Direct from the horse's mouth

[Cai Meng/China Daily]

This is the age not only of the internet but of video, when it seems that many of those who produce online content feel their messages have little chance of being clicked on, and thus seen and heard, unless they are delivered as moving pictures.

But beyond watching videos, listening to podcasts or simply reading text, the internet offers at least one other way in which one can learn, and that is getting in touch directly with experts in various fields.

Of course, you will have to pay for that help, but in many cases you may consider it money well spent.

Have you ever dreamed of owning a cafe but have little clue about where to start? Join the club. So I booked a consultation of an hour for 199 yuan ($29) with Liu Yinqi on the app Zaihang.

Liu is an angel investor and the vice president of a startup incubator called Guo'an Maker in Beijing.

He was also the manager of 3W cafe, which Premier Li Keqiang visited in 2015.

"To form a community is the key to a successful themed cafe," Liu says when we meet in his office.

3W cafe became well known by marketing itself as a place in Beijing to hang out for the technically switched on.

"People go to cafes to meet and talk with others, not to drink coffee," Liu tells me. "Coffee is just a byproduct."