@connectedgeek I'm wondering the same thing, and I think your best answer for this question is, "it depends" and depends on a few things. Today I asked a question for M$15, which I decided to say there was no best answer, and I'm reconsidering offering a higher tip. I think people would have answered the question for M$1, but that wasn't the quality of answer I was asking for. Even when you ask a higher valued question, some will answer it at a lower value, just so they can answer a question. You will always get people answering, even if you offered nothing. People answer for nothing on other sites, so they will do the same hear at Mahalo Answers. I believe the quality of the answer will be better when the stakes are higher. I don't think someone answering a question for M$10 will answer the question the same as they would for M$100. That's obvious, as the question increases, people will provide a better answer, and duly more people will answer. What I do know, the more research a question requires, the more people become to expect, at least here on Mahalo Answers. If you offer too small of a tip, people will still answer, and if it's too large of a tip you'll get more answers to choose from as your best answer, but that doesn't always mean there will be a better answer. I was thinking of asking a question, "What kind of tip would you expect to answer this answer the best?" By asking this question for a question, then you can get feedback to ask the question with that tip amount on it. I've yet to see anyone do this on Mahalo Answers, thought.

I think it's not the amount of the tip that matters, but rather the question that's more important. If you ask a tough question that doesn't clarify things, or what you're looking for, no tip amount will make the question better. So, if you have a question and you tip M$100 for it, and the question is ambiguous, I don't think people are going to answer it best for you. So, two things that are important:

1. Ask a question that interests people.
2. Ask a question that people understand how to answer.

If 1 and 2 above are not there, the tip is irrelevant. You can have a question with a high tip amount, but if people aren't interested or don't understand the question, it's pointless. I found a M$100 question that selected "no best answer" and people put a lot of effort into this question, but they weren't able to answer it the way the asker wanted, simply because they were not clear of what they wanted in an answer.

If a question is 1. above, then more people are likely to add to your tip amount. I think that's what people don't always think about, and that's wording the question better. The bottom line is, it's not about the tip, it's about the question. A better question is more likely to get a better answer, than a higher tip.

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