Direct from the horse's mouth

3W cafe became well known by marketing itself as a place in Beijing to hang out for the technically switched on. [Photo provided to China Daily]

That is why 3W cafe chose to open in Zhongguancun, the heart and birthplace of many of China's successful internet companies, he says.

Once you have opened your cafe you need to organize events with a focus－talks, roadshows, and even job fairs involving internet communities, he says.

The daily operations such as hiring staff, making coffee and taking care of all the chores need to be done by a third party.

"That's difficult and consumes time and energy," Liu says.

"You just focus on the event planning, execution and marketing."

Liu also suggests I talk to well known people in the industry, telling them my vision to draw like-minded into this business endeavor.

As Liu talks of his experience, time flies, and the one hour session is soon over.

"I have many resources, and I can help you connect with them," Liu says at the end.

"A lady who came to me last year has now opened a cafe in Guangzhou."

The app's name, Zaihang, means "be good at" or "in the trade", and it has about 8,000 experts who provide their knowledge and experience on hundreds of topics from self-improvement to real estate investment.

The charge for a session ranges from several hundred yuan to several thousands.

Liu says though he didn't promote himself to anyone in his social network, he has earned more than 1,000 yuan since he opened the account last year.