Google Relying On People Power For 'Helpouts'

Nerval's Lobster writes "While Google built its highly profitable search business atop a complex mix of algorithms and machine learning, its latest initiative actually depends on people power: Helpouts, which allows users (for a fee) to video-chat with experts in particular fields. Google has rolled out the service with a few brands in place, such as One Medical and Weight Watchers, and promises that it will expand its portfolio of helpful brands and individuals over the next several months. Existing categories include Cooking, Art & Music, Computers & Electronics, Education & Careers, Fashion & Beauty, Fitness & Nutrition, Health, and Home & Garden. Some Helpouts charge nothing for their time; for example, the 'Cooking' section of the Website already features a handful of chefs willing to talk users through baking, broiling, slicing and dicing for free. A few vendors in the Computers & Electronics section, by contrast, charge $2 per minute or even $200 per Hangout session for advice on WordPress setup, Website design, and more. So why is Google doing this? There are plenty of Websites that already dispense advice, although most rely on the written word—Quora, for example, lets its users pose text-based questions and receive answers. There's also rising interest in Massive Open Online Courses, also known as MOOCs, in which thousands of people can sign online to learn about something new. In theory, Helpouts (if it's built out enough) could make Google a player in those markets, as well as specialized verticals such as language learning — and earn some healthy revenue in the process."

Comments

I give it a year

[Anonymous Coward]

One year.

Help me! I'm desperate.

[Impy the Impiuos Imp]

> Helpouts, where, for a fee, video chat with a live person who will help you solve your dilemma.

As usual, porn led the way.

Re:Welcome to the Future®!

[somersault]

Most of those categories already have good tutorials up on YouTube, etc. Plus I don't think this is an "early attempt", considering that automation has been happening for hundreds of years.

Google Answers reimagined

[slasho81]

Google Answers, which was closed seven years ago after four years of operation, is similar to this only with video.

Compared to Answers, Helpouts is far more expensive to the consumer, the providers are not certified for quality, and both consumer and provider need to be available for a live video chat. I give it four years.

Meanwhile, I'll use the much better advice I can get on YouTube for free, on my time, and in my underwear.

Re:Google Answers reimagined

[93 Escort Wagon]

Or maybe it's a riff on the old Amazon Mechanical Turk.

I got an invite from Google to participate in this, as I imagine a lot of folks here did. But it seemed like they were basically asking me to spend my time and effort mainly towards helping Google expand their brand...

ive been using this system for years.

[nimbius]

I often provide helpouts to people who dont know much about computer programming in exchange for little green slices of paper I collect. sometimes I trade this paper with other people so they can give me things like gas and food, and other helpouts.

Youtube vs. Helpouts is totally different

[brunes69]

A couple of points you are missing

- You don't need to be available for a live chat. You can book an appointment in advance, and it's all integrated with G+ and Google Calendar.

- Some things YouTube videos can help with. Some things, it can't. Try learning the guitar through only YouTube, you will quickly find that without that feedback from the instructor, you won't get very far. Helpouts will work great for the kinds of things people want live instruction for. Currently, if you want live instruction on Yoga or playing the flute, you need to find a local teacher and pay them. Now you can source this kind of live instruction online.

Google for a Helpout on using Google Helpout

[sl4shd0rk]

creates a divide by zero error in google's datacenter

Knowledge == Cash?

[toygeek]

I'm coming at this from two sides. From the first, I do technical support for a living, quite enjoy it, and on the side I fix computers at a low rate so that people can afford it. I'll even remote into machines for well under a dollar a minute. I'm also providing a service (not just knowledge). When it comes to the knowledge, I have stuff on my blog (http://tidbitsfortechs.com) that is free. I've always believed that knowledge is free, service costs, and so Google's Helpouts rub me the wrong way a bit.

On the other hand, there is some specialized knowledge that is worth money. The signal/noise ratio on the 'net these days is awful and there's a lot of junk to sort through because of self-proclaimed experts who try to share their "knowledge" with anyone who will listen so that they can feel important, when in reality they're an idiot. If I can spend a few bucks to talk to a real expert on a subject, their advice is worth every penny. But will the signal to noise ratio on Helpouts be any better than the Internet at large?

Now, mind you, I've taken my fair share of money for just knowledge- but that comes with a reputation, referrals, interviews, and the like. I don't think I'd be comfortable spending even a dollar a minute to talk to someone who is a self proclaimed expert (even as I am on some subjects) without references I can trust. Online reviews are proven to be flawed in general and I don't believe they are trustworthy in many cases. *cough*Amazon*cough*

So from my perspective, good luck Google Helpouts. You'll need it.

Re:Knowledge == Cash?

[swillden]

When it comes to the knowledge, I have stuff on my blog (http://tidbitsfortechs.com) that is free. I've always believed that knowledge is free, service costs, and so Google's Helpouts rub me the wrong way a bit.

What about the service of providing exactly the information I'm looking for, even when I don't really know what I need to know?

Publishing information on blogs, in books, etc., is great, but it may take me a lot of time to find what I'm looking for, or even to figure out how to look for it. On the other hand, if I can find a person that is knowledgeable in the area and get 30 minutes of their time, they can often save me many hours -- or days -- of research.

This is something that I do every day at work... I have access to all of the source code, so there are no questions about how the systems I work on function that I cannot answer with enough delving, and I'll know that I have the most accurate possible answer. There's also lots of design documentation if I want something that is less accurate but more concise. Yet, still, when I need to know how the FrobnizServer generates Whazzits, it's a much better use of my time to ask Bob, who is not only more accurate than the design docs (though less accurate than the code) and more concise than either, but also capable of understanding my goals and intelligently redirecting my enquiry as appropriate.

I see Helpouts as more analogous to "Give me an easy way to find and communicate with an expert to direct me to the knowledge I need" than to a collection of searchable blog posts.