I get all kinds of requests for surveys and interviews and I am afraid that in my new billable-hours mode of life, I have to turn most away.
This week alone, I’ve had two companies come to me asking to interview me on behalf of some unnamed client’s branding study. If there were a personal relationship involved, I might agree. But when I don’t know the client, my response is to tell them my hourly rate. They say nevermind.
What bothers me is that I have to turn away students doing surveys about blogging. I would love to help every one of them. But the problem is that they ask such huge, general, and bottomless questions: What impact has blogging had on politicis/society/life? Arrrrgh. Don’t get me started. No, really, don’t, or you’ll regret it.
My advice to companies trying to make money off the opinions of bloggers: Pay.
My advice to students: Try reading and quoting blogs — our opinions are all here anyway — or ask specific or at least surprising questions.
