How the Help Board works

Get unstuck fast. Post a QA problem, get free answers in the discussion thread, or book a paid 1:1 screen-sharing session with an expert. Your card is only charged when you accept an expert’s offer.

For people seeking help (Mentees)

1. Post a help request.
   Go to the Help Board and click “Post a request.” Describe the problem, choose 30 or 60 minutes, and set your offer. Suggested rates are $50 for 30 min and $75 for 60 min, but you can offer any amount. You’ll be redirected to Stripe Checkout, where your card is authorized for the total — the money is held, not charged.
2. Add urgency (optional).
   If you need help fast, mark the request as urgent. This adds a flat $15 bonus to your offer to attract experts, with an optional time window (1, 2, or 4 hours). If no one claims your request within that window, the $15 bonus simply drops off and your request stays open at the base price.
3. Get free answers in the thread.
   Anyone who’s logged in can ask questions and post answers in your request’s discussion thread — completely free. Often that’s all you need. You can “Like” helpful answers to give the answerer reputation points.
4. Review expert claims.
   When an expert claims your request, you’ll see their profile, reputation, and a proposed start time. Accept or decline. Your card is charged only when you accept — until then, the authorization can be released at any time.
5. Join the session.
   Once you accept a claim, a session is created with the expert’s video link (Google Meet, Zoom, or Discord). Click “Join session” at the scheduled time.
6. Confirm completion.
   After the session, click “Mark as complete.” The expert’s payout (85% of the price) is sent automatically to their connected Stripe account. If you don’t take any action, the session auto-confirms 24 hours after the scheduled end time.
7. Raise a dispute (if needed).
   If the session didn’t happen, or you’re unsatisfied, you can raise a dispute within 24 hours of the session end time. An admin will review and resolve it.

For experts (Mentors)

1. Set up your expert profile.
   In your profile, fill out the Mentor Settings section: bio, expertise tags, years of experience, your video meeting link, and the languages you can work in. Toggle yourself to “Available.”
2. Connect Stripe for payouts.
   Click “Connect with Stripe” in your mentor settings to set up a Stripe Express account. Payouts go there automatically — no invoices, no waiting on an admin.
3. Browse the Help Board.
   Visit the Help Board to see open requests. You can sort by newest, highest offer, or most urgent. Ask clarifying questions in the discussion thread — answering is free and earns reputation when your answers get liked.
4. Claim a request.
   Click “I can help” and write a brief message explaining your relevant experience. Optionally propose a start time. The mentee will accept or decline.
5. Run the session.
   At the scheduled time, the mentee joins your video link. Help them solve their problem within the booked time.
6. Get paid automatically.
   After the mentee confirms (or 24 hours pass), the session is marked complete and your payout — 85% of the session price (the platform keeps 15%) — is sent automatically to your connected Stripe account.

Pricing & Fees

• Asking and answering in threads is free. Any logged-in user can join the discussion on any request — no payment, no expert profile needed.
• Mentee pays: The offered amount (set by the mentee, suggested $50/30min or $75/60min). The card is authorized when the request is posted and charged only when a claim is accepted.
• Platform fee: 15% of the session price, deducted from the expert’s payout. Experts keep 85%.
• Urgency bonus: Flat $15, with an optional expiry window — if no one claims in time, the bonus drops off and the request stays open at the base price.
• Currency: All transactions are in USD.

Request expiry

• Open requests expire after 7 days if no expert claim is accepted.
• When a request expires, the Stripe authorization on your card is released automatically — you are never charged for an expired request.

Cancellations, Refunds & No-shows

• Cancel before accepting a claim: Free. The card authorization is released — nothing is ever charged.
• Cancel after accepting a claim: A flat 20% cancellation fee applies; the remaining 80% is refunded to your card.
• Expert no-show: You get a 100% refund.
• Mentee no-show: The expert receives 50% of the price (minus the 15% platform fee on that share); the other 50% is refunded to you.
• Dispute within 24 hours: Admin reviews and may refund fully, partially, or rule in the expert’s favor.
• After 24 hours: Session auto-confirms. The expert is paid. No further disputes.

Reputation & Trust

Both mentees and mentors earn reputation points for successful interactions:

Reputation tiers

Important rules

• Anyone can answer questions on the board for free. Mentees can “Like” helpful answers to boost the answerer’s reputation.
• You can have at most 3 open requests at a time.
• Experts need a mentor profile (and a connected Stripe account) to claim requests. Anyone can ask questions in the discussion thread.
• Expert time is paid even if the mentee is not fully satisfied, unless a dispute is raised and resolved in the mentee’s favor.
• All sessions happen via the expert’s external video link (Google Meet, Zoom, or Discord). The platform does not host calls.