Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Ask Parents of HN: Would you use an "Uber for babysitting"?

news.ycombinator.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

1–10 of 30 posts

Ask Parents of HN: Would you use an "Uber for babysitting"?

#1

Post by callmeed »

My daughter has been toying with the idea of an on-demand babysitting service. Unlike Care.com or SitterCity (which are more matchmaking) this would be more like Uber. Here's the rough overview she came up with:

- All sitters are 18+, have their own transportation, are CPR certified, and background-checked

- You pre-register with your contact and billing information

- You text a main number (Twilio) requesting a sitter at a certain day/time. A sitter is found who will accept the gig and we confirm with you

- Sitter brings a DropCam with him/her and we text you a secure link which allows you to view the camera feed while you're out (optional)

- Your card on file is charged. No need to get cash or write a check.

ADDED

- Strict review process. Similar to Uber, a couple strikes and a sitter is fired

- Video profile that is texted to you when confirming

- Similar to AirBnB, perhaps use Facebook to show that you have a X-degree of separation to the sitter

I thought I would ask the parents of HN for some feedback on her behalf. Would you ever consider using something like this?

Re: Ask Parents of HN: Would you use an "Uber for babysitting"?

#4

Post by prateekj »

The features look nice and it appears to be a good way to get babysitters at the last minute. When it comes to babysitters, the biggest problem is trust! No matter how secure it sounds, parents will still be skeptical to leave their children with a stranger. If you go above and beyond to address the trust issue in a way that can appease the concerned parents, I think this definitely has potential.

Re: Ask Parents of HN: Would you use an "Uber for babysitting"?

#5

Post by codegeek »

I am a parent of a 1 year old and a 3 weeks old. We are struggling with traditional babysitting model already. We hired a babysitter through care.com but on the days when she is not available, we have to find a backup. If you didn't plan the backup in advance, you are screwed. For example, our babysitter suddenly could not come for 2 days as her hubby got food poisoning and needed her to stay home with him.

So in theory, an "Uber for babysitting" sounds like a good idea where the "on-demand" part is the key. However, the biggest issue I see with something like this is the "trust factor". Babysitters are a very personal thing because they are responsible for the most important thing in your life i.e. your kid. So, when we hire a babysitter traditionally, we do our due diligence, check references etc. and then build trust over time during their first few weeks/months of work. Example, our current babysitter is now with us for about 3 months and we are just about beginning to trust her. We still don't leave her completely alone with our baby (wife staying home for now) but soon, we have to do that. For on-demand, how will this work ? Can I trust someone "uber" like ? Something to think about. Not shooting down your idea btw. As a parent, this is the biggest pain point we face currently.

Re: Ask Parents of HN: Would you use an "Uber for babysitting"?

#6

Post by joezydeco »

codegeek wrote: post #5

I am a parent of a 1 year old and a 3 weeks old. We are struggling with traditional babysitting model already. We hired a babysitter through care.com but on the days when she is not available, we have to find a backup. If you didn't plan the backup in advance, you are screwed. For example, our babysitter suddenly could not come for 2 days as her hubby got food poisoning and needed her to stay home with him. So in the…

You also have to look at the problem from the kids' POV. Remember, they are humans too. They (indirectly) have a say in this.

You could drop a 100.01% trusted and vetted teenager on my doorstep but if the kids don't click with the babysitter (or worse) then it's a traumatic experience for them and, subsequently, for us when we return. That's not worth the convenience.

Re: Ask Parents of HN: Would you use an "Uber for babysitting"?

#7

Post by codegeek »

joezydeco wrote: post #6
codegeek wrote: post #5

I am a parent of a 1 year old and a 3 weeks old. We are struggling with traditional babysitting model already. We hired a babysitter through care.com but on the days when she is not available, we have to find a backup. If you didn't plan the backup in advance, you are screwed. For example, our babysitter suddenly could not come for 2 days as her hubby got food poisoning and needed her to stay home with him. So in the…

You also have to look at the problem from the kids' POV. Remember, they are humans too. They (indirectly) have a say in this. You could drop a 100.01% trusted and vetted teenager on my doorstep but if the kids don't click with the babysitter (or worse) then it's a traumatic experience for them and, subsequently, for us when we return. That's not worth the convenience.

agreed. But again, this depends on how old the kid is. For my 3 week old, it probably does not matter that much as long as she is fed on time along with diaper change etc. For older kids however, it totally matters that they like the babysitter

Re: Ask Parents of HN: Would you use an "Uber for babysitting"?

#8

Post by jmathai »

I have a 4 and 2 year old. Would not use a babysitter I did not know personally. We have one sitter we absolutely love. It's because she takes an interest in what our kids like. She looks for bugs in our back yard because that's what my son likes to do. She lifts the rocks that are too heavy for him.

We used another sitter that was highly recommended by a close friend and didn't continue to use her because it was evident that she didn't really take an interest in getting to know our kids.

I think we lucked out with our preferred sitter but in all honesty I do t feel like settling for anything less. I hope we won't have to but I can't say we'll always have such a good sitter available.

But the idea of getting a sitter we don't know and haven't had a friend recommend sounds like something we would not be comfortable with.

Re: Ask Parents of HN: Would you use an "Uber for babysitting"?

#9

Post by Blahah »

My first job as a teenager was IT for a babysitting agency run by my school. They employed former students as the babysitters. It was very popular but when they tried to scale it beyond the school it failed. Basically parents were willing to trust that the school knew its former students, but not willing to trust people recruited any other way.

Personally I would use such a service, but you'll have to work damn hard to show you've vetted people carefully.

Re: Ask Parents of HN: Would you use an "Uber for babysitting"?

#10

Post by callmeed »

codegeek wrote: post #5

I am a parent of a 1 year old and a 3 weeks old. We are struggling with traditional babysitting model already. We hired a babysitter through care.com but on the days when she is not available, we have to find a backup. If you didn't plan the backup in advance, you are screwed. For example, our babysitter suddenly could not come for 2 days as her hubby got food poisoning and needed her to stay home with him. So in the…

Thanks for the thorough reply. We hadn't thought about newborns so maybe it would be best to start with a lower age limit.

We were just chatting about the trust factor, which is clearly the biggest issue. Here's a couple additional things we came up with (I also added these to the OP):

- Strict review process. Similar to Uber, maybe a 1 or 2 strike policy and a sitter is fired

- Video profile that is texted to you when confirming

- Similar to AirBnB, perhaps use Facebook to show that you have a X-degree of separation to the sitter

Let me know what you think.

Post reply on HN