A number of students at the University of Wisconsin are finding comfort during these tough economic times in employment opportunities offered by the human texting search engine KGB.
KGB is a privately-owned corporation based in New York that is known as the world’s largest enhanced information service, according to KGB spokesperson Adam Miller.
A handful of students at UW are employed by KGB as “special agents,” whose purpose is to provide immediate answers to those who text KGB with a question. Miller said college students are not the only ones who have become involved in seeking employment from KGB.
“There are thousands of agents around the country,” Miller said. “College students, housewives, military spouses, basically anyone looking to make extra money.”
College students, however, are the most receptive due to the country’s economic status and KGB’s flexible work schedule, Miller said.
“If you went to every college campus, you could find students working for KGB,” Miller said.
The company launched its text answer service in January 2009 stemming from its “Ask Us Anything” service, which was a huge success in the United Kingdom, according to Miller.
KGB’s text service provides answers to people within minutes of receiving the question at a cost of 99 cents per text. Miller said the questions range from anything sports-related or trivial to locations of restaurants for people who are unfamiliar with an area.
“We answer over 100,000 texts a day,” Miller said. “Most commonly questions come from people who are traveling.”
Callie Paur, a UW sophomore, and Franziska Hasselhof, a UW senior, are both employed by KGB to answer these types of questions. Hasselhof said she found out about the opportunity from a friend of hers and inquired about it on KGB’s website.
Both Hasselhof and Paur said once they were on the site, they were instructed to answer some questions and give their availability. They then said once considered for the job, they went through online training that shows how to properly search for answers and what types of questions can and cannot be answered.
Next, the pair said they went through a two-week period where they were shadowed before they where officially appointed as “special agents.”
Employees receive 10 cents for every question they answer during the time they work, Miller said.
Depending on their ability to answer questions, new employees usually start out making a dollar an hour, and once they get comfortable with the process, this can move up to five or six dollars an hour, Paur said.
Both Paur and Hasselhof say that working for KGB is informative and fun at the same time.
“I once got a question asking was Michael Jackson dead, and I got it three days before it was reported that he had died,” Paur said. “It was really weird.”
Aside from the strange questions and sometimes inappropriate texts the two students get during their night shifts, both agree working for KGB was a great choice.
“It’s nice because you can do it at your own pace in your own environment,” Paur said. “It’s the most flexible, fun job you’ll ever have.”