Final Thoughts on Johnny27

I first wrote about Johnny27 a few days ago. My beta account has come to an end and I'd like to offer up my final thoughts.

First, I'll rehash that I think it's a great idea and a good service. I found it to be entertaining and, sometimes, helpful. If you're on the road and have a question that requires more than a simple query in Google, it's worth it.

At $2 a pop, though, I question how much use the service will actually get. It's hard for me to justify, in a world full of free information, paying for answers to my questions. It's just not something I'm used to. I would pay $10 or $15 per month, however, for unlimited use.

The fact is, at $2 per question, I probably won't use Johnny27 often or at all. And when I don't often use a service I tend to forget about it all together. At $10 per month they may not be making $2 per question off me (it would probably pan out to about $1), but in my book $10 is better than $0. Of course, I don't know what their operating costs look like.

There were a few times when I was given a URL. For example, I asked if the Blu-Ray DVD player in the PS3 was comparable in quality to a stand-alone Blu-Ray player. They said yes and to check out www.product4me.com to do other product comparisons. Cool site. I hope Johnny27 got paid for that endorsement. If they didn't, they're missing an opportunity.

An unbiased answer should always come first, but what's wrong with some paid endorsement? Q: "Where can I find the best creme brule in the city?" A: "Le Cirque made the creme brule famous, try that. Check out our sponsor, MenuPages.com, for other good eats."

Johnny27 Answers All of My Questions

I volunteered to beta test a new text message-based concept called Johnny27 late last week. I've been using it all weekend and I have to say, I'm hooked. Basically you text a question to 272727, a real person researches your question, they text you an answer back and $1.99 is tacked onto your cell phone bill.

I've got a 10 day free trial as a beta tester, so I'm able to avoid the $2/question for the time being. The idea behind the beta is to not only load test the service, but also try to ask compelling questions that'll stump their employees. Do you have any questions you'd like to me try out on them?

I found the service to be great for drunken debates at the bar, but where I really found value was when I tried to buy my girlfriend a specific gift on Amazon, found out it wouldn't ship until Jan and found myself up a creek with no gift. No worries, I asked Johnny27 where I could find said item in stock and they pulled through!

A few notes / complaints: I wish questions were answered a little more quickly. I understand that because it's a person and some research is involved that there won't be immediate results. But, frankly, I'm used to extremely fast turnarounds when it comes to texting.

Second, I'd love to see a flat-fee version of the service. Once my beta period is up I'll be using the service much less often simply because I'm not good at judging how many times, during a month, I've been hit up for $2. Every time I have a question, I'll be stuck worrying about how many times I've used the service already. And, frankly, I'll end up using it less or not at all.