Tips for Success for New Cha Cha Guides

You've probably heard about Cha Cha already. It is the new search engine that employs Internet savvy folks to serve as guides. These guides help "Info Seekers" easily access online information during a live search session. And, guide results are also saved in the Cha Cha search engine to help build a better search tool for Info Seekers who do not need the help of live guide support. To see how both search methods work, perform a trial search at Cha Cha. As a Cha Cha guide you have satisfaction of knowing that you are able to help others in a small way. And, a little extra income doesn't hurt either. You can sign up to become a guide at Cha Cha's guide signup page.

As a new Cha Cha guide you will be required to go through a training period before you can lead live searches. During this training period you will have the rank of "Apprentice". Training sessions will be presented by guides who have already achieved "Master" rank posing as Info Seekers. These sessions will be based upon one of the three keywords that you choose to be your assigned keywords. Choosing your keywords is a very important step for a new guide. Your promotions as a guide will be based on your keyword's level. A guide with a keyword at level "Pro" will be a "Pro" guide. Think carefully before commiting to a keyword.

Choosing your Keywords:

To choose your keywords you will use the "Manage Keywords" link on your profile page. I recommend browsing for your keyword rather than using the search feature. By browsing you are more aware of the categorization of your keyword. The categorization of your keyword is important to remember for training and live searches. So, when you choose your keywords, make a note about the categorization.

For example, let's say you want one of your keywords to be "video games". You would first choose the category "Games" and then the sub-category "Video Games". This will present you with a rather substantial list of keywords. To narrow this list you can apply a filter. Type in "video games" as your filter. Now the keyword list is significantly smaller and you can easily spot the "video games" keyword to add to your personal keyword list. After the keyword is added to your personal keyword list write down the word along with its categories: "Games--Video Games--video games" for future reference.

As a new guide it is especially important to keep your keywords broad rather than specific. The more wide-based your keyword the more searches it will cover. And, the more searches you can categorize under your keyword, the faster you will be promoted. The keyword "video games" will apply to more searches than the keyword "World of Warcraft".

Practice and Training:

After you have selected your three keywords, I recommend using the "Practice Guided Search" feature. This will allow you to learn your way around the Cha Cha guide application without feeling rushed. After you have practiced with the application you will start receiving training session alerts. During your training sessions make sure to categorize the search for your keyword so that you will get full credit for the search. Since promotions are based on searches performed under your keyword you will only be promoted after performing properly categorized searches. Feel free to ask your trainer for help in accurately categorizing your search. Please take the time to ask your trainer for tips as well. That is what they are there for.

Going Live:

After you have performed a number of training sessions (typically around 10) on your keyword you will receive an alert that you have been promoted to the "Pro" level. At this level you can lead live searches and will begin to earn money on these searches. At this point you can add more keywords to your profile. Live searches should still be categorized under your keywords if possible. But, sometimes you will accept a search that is not applicable to any of your keywords. In this case, make sure you choose an appropriate category for the search. And, remember you will get paid for searches that do not use your keyword, you just won't get promoted. Live searches performed on your keywords will help you get promoted to "Master" and even "Elite" guide levels faster. And, training will still be offered on your new keywords to help you get promoted as well.