Often, the only people who can answer your business-related questions are other people in your business. Ben Parr to the rescue. He's the owner of Mashable.com, a popular online news source for social and digital media, and as such, has small business questions all the time. However, he frequently knows where to turn to find the answers he needs, and shares that information in a recent article, "5 Online Tools for Answering Your Small Business Questions." While he's quick to stress that these five online tools aren't the only places where startup IT companies can get answers fast, he specifically recommends these because they're easy to use. Plus, the users are typically friendly and ready to help each other. 1. Quora: Perhaps the most popular Q&A site for extreme technological geeks, Quora is the place Parr and thousands of others turn to daily to find detailed answers to questions on virtually every aspect of running a small business. Some of the most famous names in SEO make their presence known here and regularly share information.2. OnstartupsAnswers: On Startups is a website that is exactly what the name says - an extensive source of information and useable tools that the standard business owner can take to hear and use immediately. The site was founded (and is still operated) by one Dharmesh Shah, a successful software entrepreneur. He began the site when he realized that he needed answers of a variety of entrepreneurial matters. The blog-style pages of the site are packed with information, and the Answers page is specifically designed for contributor to ask and answer questions of other members. 3. The Hacker News Network: Originally begun in 1999 to provide a vehicle of truth for the much maligned "hacker" community, Hacker News quickly became the source of believable information for a large portion of the computer community. After shutting down for several years, the originators of the site have returned, citing the overwhelming amount of misinformation now being accepted as truth in the IT world. 4. Twitter: with 75 million subscribers and counting, the number of technological business owners on Twitter is staggering. Pick your friends by their knowledge and this could be a great place to get questions answer ASAP. 5. OPEN Forum: If you have an American Express Card, no doubt you've seen the ads in your monthly bill for the OPEN network. It's American Express's free websites for small business owners. You don't have to be a card member to access the huge trove of information available, or to chat with some of the most imaginative minds in your profession. Parr recommends that you start here - and if you have a favorite place to find quick answers to problems, he encourages sharing this information at Mashable.com.
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Running a startup business has its own set of challenges that only other small business owners can really understand. And when you combine the particular demands of an IT or web-based business into the mix, the questions can be frequent and sometimes overwhelming.
Jim Lamont is a business writer who specializes in answering small business-related questions for the small business owner.
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