As Facebook continues to take over the web in a variety of other ways, the social network is preparing to launch a new Q&A feature.
"We think it will be as exciting as Facebook Photos and Facebook Events, but we need your help to make it great," Facebook says.
The company is inviting beta testers to ask questions and provide answers about their favorite topics. "Your expert writing will be seen by tens of millions of people — including job recruiters," the company says on the beta test application page. "And we’ll bring our best beta testers out to California to tour Facebook headquarters and meet the team."
Beta testers are required to submit three questions and their respective answers. Facebook asks that applicants choose "provocative questions" and that they write about things they know, providing "detailed, articulate answers."
A few sample questions they include are:
– How can I get over my fear of flying?
– What are some fun family activities to do with two small children on the weekend.
– What caused the U.S. stock market to crash in 2009?
Q&A services have been around for a long time, but the space has been picking up a lot of steam lately, particularly with its relationship to local businesses, and consumers using their mobile devices to find out information about those businesses on the fly.
The sheer number of Facebook users would give this product an advantage over other competing Q&A sites. The Open Graph, tying Facebook into a huge chunk of the web may contribute significantly to the product’s success as well.
There’s no telling how long the beta testing will last, but I’m guessing there will be no shortage of applicants. It will be interesting to see how strict Facebook is with content quality.