Facebook launches Facebook Questions in beta

n a move probably aimed at Linkedin Questions Facebook today launched a beta version of Facebook Questions. usually you can ask questions of your network using your wall and that appears in the ffed of anyone who is connected with you unless they have chosen to hide you :) ( Yes that has happened to me) Now this feature gives you a chance to search for, answer or ask for help from the Facebook community outside of your network if they chose to look for the topic.

One added feature i found interesting off the bat is the ability to add a poll to your question. That would be useful inc ase you don't want to answer in words and still want to participate.

Here is what Facebook has to say on their blog:

Millions of people ask their friends questions on Facebook every day. What new music should I listen to? Where's the best sushi place in town? How do I learn to play the piano?
Today we're introducing Facebook Questions, a beta product that lets you pose questions like these to the Facebook community. With this new application, you can get a broader set of answers and learn valuable information from people knowledgeable on a range of topics.
Since we like to develop products carefully over time with your help, Facebook Questions is available to a limited number of people right now, and we'll be developing it rapidly based on their feedback. We're aiming to bring this product to all of you as quickly as we can.

Ask Anything, Get Quality Answers

Facebook Questions helps you tap into the collective knowledge of the more than 500 million people on Facebook. For example, if you're vacationing in Costa Rica and want to know the best places to surf, you can use Facebook Questions to get answers from nearby surfing enthusiasts. Because questions will also appear to your friends and their friends, you'll receive answers that are more personalized to you.
To ask a question to the community, just click the "Ask Question" button at the top of the homepage. You can also ask questions about your friends from their profiles, similarly to how you would post on their Walls.

In conferences for small  business i advice experts to look for and anser questions and if they give good answers their validity as an expert increases and that in turn may lead to traffic back to their profile and their business What do you think of this new feature?

Shashi Bellamkonda is Director - Social Media & Social Media Swami of Network Solutions a company that works together to help small business succeed online with web hosting, do-it-yourself website builder software, online marketing tools and domain names. VisitShashi Bellamkonda's blog. Shashi is a regular contributor to the DC Examiner and Tech Cocktail. This article contains the opinions and observations of the author and may not necessarily reflect those of Network Solutions or its clients or partners.

First published in my DC Social Media Examiner column.