in any court of competent jurisdiction. The only disputes and actions excluded from this Dispute Resolution Agreement are: (a) actions to enforce this Dispute Resolution Agreement, compel arbitration, or claims by either party seeking temporary injunctive relief prior to the appointment of the arbitrator; and (b) claims for which this Dispute Resolution Agreement would be invalid as a matter of law. Individual knowingly and voluntarily waives the right to file or seek relief in a court seeking recovery of money damages.

(iii) Arbitration rules and selection of arbitrator. Unless the parties agree otherwise in writing, the AAA shall administer the resolution of covered disputes pursuant to the Commercial Arbitration Rules and the supplementary procedures for Consumer Related Disputes (collectively, "AAA rules"). Copies of these rules can be obtained at the AAA’s website ( www.adr.org ) or by calling the AAA at 1-800-778-7879. Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 68 (“Offer of Judgment”) shall apply, as well. In the event of any inconsistency between this Dispute Resolution Agreement and the applicable rules of the AAA, this Dispute Resolution Agreement shall govern. The parties shall have 30 days from receipt of a notice of arbitration to select a mutually agreeable arbitrator. If the parties are unable to jointly select the arbitrator, the arbitrator shall be selected as provided in the AAA’s rules.

(iv) Commencement of arbitration and location of hearing. A party wishing to initiate arbitration must notify the other party in writing by hand delivery or certified mail. The notice must identify the party requesting the arbitration, and it must describe the facts upon which the claim is based, the date and location of any occurrences giving rise to the claim, and the remedy requested. Notice must be sent to the Expert’s email address on file with JustAnswer, or JustAnswer LLC, P.O. Box 29045, San Francisco, CA 94129 or [email protected]. The arbitration hearing shall be held in San Francisco, California.

(v) The payment of filing and arbitration fees will be governed by the relevant AAA rules subject to the following modifications:

1. If the Expert initiates arbitration under this Dispute Resolution Agreement and is otherwise required to pay a filing fee under the relevant AAA rules, JustAnswer agrees that, unless the claim is for $5,000 or more, the Expert’s share of the filing fee is limited to $50, and after the Expert submits proof of payment of the filing fee to JustAnswer, JustAnswer will promptly reimburse the Expert for all but $50 of the filing fee. If, however, the arbitrator finds that either the substance of the Expert’s claim or the relief sought in the claim is frivolous or brought for an improper purpose (as measured by the standards set forth in Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 11(b)), then the payment of all such fees will be governed by the AAA rules.

2. If JustAnswer initiates arbitration under this Dispute Resolution Agreement, JustAnswer will pay all costs unique to arbitration (as compared to the costs of adjudicating the same claims before a court or agency), including the regular and customary administrative fees and expenses charged by AAA. Any dispute as to whether a cost is unique to arbitration shall be resolved by the arbitrator.

3. Except as provided for in Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 68, each party shall pay its own attorneys’ fees and any costs that are not unique to the arbitration (i.e., costs that each party would incur if the claim(s) were litigated in a court or agency such as costs to subpoena witnesses and/or documents; take depositions and purchase deposition transcripts; copy documents; etc.).

(vi) Authority of the arbitrator. The arbitrator shall have the same authority to order remedies to individual claimants as would a court of competent jurisdiction. The arbitrator shall also have the same authority to decide dispositive motions as would a court, though he or she may establish appropriate and less formal procedures for such motions consistent with the expedited nature of arbitration proceedings. The arbitrator shall have the authority to issue subpoenas to compel the attendance of witnesses at the arbitration hearing and to compel the production of documents during discovery. Except as provided below, the arbitrator shall have the authority to resolve any dispute relating to the interpretation, applicability, enforceability, or formation of this Dispute Resolution Agreement, including without limitation any claim that the Dispute Resolution Agreement is void or voidable. The arbitrator shall not have the authority to hear disputes not recognized by existing law and shall dismiss such claims upon motion by either party in accordance with the standards and burdens generally applicable in federal district court.

(vii) Waiver of class, collective, and/or representative actions. Expert understands and agrees that all claims covered by this Dispute Resolution Agreement that Expert may have against JustAnswer must be brought in Expert’s individual capacity and not as a plaintiff or class member in any purported class action, collective action or representative action proceeding. Similarly, any claims covered by this Dispute Resolution Agreement that JustAnswer may have against Expert may not be brought as a plaintiff or class member in any purported class action, collective action or representative action proceeding. Expert understands that there is no right or authority for any dispute covered by this Dispute Resolution Agreement to be heard or arbitrated on a collective action basis, class action basis, as a private attorney general, or on bases involving claims or disputes brought in a representative capacity on behalf of the general public, on behalf of other JustAnswer company employees (or any of them) or on behalf of other persons alleged to be similarly situated. Expert understands that there are no bench or jury trials and no class actions or representative actions permitted under this Dispute Resolution Agreement. The arbitrator shall not consolidate claims of different Experts into one proceeding, nor shall the arbitrator have the power to hear arbitration as a class action, collective action, or representative action. Any disputes regarding the enforceability or scope of this provision including, but not limited to, whether class, collective, or representative actions are authorized in arbitration by this Dispute Resolution Agreement, shall be decided by a court of competent jurisdiction rather than by an arbitrator.

(viii) Form of the award. The arbitrator shall render a written award setting forth his or her findings of fact and conclusions of law.

(ix)WAIVER OF JURY TRIAL. EXCEPT AS PROVIDED EXPRESSLY HEREIN, THE PARTIES VOLUNTARILY WAIVE ALL RIGHTS TO A TRIAL IN COURT BEFORE A JUDGE OR JURY ON ALL CLAIMS BETWEEN THEM COVERED BY THIS AGREEMENT.

(x) Governing law applicable to this Dispute Resolution Agreement. The parties acknowledge that Section 21 contains the parties' "Dispute Resolution Agreement"; that this Dispute Resolution Agreement is made in the course of interstate commerce; that any arbitration under this Dispute Resolution Agreement is governed by the Federal Arbitration Act, 9 U.S.C. 1 et. seq. (the “FAA”); and the parties are subject to the FAA for purposes of the Dispute Resolution Agreement. This choice of law provision applies only to this Dispute Resolution Agreement, and not to the rest of this Agreement or Terms.

(xi) Attorney’s fees; survival; and right to consult. The arbitrator shall award attorney’s fees and costs to the prevailing party in any arbitration arising out of or relating to this Agreement, the Terms, and where otherwise provided by applicable law. This Dispute Resolution Agreement section shall survive termination of this Agreement. Expert acknowledges and agrees that he/she is entering into this Dispute Resolution Agreement voluntarily and without any duress or undue influence by JustAnswer or anyone else. Expert further acknowledges and agrees that he/she has carefully read this Dispute Resolution Agreement and that Expert has asked any questions needed for Expert to understand the terms, consequences and binding effect of this Dispute Resolution Agreement and fully understand it, including that Expert is waiving his/her right to a jury trial. Finally, Expert agrees that he/she has been provided an opportunity to seek the advice of an attorney of Expert’s choice before agreeing to this Dispute Resolution Agreement.

22. Choice of Law

The Terms shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of Idaho, without regard to its conflicts of law provisions, except as set forth in Section 21 of this Agreement (the “Dispute Resolution Agreement”).

23. Miscellaneous

Failure to enforce any provision of this Agreement by JustAnswer shall not constitute a waiver of any provision by JustAnswer. If any provision of this Agreement is deemed invalid or unenforceable, such provision shall be ineffective only to the extent of such prohibition or invalidity without invalidating the remainder of such provision or the remaining provisions of the Agreement. All provisions not affected by the invalidity shall remain in full force and effect.

The Terms constitute the complete and exclusive statement of the Agreement between you and us. It supersedes any and all prior or contemporaneous agreement, oral or written, and any other communications, representations, warranties and understanding relating to the subject matter of the Terms. If there is a conflict between an oral or written representation of any JustAnswer employee or agent and the Terms (other than modifications to the Terms executed in writing by the CEO or authorized-in-fact representative of JustAnswer), the Terms will prevail. To the extent the Terms are in conflict or inconsistent with one another, this Agreement and the Privacy Policy will prevail for Experts over other terms, rules, policies, and FAQs on the Site. If any provision(s) of the Terms is held by a court or arbitrator of competent jurisdiction to be contrary to law, then such provision(s) shall be construed, as nearly as possible, to reflect the intentions of the parties and the other provisions shall remain in full force and effect. JustAnswer’s failure to exercise or enforce any of the Terms shall not constitute a waiver of JustAnswer’s right to exercise or enforce the Terms as to the same or another instance.

Headings in this and Related Agreements are for purposes of reference only and shall not limit or otherwise affect the meaning of the Terms.

You agree that JustAnswer may assign the Terms to any other entity of its choosing, with or without notice to you. You may not assign the Terms to any other party for any reason. JustAnswer shall not be deemed to have waived any of its rights or remedies unless such waiver is in writing and signed by an authorized officer of JustAnswer. No delay or omission on the part of JustAnswer in exercising any rights or remedies shall operate as a waiver of such rights or remedies or any other rights or remedies on future occasions.

Certain sections of this Agreement, by their terms, survive the termination of this Agreement.

UPDATE 11/20/2017: The issue has been resolved. However, if you still have any issues, please contact Expert Support.

We are currently experiencing sporadic connection issues through our integrated phone call feature. Not all phone call requests experience this issue. If you try to initiate a phone call through our system and are not able to connect with customers, please call the customer using your own phone.

The customer's phone number is available in the conversation thread. If you prefer to hide your phone number when calling from your personal phone, you can press *67 before entering the customer's phone number.

We will update you once we are able to resolve this issue. Please contact Expert Support if you need additional assistance. We apologize for this inconvenience.

reach out with any questions

Hi Experts!

I have some exciting news to share with you. We have been testing a membership-only business model that:

drives more questions to the site

reduces refunds

increases positive ratings

We will begin rolling this model out in phases, startingWednesday, 4/18.

The membershipmodel

We are offering customers a membership-only model with a $5 trial period followed by a recurring monthly fee after the 7-day trial. Both prices are clearly displayed to customers before they buy. As the name states, customers who are a part of the membership-only model will only be offered a membership option when posting their first question. Since we started testing this model, our research shows that customers are happier with their Expert experienceand theJustAnswerservice.

What this means for you

Even though customers are only paying $5 for a 7-day trial, your earnings should remainrelativelyeven.The payout value you see per question may change as we roll out this model; however, our tests have shown that the accept rate typically goes up significantly as more customers view their answers and rate them positively as a byproduct of a $5 starting-price point. You will continue to earn the question payout value that you see on the Request Center. In the end, your earnings should remain flat compared to the pay-per-question model.

The question payout values may go up or down slightly as we continue the rollout, but our goal is to keep your earnings stable while we improve the customer experience and, ultimately, drive more questions to the site via this new model.

The potential

From what we’ve learned so far, customers who opted into this membership model are more likely to ask additional questionsandrate positively.A $5 price point is extremely compelling for customers and will allow us to drive more business to the site in the coming months. This means you should receive more questions and earn more money overall.

This is a big step forJustAnswerand for the Expert community. We've always believed that our success is your success and are excited for the direction we're headed together. As always, please.

Sincerely,

Anh Nguyen

JustAnswer Expert Ops

We’ve pulled together some of the most successful greetings and signatures and are sharing them here for you to use. Please note the friendly, polite tone and helpful nature of each one.

Greetings

When greeting your customer on the question page, consider providing a high-quality greeting that introduces yourself, welcomes them to the site, and lets them know you'll be right back with your reply. This helps set their expectations that an Expert is there and ready to help, and it keeps them engaged and excited to see what your reply is. It helps to build your new and hopefully ongoing relationship with your customer right from the start!

Do

Lead with a friendly greetingwelcoming the customer

Greet them using their name if they provided it

Personalize the experience by introducing yourself with your name

Ask for additional information from customers that will help you answer their questions

Don’t

Ask for a rating

Explain how the site works

Note: You can set up your greeting to automatically post so you don't have to type it up each time! Click here for more information.

Signatures

Do

Keep it short 1 to 3sentences max

Lead with asking if they were satisfied or to let them know their satisfaction is your goal

Politely ask for a "5-star rating" (go forthe best rating here, you deserve it!)

Remind them that they can continue the conversation if they need more help

Don’t

Lead with the rating and make that appear to be your only concern

Ask repeatedly for a rating one mentionof it is best

State they should not be rating site issues Many haven’t experienced them, so you are potentially confusing the issue

Use colors, bold, and ALL CAPS to stress the need for a rating

Examples we love:

My goal is to provide you with excellent service. If you're satisfied with my assistance, your 5-star rating at this time is appreciated.If you have any further questions, don't hesitate to ask!

I hope I’ve provided the information you were seeking. If you are happy with my service, your 5-star rating at this time is most welcome. If you need more help, please let me know so l can continue to assistyou.

Simply reply back if you require additional information and I will be happy to help with any follow up questions. If you're satisfied with my help, please consider a5-star rating at this time. Thank you and I wish you the best with your vehicle repairs.

We want you all to be successful on the site and will continue to share tips and tools with you, most of which we’ll have gleaned and/or built with data from customer and expert feedback to help you do so.

If you need help or have questions, please Submit an Inquiry with the red button above.

The Customer Reports are located by clicking the red flagon the upper right corner of a customer’s Request (question page).

clicking here

Here is description of when each of these customer reports would be used by an Expert:

“Best of” JA Experts can report CustomerRequestswhere an Expert has had an outstanding interaction with acustomer or where a customer has had a great experience on the site and is extremely satisfied with their Expert.These Requestsare collected and considered for marketing and motivational efforts.

Customer Service/Refunds - If an Expertcomes across a Requestthat should be directed to the customer service team (the customer requests a refund, they have a problem with the site, their account, their payment, etc.), they can select this report. The Requestwill be locked and closed, and the report will be sent to the appropriate team which will investigate and seek a resolution. If applicable, the Requestwillbe reopened when the report is addressed. NOTE: When you used the cs/refund report, you locked the page so no one else can respond. Please save that for when the customer initiates a refund request, or when the issue is so urgent that the customer cannot continue without Customer Service intervention.

Duplicate Question When Experts come across a duplicate Request, they can report one of them. This action may close the duplicate page,and a customer service representative willinvestigate andredirect the customer to their original page. This report is also used when a customer posts a follow-up as a newRequestinstead of posting the follow-upon their originalRequest.

Instructions: The question you are reporting as a duplicate will be listed as the "current question" at the bottom of theDuplicatereport. The customer's other open questions are listedthere as well. Highlight the original question link listed at the bottom of the Duplicate report, copy it, andpaste it into the URL field at the top of the report. NOTE: Do not copy the link of the original question from your browser's address bar -- use only the link providedat the bottom of the Duplicate report. Type the word "duplicate" in the comments section, and click "Submit Report."

NOTE:Do not post to known duplicates, even to tell the customer it's a duplicate. If you cannot use the duplicate report because you did post before realizing, or because the customer posted their own reply, and the system thinks it's an Expert reply, you can use the Customer Service/Refund report to report it as a duplicate. Never use this report if another Expert has replied (the duplicate report doesn't work in this case either, and that is intentional).

Miscategorized Sometimes aRequest is postedin the wrong category. For example, if a homework-related question posts in the Legal category, it may not be replied to in that category and instead must be moved to a Homework-related category so it can be replied to by an Expert verified to answer homework questions. To get the Requestto the correct category, an Expert can use the Miscategorized Report.

Open Question - Occasionally an answer may take time to research (a Genealogy Expert, for example, may need to contact a foreign country to get the information the customer is seeking).If the Request times out before the Expert can reply back with the answer, the Expert can use this report to ask thatthe page be reopened once they are in receipt of the neededinformation.

Personal Info - When Experts come across Requestswhere a customer has posted personal or identifying information, they can use this report to alert customer serviceso it can be removed.

Send to Category Mod -

Customer appears to have a history of not accepting answers - This report is used when a customer has not ratedprevious answers on multiple Requests. The customer's account will be researched andevaluated, and any necessary action will be taken.

No Experts of this specialty are available - This report is used when there are noExperts on the site with the expertise toanswer the Request.

Unable to answer online - When the customer is either looking for a service that can't be provided on the JustAnswer platform, believes they are seeking support for a service fromanother company, or other variations when no Experts are able to answer the Request.

Suicidal Customer - If your customer indicates they are suicidal, use this report to bring it to Customer Service's attention.

Underpriced - When Experts come across Requeststhat they are unwilling to answer because they believe it isunderpriced, the Experts shoulduse this report and the Customer Service team will reach out to the customer and encourage them to increase the price.

Questions? Feel free to "Submit a Request" to Expert Support usingthe button on the top of the Expert Help Center pages or directly by. Thank you!

NINE TOP-RATED EXPERTS SHARE THEIR WINNING ADVICE FOR GETTING POSITIVE RATINGS.

Expert rating is an important metric because it is a representation of answer quality and customers’ satisfaction with your service. It also determines whether you get credit for your work. But, getting positive ratings is not always an easy task.

Is there an elusive secret to positive ratings? Why do some Experts have higher accept rates than others? We invited a handful of top-rated Experts to share some tips and they delivered in a HUGE way. We were blown away by the wealth of knowledge and want to share the best tips with the rest of the community.

1.SHOW SOME LOVE

The Experts unanimously agreed that the best way to get positive ratings is to show compassion and empathy. "I try to interact on a human level with customers, so they know that they are dealing with a real person, and not a robot," says Chris L., Legal Expert since 2010.

Customers often come to JustAnswer with a cloud over their head because they need help with something specific and personal. What can you do to help? "I try to alleviate their concerns with compassion and treat every customer as if they are my only customer. Kindness goes a long way," says Samuel T., Legal Expert since 2008.

2.STICK WITH WHAT YOU KNOW

According to Mike V., Car Expert since 2006, "Nothing is worse than answering a customer and he shows you that you were wrong." Your judgment and reputation are important both as an Expert on JustAnswer and licensed professional offline. "Only answer something you are knowledgeable about and have a game plan as to how you're going to execute the answer," adds Aric K., Electronic Expert since 2009.

Even with familiar topics, it's sometimes necessary to double check the information you provide, says Robin R., Tax Expert since 2008. "I check on the specifics of every piece of advice I offer. For me, that means actually looking at tax law and any state law that may be relevant. I do not answer off the top of my head. This is because tax law can change yearly."

3.FEEL OUT YOUR CUSTOMERS

Understanding how knowledgeable your customers are and what they're expecting will save time and frustration for both sides, says Mike V., "I try to feel out their knowledge base first so I can try to get some idea of their expectations of me."

What if you can't feel out your customers? Bill B., Legal Expert since 2012 suggests, "Just give a clear explanation for why the answer is the way it is (along with a resource or two for the customer to dig deeper). This often gives the customer confidence in our knowledge and acknowledges a level of respect towards them to be able to understand concepts that may be outside their own field of expertise."

4.A LITTLE PATIENCE GOES A LONG WAY

A 7-year Expert on JustAnswer, Samuel T. notes, "Over the years, I have discovered most customers don't really know what they want or how to articulate it. So it takes patience to work with them and through their frustrations."

Customers are usually under stressful circumstances when talking to Experts and as a result, tend to be anxious and vague. To alleviate some of the stress, Tammy B., Legal Expert since 2008, suggests, "Be mindful of the pain customers are in and be patient when they don't understand what we are saying, especially when they are clearly the authors of their own misfortune."

5. YOU DON'T ALWAYS HAVE TO GIVEAN ANSWER

There's a false belief that Experts are a bunch of know-it-alls in their fields. Samuel T. disagrees, "I suggest that many times we don't always have the answers or even the answers customers want to hear. But if we can provide a little hope with any type of positive answers, they seem to really appreciate that."

What should you say to an upset customer? Aric K. advises, "Let customers know that troubleshooting is a means to an end. This doesn't mean that you can guarantee a 'fix,' but rather give them all of the things they could possibly try on a user level to reach a conclusion."

We also recommend using the Opt Out feature if you cannot or are no longer interested in answering a question. Doing so would free up the question for other Experts.

6. MAKE AN OFFER

The easiest way to get an automatic 5-star rating is through premium services. But when is the right time to make an offer? Robin R. recommends, "If and when I offer Premium Services, it is only after I have given a complete answer and the subject is one I know will turn into a more complex area."

She adds, "If I think it will not progress way beyond the scope of the original question, I offer free extra information that covers possible issues that may happen because of the question. I let them know that they can request me on those too, which gives them a 'heads up' without making them feel they are required to pay more right now."

7. PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE

Malcolm Gladwell says it takes 10,000 hours of practice to achieve mastery of a field. While we're not promoting the idea that you should spend 10,000 hours on JustAnswer before you master the art of positive ratings, we do encourage you to practice how to handle and respond to different customer situations.

Bill B. sums it up nicely, "Trying to narrow our own professional experience down to a quick "Q&A," hoping to convey the most pertinent information without sacrificing too much is a skill that we must continue to develop as Experts. We will always have unhappy customers and not all customers are reasonable (we also make mistakes), but with practice and attention to our customer's needs for good information combined with a respectful and caring presentation, we will continue to provide a valuable service and gain the benefits of positive ratings."

8. KNOW WHEN A CUSTOMERIS NOT RIGHT FOR YOU

There are a lot of things you can do to show empathy and help customers. But even the best Expert can't help a customer that refuses to be helped. "In some cases, the customer wants the impossible and unfortunately it is best to walk away. Not to sound blunt, but there's a saying that sometimes you need to know when to fire a customer," says Aric K.

It's up to you to choose the customers you want to help. If there's a mismatch, let the customer know and move on. Tammy B. stresses, "If there is a customer whom I don't want to help, then I don't. That way I can remain true to myself and my beliefs, and at the same time, can easily answer compassionately."

9. DON'T FORGET TO FOLLOW UP

Most Q&A ends after a rating, but sometimes, a customer asks follow up questions. Tammy B. emphasizes the importance of following up, "What I always do is answer all follow-up questions, without fail. I will never, ever leave a follow-up question unanswered even if I have already been rated. I know of Experts who opt out after they are rated positively or if the follow-up question is too hard. That's unfair and unethical in my view and will leave the customer with a negative feeling about the site."

10. DELIVER 5-STAR SERVICE

At JustAnswer, we work very hard to provide the best possible service to both customers and Experts. You're the ones that drive our platform so we do our best to help you emanate the same level of customer service as we strive to achieve. Loren Stone, Legal Expert since 2009, compliments, "I attribute my improvement to the Expert Ops team's brilliant online lessons in customer service. Where before, I was more concerned with volume of questions I was able to answer, they taught me to read the questions more carefully."

Mike V. likes to remind customers, "I let them know that I am trying to give them 5-star service. If I am not giving them that, then they should tell me what I missed."

BONUS TIP:EXPERT OPS TEAM HAS YOUR BACK

We understand that rating is a fickle thing. You can be the most knowledgeable and compassionate Expert, but still not get a positive rating through no fault of your own. This is where we can help! The site will automatically send out rating and reply reminders to the customer. We also havethe No-Click Rating policy in place for situations when customers expressed satisfaction but forget togo back andrate. If you run into a situation that falls underthis policy, don't hesitate to let us know.

Agree or disagree with the tips you've read? Got some tips of your own? Share your comments below.

Ifacustomer isasking totally new, unrelated questions on a question thread that has been answered, then you can politely let them know that the site requires a new question page for new, unrelated questions, and they can request you if they wish.

Customers can ask follow-up questions related to and triggered by the original, and that should be on the same page, not a new page.That doesn't mean they should drag it out for days or weeks. You can use the Additional Services offer for More Q&A Time, but it still should be about the original issue or related follow-ups. here

If a customer is having questions regarding the site policies or they are having any site related issues, they need Customer Service assistance. You can give them this link: http://ww2.justanswer.com/help where they can chat, call, or send a support request. Or they can email directly to [email protected]

Just let them know that you're a site user like them, but that JustAnswer Customer Service will be happy to assist them.

If you prefer, you can use the customer report to alert Customer Service department with a request to assist the customer.

Questions? Feel free to "Submit a Request" to Expert Support usingthe button on the top of the Expert Help Center pages or directly by cli cking. Thank you!

Editor's Note: This post is part of the Experts Helping Experts program where Experts teach fellow Experts new skills, share expertise, and discuss hot topics. To learn more and contribute, click here.

irs.gov

According to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), about one-third of Americans wait until the last minute to file their federal taxes. If that’s you, don’t panic. The deadline to file your tax return is Monday, April 18 thanks to the Emancipation Day holiday in Washington, D.C., on April 15. With a few extra days to file, we’ve asked Robin and Stephen, two of our top Tax Experts on JustAnswer, to share some last minute tips.

What’s the most common mistake you see people make?

Robin: Not checking to make certain their returns were actually e-filed. Haste can make you miss a step in the e-file process. It is always important to go back and confirm that the return was accepted. Take your time and complete each step in the process. Make sure to check your e-file provider site and confirm the return was sent and accepted.

What’s the fastest way to file?

Robin: E-file is the fastest way to file. However, make sure you have completed all your information prior to e-filing. Once you’ve filed online, the return cannot be cancelled and if you’ve omitted information, you would have to amend. The IRS.gov website has a list of e-file options to choose from.

What are some tax credits that people overlook?

Stephen: Here are a few that are worth a look to see if you’re qualified:

There are two education credits available, the American Opportunity Tax Credit and the Lifetime Learning Credit. You must meet all of the requirements and complete Form 8863 to see if you qualify or to claim the Education Credits.

If you are 65 or over before January 1, 2016 and a resident of Massachusetts, you may be eligible to claim a refundable Senior “Circuit Breaker” tax credit against your personal income taxes for the rent or real estate taxes you paid on your principal residence. The maximum credit allowed this year is $1,070.

The Saver’s Credit is in addition to other tax savings you get if you set aside money for retirement. For example, you may also be able to deduct your contributions to a traditional IRA. The Saver’s Credit is worth up to $4,000 if you file a joint return, $2,000 if single. File Form 8880, Credit for Qualified Retirement Savings Contributions, to claim the credit.

The Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) has helped workers with low and moderate incomes get a tax break for 40 years. Yet, one out of every five eligible workers fails to claim it. The most important qualification is that you have "EARNED INCOME". Earned income is generally income that you paid Social Security tax on. You might qualify for EITC this year even if you didn’t in the past. If you qualify for EITC, you must file a federal income tax return and claim the credit to get it. This is true even if you are not otherwise required to file a tax return. If you qualify for EITC, you could pay less federal tax, no tax or even get a refund. EITC could be worth up to $6,242. The average credit was $2,447 last year.

How could someone check if they have unclaimed refunds?

Stephen: If you did not file a tax return for 2012, you may be one of nearly one million taxpayers who may be due a refund from that year. If you are, you must claim your share of almost $950 million by April 18. To claim your refund, you must file a 2012 federal income tax return by April 18, 2016.

If you live in Massachusetts or Maine, you get an extra day to file both our Federal & State returns as the 18th of April is "Patriots' Day." You have until midnight on April 19, 2016 to file either of your returns or an automatic extension for your 2015 returns.

What if someone can’t meet the April 18 deadline?

Robin: You can get an automatic 6-month extension to file your return with a Form 4868. Most extensions are only needed if you are still waiting on a form (e.g. K1, 1099, etc.). It’s important to remember that an extension only extends your time to file, NOT TO PAY. To get an extension, you can use any of the below methods:

IRS Free File - Traditional Free File and Free File Fillable Forms can both be used to file an extension for FREE. Access the Free File page at .

IRS e-file - Use IRS e-file to request an extension by using tax preparation software on your own computer or by going to a tax preparer.

Form to File - Mail in IRS Form 4868, Application for Automatic Extension of Time to File U.S. Individual Income Tax Return. It must be postmarked by April 18, 2016.

The following categories do not allow for Requestsfrom membersand should be avoidedby Experts. If Experts answer these Requests, they maynot receive monetary credit.

Homework categories and subcategories

How do I know if the Requestis from a member?

Member Requestsare denoted with the word "member" onthe Request Center

The Customer's username may also have an asterisk next to it on the Requestpage

What to do when Experts encounter these types of Requests?

Experts canreport member Requestsin the restricted categories by sending a “Send to Category Mod” report located in the Report drop-down menu on a Requestpage.

click here

If you have any questions, to submit a ticket.

The "opt out" tool is designed for Experts who are actively assisting a customer in a written correspondence on the question page, but they've reached a point where they're unable to continue assisting the customer because they're out of ideas on how to help.

When to opt out:

Opt out only if you've exhausted all of your ideasto helpbutyour customer still needs assistance. This will openthe question to other Experts so they can take a look and attempt to provide a different answer. Opting out meansyou have no intent to continue assisting the customer, and you're turning the question over to all other Experts.

When NOT to opt out:

Don't opt out simply because the customer is not replying to you.Instead, just leave the question as-is and move on to another customer. When the customer later replies, you'll have first shot at it, and if you'renot around or can't follow-up, the customer will have the option to open the question to other Experts. The question will time out and close on its own within 7 days if there is no reply or rating.

Don't optoutifthe customer is asking for a refund. If you opt out, you're placingthe question back on theopen question list for all other Experts to see as available and open, and they'll spend time reading through it, as they think it's a customer who needs Expert assistance. Thecustomer doesn't need an Expert at this point, they need Customer Service, so instead of opting out, you can post a reply to the page to let your customer know you'll alert Customer Service as to their refund request, then go back to the page and select the red flag in the upper right corner of the question page to do that. The question page will lock and close, and customer service will take it from there to try to resolve any concerns.

How to opt out and open the question to other Experts:

Post a final courtesy post to the question page to alert the customer that you're out of ideas and are opening the question to all available Experts. Then go back to the page and click the Opt Out link in the upper right corner of theActive Request page. The page will open up on the Request Center for all available Experts.

If you have any questions about this feature, feel free to reach out to Expert Support by clicking the red Submit an Inquiry button above.

While it’s okay to ask for arating along with your post giving acomplete answer to a question, JustAnswer does not allow Experts to post back to the page again to remind the customer to rate. This is called “buzzing” the customer, and it is expressly prohibited.

Posting multiple times in a row on a customer's question page is also considered buzzing. Each time an Expert clicks the "send" button, the customer receivesanother email notification that their Expert has replied, and posting multiple times in a row fills their inbox with unexpected emails, which they easily consider spam. Simply relock the page if you need more time, be sure you've typed up your full and complete reply in the single post, then click "send" and wait for your customer to rate or respond before posting again. This way they'll be expecting an email from you.

We remind customers on your behalf to rate their experience with you. Here are several ways that we are reminding customers to rate:

Customer's Q&A Page

At the very top of the customer's Q&A page, we remind customers that they should give Experts a positive rating so they may be credited. This 5-star rating scale is only enabled when you've checked the "Answer" checkbox along with your complete answer.

Click to enlarge

When the customer gets your complete answer, we also let them know that they can follow up with you for additional information and once again, to rate you.

Click to enlarge

Email Reminders

JustAnswer automaticallysends customers remindersto encouragethemtorate Answers and/or follow up with their Expert.

JustAnswer's reminder steps for customers to rate answers: If a rating has not happened 24hours after an Answer is provided, JustAnswersends an email reminder to the customer, on behalf of the Expert, reminding the customer to rate the Answer. These Rating/Reply reminders are scheduled to go out 24 hours after an answer has been provided by Expert, and again after 48 hours, 72 hours, one week, and periodically after that.

In support of the Expert community, JustAnswer also communicates to customers that ratings are required so that Expertsare properlycredited for their answer, time, and effort.

One-time Check-in Post

In addition to the above system-generated reminders, Experts are also welcome to do a one-timecheck in on the question page if 24 hours has passed after they've provided an answer but the customer has not rated or replied.

Here are the guidelines:

1) The check-in post can only be done between 24 hours and 7 daysafter your answer, if the customer has not rated you

2) It is used only to check in to see how things are going, for example: "Hi, just checking in to see how things are going. Do you need further assistance?"

3) It may not be used to buzz for a rating

4) It may only be done one time per question page

5) If two or more Experts have replied on the page, it can only be done if the other Experts have opted out

If you have any questions, "Submit a Request" to Expert Support using the button on the top of the Expert Help Center pages.

Have you ever wondered why some customers rate 5-stars for some questions but not others? Or why one Expert is higher rated than another even though they are both equally knowledgeable in their fields? These are some of thequestions we’ve been exploring as we try to improve the overall customer experience on JustAnswer. We recently shared data from our internal quality audit that shows how customers, particularly Members, rate and suggested different techniques to increase the likelihood of getting 5-stars. Next, we went directly to the source and asked customers to share their 5-star reasons.From this exercise, we learned moreabout customer expectations and identified the 5 most commonreasons customers give 5-star ratings.

Make a speedy first impression

By now, you don’t need to be reminded of the importance of speedy responses. When you send a quick and friendly first response to customers, you establish instant rapport.Caroline A., a customer from Henderson, NV, was looking for a second opinion for her car issue, “I had an answer within 5 minutes. The person I talked with was polite and his answer was spot on. This was a quick way to verify what I thought was going on with my vehicle and I would recommend this to everyone.”

A speedy response during off-peak hours is a welcome surprise for customers in need. Connie M. from Riverside, CA needed some legal help late at night,“It was 10:00 pm and I was stressing out about a legal situation. Phillips [Legal Expert] responded promptly and I got my answers! I feel great!”

Bottom line: A simple way to make a good first impression with your customers is to send a quick and friendlygreeting.

Demonstrate empathy and good bedside manner

Good customer service is about showing that you care about the issues that customers are having. Often, it's as simple as using please and thank you in your responses. Sandy H. from Snyder, TX was looking for someone who can guide her through a problem with her washer, "I received wonderful service from Scott [Appliance Expert]. As a widow with very little understanding of appliance, he took thetime to help and was very patient and courteous with me. He explained each step, walked me through as I was following his instructions, and offered more information when I got stuck."

Sarah V. from Tulsa, OK was delighted by the experience she had with Ely [Legal Expert] and shared her experience with us:

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Bottom line: Make an effort to show that you care by demonstrating good bedside manner.

Follow through with customers

Customers come to JustAnswer because they are looking for Experts who can guide them through their questions. The support customers get from Experts is what differentiates JustAnswer from other online sources. Tina B. from Alberta, Canada got the support she was looking for when she needed some veterinary help, "I was very happy with the Vet Expert'sadvice for my dog. She gave me a lot of options as to what the issue could be that my own vet hadn't mentioned. She even contacted me a few days later to see how my dog was doing which I thought was very caring. I have already tolda friend about JustAnswer. I am really happy. Thank you again!"

Janine L. from Minneapolis, MN was not happy with her local veterinarians so she turned to JustAnswer to get some help with her dog's bedwetting problem. Janine connected with Dr. Salkin [Pet Expert], who stayed with her weeks later to make sure Janine's dog improved. Listen to Janine and Dr. Salkin share their experience:

Your browser does not support the audio element.

Bottom line: The more volleys that you have with your customers, the more likely they are to rate you 5-stars because you are demonstrating your willingness to help and follow up.

Give customers the confidence to help themselves

It's a gratifying feeling to be able to give the right answers, but it's even more gratifying to be able to empower customers to fix their own issues. John C. from Concord, NH, a DIY-er who was able to fix an issue with his boat thanks to guidance from Jason [Boat Expert]. John shares his 5-star experience:

Your browser does not support the video tag.

Augustus R. from Sacramento, CA, now looks like an appliance genius to her family thanks to the information provided by an Appliance Expert, "The ice maker in my fridge was giving us ice that had a weird taste so I posted a question on JustAnswer. An Appliance Expert got back to me with a couple of suggestions about the filter. Then, he sent me a video on how to take the ice maker out and gave me some more suggestions for cleaning it. BINGO! That worked amazingly well! About an hour later, I had the ice maker cleaned, back in the fridge, and making ice that now tastes like nothing, which is how it should taste. No need for a costly service call and no waiting around for hours. It only took $40, a screwdriver, and now I look like a genius to my family."

Bottom line: It's more than giving the right answer. Give customers clear and detailed information that they understand and allow them the opportunity to test different suggestions that you offer.

Help customers save money

It's no surprise that customers love to find out when they don't have to go through with a costly repair or ordeal. Although it doesn't happen with every question,it's a gratifying feeling when you can help customers save a few dolllars. Densie Pancari from Newton, PA, was able to avoid costly repair thanks to Billy [HVAC Expert], "This is only the second review that I have written because it was so well deserved. The short story is that an air handler coil in our Trane system failed and I confirmed with Trane that replacing the custom coil would cost $3,000. My HVAC contractor was of no help because he was interested in either selling a custom coil or a new air handler for $3,700. Billy on JustAnswer became my HVAC tutor. He was always there for me and his information was always accurate. Ultimately, I found the perfect used air handler for a total of $400 and 10 years younger than the unit that failed. I'd say that is a WIN and money well spend on JustAnswer!"

Mary Seis from Suamico, WI, became a regular customer of JustAnswer after a positive and money-saving experience the first time, "Had a very positive experience! The first time I used JustAnswer, I had a legal question. My question was answered within the first 15 minutes. This saved me time, money and embarrassment to have to go out of my home for legal consultation. In fact, it saved me $15,000 by not getting into the legality of my situation. After the first question was answered, I thought I may as well try with my financial questions, so I used them two more times and was entirely impressed. These Experts are real professionals and I'm so happy I found them. I have already told many people!"

Bottom line: When the opportunity is there, use your expertise to help customers save some money and they'll be grateful.

Do you have other tips from your experience with customers? Share them below.

recent PwC report

In recent times, U.S. adults’ trust in their fellow people is at an all-time low. According to the 2014 General Survey by the National Opinion Research Center, only 30\% of Americans today agreed that people could be trusted, down from 46\% in 1972. According to the same survey, trust in people has been on a constant downward slope since 1989. The negative consequences from this decline are plenty but the most damaging may bethe growthof the "what's mine is mine" mindset.

Is technology to blame?

There are many studies (such as this and this ) out there that correlate technology growth and social interaction decline. The anonymity provided by the internet and human disconnect by mobile devices mean that people are losing trust in others and giving them less time. When it comes to getting help and information outside of your normal circle of trust, it can be hard to tell who to rely on and what information is fully accurate.

But despite all of this, the very same technology growth has ushered in a wave of sharing economy companies looking to help people trust each other again. Today, we are hopping into strangers’ cars (Lyft, Uber, Sidecar, Curb), staying at strangers’ homes (Airbnb, Homestay, VRBO), inviting strangers to help with errands (Thumbtack, TaskRabbit, Homejoy), and getting information about personal questions from strangers (JustAnswer, Quora). For sharing economy companies, building trust also makes business sense. A estimates that the five main sharing economy sectors (peer-to-peer lending, online staffing, home sharing, car sharing and video/music sharing) generate $15bn in global revenues, and overall potential value of the sharing economy could reach $335bn by 2025.

The sharing economy’s approach to building trust

Traditional peer-to-peer companies like eBay and Amazon developed massive marketplaces connecting those in need and those who can provide, and leveraging anonymity in the early days of e-commerce. Sharing economy companies, in contrast, are humanizing e-commerce marketplaces by removing the anonymity. Most sharing economy companies today require a form of identity verification (usually a social media account) and ask users to complete profiles with detailed personal information. The idea is the more you know about the person with whom you’re interacting, the more likely you are to behave and trust that person.

Sharing economy companies also act as guarantors of trust. You get into a stranger’s car because you know Uber screens every driver and insures every ride. You rent out your home to strangers because you know Airbnb provides insurance for damages and verifies every renter. Where trust in people is an important ingredient in the sharing economy recipe, it’s easier to trust when there are infrastructures in place to ensure quality and protection.

How JustAnswer leverages trust in professional services

These ideas have become values for companies like JustAnswer, a platform for people to get answers from verified professionals, or Experts. When JustAnswer started, Founder and CEO Andy Kurtzig envisioned a B2C platform that would be “eBay for professional services.” If you wantedto talk to a health professional, you would be connected to one.

As JustAnswer grew organically, it found the “eBay for X” model to betoo systematic. Customers expected verified trustworthy Expertsand demanded more categories. JustAnswer’s challenges were to facilitate Expert quality across all categories and guarantee customer happiness.

To face these challenges, JustAnswer evolved its values and expanded its role. Expert profiles now havea photo, location, certifications, experiences, work history, and expertise categories. Experts’ ratings are also available for customers to view. Susan, a JustAnswer customer, notes, “I appreciate doing business on the internet with people that show they are trustworthy.” When you ask a medical question, you’re getting a verified and licensed doctor, many of whom haveover 15 years of practice experience. Experts are expected to provide fast and accurate information, listen to customers’ needs, and be empathetic. Customers are encouraged to converse with Experts until they are satisfied with the answer. When customers are asked why they chose JustAnswer versus online search, most gave some version of: “I like talking to someone who I know is an expert in the field.”

Susan uses JustAnswer to get second opinions and understand diagnoses.

While JustAnswer largely leaves Experts and customers to their own accord, it developed infrastructure to maximize Expert quality and customer happiness. New Experts are required to go through a comprehensive 8-step verification process that includes credential verification, subject matter test and peer-to-peer reviews. JustAnswer also has a Prove It or Lose It policy which allows Experts to challenge other Experts’ credentials. If customers are not happy with their experience, JustAnswer has a money-back policy called The JustAnswer Promise that simply states, “If you’re not happy, we will give your money back.” JustAnswer, like many sharing economy companies, does all of this in order to maximize the facilitation of the interpersonal connection between providers and customers.

Future of trust and the sharing economy

Whether it’s getting information from trusted Experts or meeting someone to give them the keys to your home, the sharing economy has and will continue to transform how we interact in our everyday lives. What's mine can now be yours and vice versa. Imagine this: You start your day with an Uber ride to your favorite coffee shop, order lunch delivered from Sprig, let someone borrow your car for the afternoon through Getaround, have your laundry picked up by Rinse, use your computer expertise to answer some questions onJustAnswer, andend the day with a massage in the comfort of your home from Zeel. That’s a new group of strangersyou’ve instantly trusted and shared with on different levels thanks to the sharing economy.

Do you think the Sharing Economy is helping to rebuild trust? Share your comments below.

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Hi Experts,

Starting on Thursday 6/11, we will run a week-long test of the ProfessionalQuestion List (PQL). Just ONE list to find and lock questions.

Note that this is a test of the question list and NOT PQA.

What is PQL?

The Professional Question List (PQL) is where Experts find and lock customer questions. You can access it by clicking on the "Find Questions" link when logged in or by going to http://professional.justanswer.com.

Why are we doing this?

If you've been on the site for some time, you may have noticed that we have several question lists. This causes inconsistencies with load time and question updates. It also minimizes our ability to provide the best possible support when we have to troubleshoot issues for multiple lists.

While we understand that some of you have a list preference, we invite you to test and help us assess the performance of the PQL.

What you need to know

The test will start on Thursday 6/11and will last one week. We willnotify you when the test ends.

The PQL is available for all Experts to start using now. Feel free to access the PQL by visiting http://professional.justanswer.com and let us know if you have any questions or issues.

During the test, you will have the option to lock and respond to questions via PQA or Legacy Q&A.

This week

Tuesday 6/9: We will send out Find Questions resources such as overview, tutorials and FAQs.

Wednesday 6/10:Start using the Find Questions interface today and let us know if you have any questions or issues. If you do, submit a ticket and the Expert Ops team will be on-hand to help.

Thursday 6/11: Start of Find Questions test.

If you have any questions, .

Customers are waiting for your call

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Hi Experts,

We would like to introduceAuto-Phone Call Offer, a new feature that will get you:

An automatic 5-star rating

Payout on the original question

Payout on the additional service

Talk about a win-win-win situation! We estimate that Auto-Phone Call Offer has the potential to generate over $65,000 per month, available for the Expert community to earn.

We are committed to working side-by-side with you on this. Starting on Friday 6/19, we want to run a test of Auto-Phone Call Offer and get your feedback.

What is Auto-Phone Call Offer?

Still have questions? Check out our FAQ for Auto-Phone Call Offer.

Why are we doing this?

We want to test customer demand for phone calls and Expert bandwidth to fulfill requests.

Phone call is overwhelmingly the most requested and accepted additional service on JustAnswer.

In categories such as Legal, Home Improvement, Cars and Business, phone call accounts for over 50\% of offered additional services.

Just as important is JustAnswer's need to innovate, grow and succeed. According to the recent MaryMeeker's "InternetTrends" for 2015, there are opportunities for on-demand services that provide instant gratification. Think of the ease and speed of requesting a taxi from your phone or getting an online order the next day. With JustAnswer, customers find value in maximizing Experts' know-how and taking their questions beyond text.This test is also about laying the foundation for JustAnswer to innovate and expand on services that will meet (and exceed) customer expectations.

What you need to know

The test will start on Friday6/19and will last approximately twoweeks. We willnotify you when the test ends.

During the test, you will have the option to accept or decline phone call requests.

If you're unable to fulfill a phone call request, the question goes back to Q&A format and you can resume your conversation. You will not lose the question if you decline the phone call request.

If you have any questions, .

Cheers,

JustAnswer Expert Operations

Hi Experts,

Thank you for your participation during the Find Questions Test. The feedback we received was overwhelmingly positive. We asked that you let us know if you encountered any issues and want to thankthose of you that sent us constructive feedback.

Starting tomorrow6/18, we want to continue running the Find Questions Test, but with a small tweak. We will remove the "Lock" link in Find Questions. HOWEVER, you will still be able to switch over to Legacy Q&A if you experience any issues with PQA.

What is Find Questions?

click here to contact us

Find Questions, or PQL, is where Experts find and lock customer questions. You can access it by clicking on the "Find Questions" link when logged in or by going to http://professional.justanswer.com. Want to know more? Click here for an overview of Find Questions.

Why are we doing this?

If you've been on the site for some time, you may have noticed that we have several question lists. This causes inconsistencies with load time and question updates. It also minimizes our ability to provide the best possible support when we have to troubleshoot issues for multiple lists.

For this test, we want to continue our performance assessment of Find Questions.

What you need to know

The test continuestomorrow 6/18. We willnotify you when the test ends.

During the test, you will only see the option to lock and respond to questions via PQA.

From PQA, you will have the option to switch to Legacy Q&A if you experience issues that prevent you from using PQA.

Note that this is a test of the question list andNOTPQA.

If you have any questions, .

What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you hear the word “audit?” You might picture a bunch of accountants crunching numbers or maybe a few outsiders telling you what you’re doing wrong. Office Space, anyone? For JustAnswer, it’s an opportunity for us to help the Expert community deliver on our brand values.

So surprise! A few months ago, we conducteda quality audit of the Expert community in order to evaluate Expert quality and identify areas for improvement. How did we do this? We reviewed and evaluated over 3,000 randomly selected questions from over 200 high-volume Experts.

We're excited to share some key takeaways with you and we invitedsome of the top Experts to share insights on what make them great.

The Field

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What did we evaluate?

Below are some of the qualitieswe evaluated. These are qualities that customers value most. Note thatwe did NOT evaluate the accuracy of your responses.

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Best and worst

After reviewing over 3,000 questions, we were able to identifyqualitiesExperts excelat and qualities that could use some improvement.

We are thrill to find out that Experts scored best atshowing empathy and care. Compassion, empathy and care have always been our core values because they help build trust between customer and Experts. We asked a few Experts to share why it's important to demonstrate compassion with customers.

"Many customers who ask questions are also experiencing stress and anxiety. Acknowledgement of their emotions can be quite powerful, I think, in creating a bond between the customer and expert," says Deborah, Veterinary Expert.

Jess, Tech Expert, adds "I believe that when you successfully show the customer that you care, it will build up trust.It'shelpful to look from the customer's perspective and whenever possible, relate their problems to your own experience."

Jane, Pet Expert, shares, "I pay attention to the vocabulary such as frustrated, patient, and how much time the customer has spent on the current problem."

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On the flip side, Experts could use some help with their profile photos. "Ahigh quality profile picture is more important than one might think," says Gerald, Law Expert. "People want to connect with whoever they are dealing with and a good quality head shot helps build that connection."

Your profile photo is one of the most important elements of your JustAnswer presence. When you respond to customers, one of the first things they see, even before your response, is your profile photo. Therefore, a good profile photo makes a good first impression and initiates trust.

What makes a good profile photo? Deborah offers this, "For me, what constitutes a "good profile photo" is one which should communicate professionalism, trustworthiness, experience, friendliness, and approachability."

If you'd like to get some feedback on your profile photo, we recommend using PhotoFeeler.

Top Experts

This audit was manual yet rewarding exercise that allowed us to evaluate Experts on a qualitative level. While all of the Experts that we evaluated are already top-ranked based on question volume, our auditors sized up their favorite Experts based on the qualities listed above.

Join us in congratulating the following Experts for topping the charts.

Click to enlarge

Expert Insights

We asked some of the top Experts, according the quality audit, to share their insights on the different qualities that we evaluated. Here's what they had to say.

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Click here to download the full infographic of the 2015 quality audit.

Got some insights or tips of your own? Share it with us below.

We're big fans of sharks here at JustAnswer. So of course, we're excited about Shark Week.

With sharks on our minds, we thought about the Expert community andhowsharks and Experts share VERY similar qualities. In honor of Shark Week, here are 8 ways we think Experts are justlikesharks.

1. Experts are a very social bunch and according to a study by UK scientists, so are sharks.

2. Experts and sharks are both fast and efficient. The former at responding to questions and the latter at swimming.

3. There are 400 species of sharks. There are over 600 categories on JustAnswer.

4. Sharks have a complex social structure and found to exhibit teamwork. Experts are on JustAnswer to help and offer encouragement.

5. Like some Experts, certain species of sharks are more active at night.

6. Like Experts, sharks can seem intimidating and aggressive but most are not.

7. Like Experts, sharks are highly intelligent.

8. Sharks have a lateral line system that detects movements in the water. Experts have the expertise and experience to sense cues from customers.

How else are Experts similar to sharks? Share yours below!

Hi Experts,

With your help, we've been able to improve the PQA experience tremendously. We logged every issue reported by you and worked closely with the Development team to prioritize your most important issues. We also spent hours conducting one-on-one usability sessions with some of the most active Experts to learn about your workflow and understand your pain points.

We knowthere are still issues with PQA but thanks to you, we've been able to fix many of themsince the last PQA test in May:

PQA FAQs

'Customer requested you' icon: We've corrected the behavior of the ‘Customer requested you’ icon to act as intended.

Loading issue with PQA: PQA no longer hangs when locking a question.

Lock for second Expert in PQA: After the first Expert opts out of a question in PQA, a second Expert now able to lock the question.

Auto-switching questions in PQA: If an Expert responds within the first minute of lock, Lock Timer will no longer change questions in PQA.

Sharing private contact info: Experts and customers are now able to exchange private contact info in PQA without filter.

Agree alert: The Agree alert is now showing in PQA.

Question values in PQA: A fix is now in place to show the correct question values in PQA.

Customer opt out issue in PQA: We fixed a defect in PQA when Expert was getting errors when sending response after customer opted out and requested new expert.

Lock timer issue in PQA: We fixed an issue in PQA where lock timer starts with less time than intended.

Inconsistent lock timer in PQA: The lock timer in PQA was showing inconsistent lock times. This issue has been fixed.

Priority Question issue in PQA: We fixed an issue in PQA when Priority Questions were interrupting current questions.

Privacy filtering issue in PQA: We corrected some privacy filtering issue on the Question subject in PQL.

Alert flag in PQA: The alert flag in PQA is now shown next to Expert responses.

Priority Question restrictions: Removed restrictions for Expert when replying to non-priority question when a priority question comes in.

Second Expert response in PQA: Fixed a bug in PQA where a second Expert can answer a question when a customer rated the first Expert negatively and request to change Expert.

Copy/Paste from Word to PQA: Experts should now be able to copy and paste from Microsoft Word to PQA without formatting issues.

Auto-relock while typing in PQA: We implemented a feature that would re-lock a question automatically if Expert is typing and Lock timer has 30 seconds left.

Question value on PQA: the question value displayed on PQA wasn't updating when admin adjusted the question value from the admin site. It was updating in PQL, but not PQA. Now it's updating properly in both tools.

No more TBB: Time-Based Billing is turned off.

PQA Auto-lock: Fixed a bug where the auto re-lock was working in the background even though an Expert is locked and working in another question. Due to that background Lock, Expert would be locked out of the current question when the Lock on another question is re-instated.

PQA loading issue for dual category questions: If the question was dual categorized and the Expert was not admitted to one of the categories, the question would not load for that Expert. This fix allows double-cat questions to load properly for Experts.

Auto-save in PQA text box: The text box in PQA now auto-saves so Experts will keep any text typed into the box.

PQA on mobile: The PQA now re-sizes on mobile devices so Experts could respond to questions. Note that this does not mean PQA is now optimized for mobile, rather this fix makes it easier for Experts to view and respond to questions on mobile.

PQA Lock Timer: Questions opened in PQA will show the correct initial lock timer.

PQA Null Defect: A fix is now in place for some questions with null question ID. This used to cause entire Expert's response to disappear.

Remove from list: The "Remove from list" link in PQA was causing loading issues for some Experts. The link now releases the lock on the question.

Dual-catted questions: Dual-catted questions now have correct payout value in cases when Expert has non-standard payout rate.

"More" button in PQA: Fixed issue with "More" button for optional details, which appears if customer provides additional information that doesn't fit in the allocated area at the top of PQA.

Our team has been running PQA tests of our own but to quote the soulfulMarvin Gaye, "ain't nothing like the real thing." Once again, we need your help to test PQA and get real usage data.Usage data is one of the most important feedback mechanisms we look at to measure stress on our servers and understand how PQA is being used in the real world.

Starting on Monday July 20th, we will start a week-long test of PQA. For most of you, not much will change because you've already been using PQA. With this test, we want to try something different.

What you need to know

Start using PQA today and share your questions with us.

Your questions may already have been answeredin the PQA Overview and, so please take a look at the content.

We will do our best to respond to all questions and if necessary, troubleshoot issues you may have prior to the start of the test.

On Monday 7/20, you will only have the option to open and respond to questions in PQA. There will be no option to switch to Legacy Q&A.

The test will run until Monday, 7/27.