Frequently Asked Questions

Betterfly helps people who want to learn, look and feel...

Betterfly helps people who want to learn, look and feel better find the people – not companies – who can help. To learn more about what we do, click here.

A Betterist is a person on Betterfly who can help someone...

A Betterist is a person on Betterfly who can help someone learn, look or feel better at something. A Betterist could be a local grandmaster who teaches chess, a hair stylist who works at your local salon, or a high school student who teaches geometry to seventh graders. Since there's no one word that describes all the different people who help others learn, look and feel better, we created our own.

The 1000+ ways to learn, look and feel better are all...

The 1000+ ways to learn, look and feel better are all services offered by people, and not businesses. Betterfly’s goal is to help you find the person who’s right for you. To make this easier, we want you to compare apples to apples – people to people. We find little utility in giving you search results with a mix of people and companies – how can you possibly compare one teacher with a company of 10? In addition, by excluding companies, we can give our users greater specificity in their search. Since no two people are alike, we can let you choose individual characteristics of people to make learning, looking and feeling better easier. Gone are the days of using Yelp to find the best hair salon, only to have the receptionist at the salon randomly put you with a stylist. With Betterfly, you know which person in a company is right for you.

No, even people who work for companies can be on...

No, even people who work for companies can be on Betterfly! Many of our Betterists offer their services under a company umbrella. Company owners should encourage their employees to join Betterfly – by increasing their employees' business, they increase their own business too!

It’s free, and anybody can become a Betterist, as long...

It’s free, and anybody can become a Betterist, as long as that person has a skill, talent or passion to help someone learn, look or feel better. Betterfly believes everyone can be a Betterist in something. Sign Up to start bettering others.

Betterfly’s users aren’t always looking for the best;...

Betterfly’s users aren’t always looking for the best; they are usually looking for the best fit for them. By having a diverse group of Betterists on our site, we provide users with a wider group of Betterists to choose from based on factors such as price, location, specialization and rating.

Never! Betterfly does not pre-populate its site with...

Never! Betterfly does not pre-populate its site with Betterists or ask Betterists to claim a profile that has already been made for them. All Betterists input their information voluntarily.

A Betteree is a person on Betterfly who wants to learn,...

A Betteree is a person on Betterfly who wants to learn, look and feel better.

Currently, Betterfly is only available in the United...

Currently, Betterfly is only available in the United States. If you have a U.S. zip code, you can register!

You can request to be added to the Betterist’s Client...

You can request to be added to the Betterist’s Client List by selecting “Add as Betterist” on the Actions button on the Betterist’s page. The Betterist is instructed to approve all requests from past clients and to reject all requests from people who aren’t past clients.

Betterfly should have automatically emailed you...

Betterfly should have automatically emailed you instructions for taking the next step. You should resubmit your request, providing any evidence you have to support your claim that you are a current or former client. If that doesn’t work, the email will give you instructions on how to submit the evidence to Betterfly. We will investigate and add you as a Client if we determine that you were indeed a client of the Betterist.

There's one sign up for everyone! At the top of the page...

There's one sign up for everyone! At the top of the page there is an orange Sign Up button. Fill out some basic information and welcome to Betterfly.

It’s free! There's no cost to be on the site and no...

It’s free! There's no cost to be on the site and no transaction fees once you’re on it.

We currently make money primarily from advertising....

We currently make money primarily from advertising. You’ll see advertisements on many of the pages, but we never advertise on the category pages that display the Betterists on our site. There are no premium listings or ways to be displayed higher on the list.

All Betterfly Users are both Betterists and Betterees....

All Betterfly Users are both Betterists and Betterees. After you sign up, you’ll be asked which one you want to be visible as. If you are joining the site just to better others or just to better yourself, you can indicate that. You can also pick both or neither. Your privacy settings will update immediately to reflect your choices. You can, of course, change these at any time by going to Privacy Settings. No matter how you choose to be visible, as a User, you’ll still have your own Betterist Page to create your world of helping others learn, look and feel better and your own Betteree Page to create your world of learning, looking and feeling better yourself. Even if you choose to make neither of these pages visible, you can still use the site – adding friends, clients, reviewing Betterists, scheduling appointments and finding Betterists.

No. Each User may only sign up once. As a User, you can...

No. Each User may only sign up once. As a User, you can take any actions on the site. You’re also given a Betterist Page and Betteree Page, each of which you can choose to make visible or not.

You can edit your Betterist Page by selecting one of the...

You can edit your Betterist Page by selecting one of the edit options. There are five main components of each Betterist Page -- information, blog, calendar, resources, and banner -- each with separate Edit pages. For newly created Betterist Pages, there's a Completeness Bar that can help you edit your Page basics.

Betterfly has more than 1,000 services that Betterists...

Betterfly has more than 1,000 services that Betterists can offer, in everything from Accordion to Zumba. Each of these services fit our criteria of helping others learn, look and feel better. Depending on the Betterist who's offering these services, he or she can specify the duration, audience, price, and type of service.

When you edit your profile information, you’ll see a...

When you edit your profile information, you’ll see a section to edit your services. Here you can select "Add a Service."

Betterfly wants to give its users who are looking for...

Betterfly wants to give its users who are looking for Betterists the ability to compare apples to apples. By having a pre-selected list of services, we are able to do a better job at that. Betterfly does give you the ability to personalize your service title, but it will be tagged to the underlying Betterfly Service from our list. We are far from perfect, though.

So if you think we are missing a service that you want to offer, suggest a service here. We'll do our best to try and get back to you within 72 hours.

Betterfly goes through an internal review process that...

Betterfly goes through an internal review process that includes many factors. The most important is whether the service has to do with learning, looking or feeling better. For example, we don’t have a babysitting service, but we do offer a service called Child Care, which is for people who want to learn how to take care of a child. Other factors include whether there is a similar service already on Betterfly and whether there is a market for the service in the U.S.

Your service and its details are now visible on the...

Your service and its details are now visible on the Information tab of your Betterist Page. Also, if your Betterist Page is set to "visible," Betterfly will display your service offering on the appropriate category pages so potential clients can find you. For example, if you’re teaching the service of Baseball Pitching, Betterfly will display this service on related category pages, such as Baseball and Sports.

There are more than 1,000 services which Betterists can...

There are more than 1,000 services which Betterists can offer. Betterists can only offer services, not categories. Since some of these services are related to each other, Betterfly created approximately 300 categories in order to easily group similar services, making searching easier for its users. Categories are organized in a tree structure, with the top of the tree being appropriately called “Everything Betterfly.” The category “Everything Betterfly” has the greatest number of services in it.

There are six levels of the tree structure and you can search through it here.

There are around 300 category pages on Betterfly – one...

There are around 300 category pages on Betterfly – one for each category. These are like 300 mini-homepages. The Yoga category page, for example, features the latest happenings in the 12 yoga-related Betterfly services. In addition, you can search for Yoga Betterists who offer these services, see their availability, and check out related resources. We'll soon be adding more features to these category pages.

Betterfly includes in its list of services Baseball...

Betterfly includes in its list of services Baseball Hitting, Baseball Pitching and Baseball, generally. Betterfly has created a category page called Baseball, which groups these three services together.

A user who is interested in looking for a Baseball coach can go to the Baseball category page and see all of the Betterists who offer at least one of those four services. If the user is only looking for baseball pitching instruction, he or she can narrow the search by only including that service.

Once you select the Edit Banner link on the top right of...

Once you select the Edit Banner link on the top right of your current banner, you’ll be taken to the Edit Banner page. Here, you can click the text to change it. Use the dropdown menus to change the font and color too. Betterfly's made over 100 banners for you to choose from. Click on the one you like and it will save automatically. If you don’t see any you like, we encourage you to upload your own.

To upload your own banner, you must go to the Edit Banner...

To upload your own banner, you must go to the Edit Banner page of your Betterist Page. The banner you are uploading must be 953 x 170 pixels. You must have permission to use any images you upload. Upload by selecting the "Chose File" button. Once you’ve done that, an "Upload Selected File" button will appear. You can click that to upload your banner. Once it’s uploaded, it will appear in its own section of the page entitled "Uploaded Banners."

In your calendar preferences, Betterfly allows you to set...

In your calendar preferences, Betterfly allows you to set preferences for letting people book your appointments. You can, for example, not allow people to book directly online, but instead message you first. A better option may be to require online bookings for everyone. Then, when someone books you online, you’ll immediately be notified by email. You can then contact that person directly and, if necessary, cancel the appointment if you don’t want that person as a client, for whatever reason.

No. Only the reviews of Users who’ve been verified by...

No. Only the reviews of Users who’ve been verified by their Betterists as Clients will be posted. Once verified and added to a Betterist’s Client List, Clients will be able to write a review under their own name or anonymously.

To encourage honest reviews, Betterfly allows verified...

To encourage honest reviews, Betterfly allows verified Clients of a Betterist to post reviews either under their own name or anonymously. The anonymous reviews are, in essence, verified anonymous reviews. Because Betterfly allows a Betterist’s Clients to post anonymously, while still ensuring the reviewer is an actual Client, reviews on Betterfly are more trusted and accepted.

No. Actually, we won’t let your anonymous review be...

No. Actually, we won’t let your anonymous review be posted. Since all posted reviews have to be from people on a Betterist’s Client List, it will be obvious that you authored that anonymous review. You can either write a review under your own name, or if you still want to write anonymously, Betterfly will accept the review but not actually post it until we think it is less obvious who the anonymous review came from.

There may be a couple reasons; you should have gotten an...

There may be a couple reasons; you should have gotten an email explaining more. First, you may not be a verified Client yet. Users not yet on a Betterist’s Client List cannot have their reviews posted. As soon as a non-Client submits a review, Betterfly submits a request to the Betterist asking if that person has been their client. Once the Betterist confirms, the review will be posted. If your review was anonymous, though, Betterfly will work with you to delay the review so it isn’t as obvious who authored it.Secondly, you may have submitted an anonymous review and Betterfly thought that if the review was posted it would be too obvious that you wrote it. For example, if the Betterist only has two Clients and he or she gets an anonymous review, it would probably be pretty easy to figure out who it’s from. So we won't post it right away.

Betterfly asks you to rate six qualities of a Betterist,...

Betterfly asks you to rate six qualities of a Betterist, giving a score from 1 to 10. These scores will never be posted and are strictly confidential. The scores will help Betterfly match future clients with Betterists who fit their preferences.

Yes you can, but only if the child is under 13. On the...

Yes you can, but only if the child is under 13. On the review form, you’ll be asked if you were the one who participated in the service. Answer "no," and you will be prompted to enter your child’s gender and age so we can put the review in the proper context. You should also mention it in the review itself.

Betterfly does not let you change or edit a review once...

Betterfly does not let you change or edit a review once it has been submitted, but you can write a new review. If you are reviewing the same service, though, Betterfly will cluster the reviews, putting the newer review on top and marking it "Updated." This way, someone reading a review can get context from the reviews. Anonymous reviews from the same person reviewing the same service will similarly be clustered.

Your privacy settings will determine how much information...

Your privacy settings will determine how much information people see. If you limit your Betteree Privacy Settings then the only people who will be able to see your full name and picture will be the Betterist you are reviewing and people within your privacy settings. All other users will see your first name and last initial with no picture. If you don’t want anyone to see your review then you should mark your review as "Anonymous."

All Users are given a Betterist Page and a Betteree Page....

All Users are given a Betterist Page and a Betteree Page. Each User has the ability to make either of these pages visible or invisible. If a User chooses to make both of these Pages invisible, he can also choose to not be searchable at all.

While Users cannot hide their entire Betterist Pages from...

While Users cannot hide their entire Betterist Pages from certain groups of people, they do have the ability to adjust who can see certain elements of their Pages. For example, there are extensive privacy settings related to the availability calendar. Those are found under Calendar Preferences. In addition, Betterists can select who to make their resources (such as lesson plans, instructional videos, etc.) available to. Users have more control over who can see their Betteree Pages. In addition to making this Page completely visible or invisible, they can also limit it to friends only.

Yes. You would set your Betterist and Betteree pages to...

Yes. You would set your Betterist and Betteree pages to invisible. You would also set your privacy settings so you cannot be searched for. By taking these steps, you will be completely invisible on the site.