Name: Evisors
Quick Pitch: Evisors is a marketplace for expert advice.
Genius Idea: Making it easy for anyone to connect with an expert regardless of their networking skills.
Anybody who has ever worked an alumni directory or searched for a job understands the power of expert advice. But as powerful as the right advice can be, soliciting it is a challenge for those who lack natural networking prowess.
Evisors cuts out the introduction dance involved in soliciting expert advice and replaces it with a marketplace.
Experts set their own hourly rates, ranging from $75-$600 per hour, for which they are willing to take phone c alls or answer questions by email. Customers browse experts’ work history and educational backgrounds to determine who will best be able to help them. If they find someone who fits the bill, they can sign up for an open time slot in said expert’s schedule. Evisors then charges them a fixed percentage of the consultation in exchange for coordinating the meeting.
To find experts for the site’s September beta launch, Evisor’s four co-founders relied on their own networks. Three of them are recent Harvard Business School graduates, and one is a Wharton School of Business graduate. CEO Fredrik Maro is a veteran of prestigious consulting firm McKinsey. Between the team’s connections, they had no problem signing the first 250 experts.
The current directory of about 600 experts looks a bit like an exclusive LinkedIn. Most advisors were referred to Evisors by other experts on the site, but there is also a selective vetting process that someti mes includes an...
