I absolutely love this idea. Rent a Grannie. Well, yes, lots of people don’t have grandparents who live in their local area. What do grannies do? Well they might help around the house, do some cooking, love to be with the kids, bake cookies, tell stories, straighten up a bit, lend moral support, etc. You get the idea. Just be with the kids and do what grannies do. You are not marketing your self as a cook, housekeeper, assistant or babysitter, or nanny. You have a unique service all your own. Of course you need to be the right age, too. Your role is to come to the house for a couple hours a day or a week and kind of just help out where needed or just provide comfort and support to the children and or the adults. The appeal of your service? You provide warmth, love, caring, and just all around helping out. Also you provide the comfort children and adults need to have a trusted figure around the house.
That is pretty hard to beat. Just think of the comfort of having your own grandparents around when you were young.
Also if you don’t have grandchildren close to you this could be a way to receive a little comfort, cheer, and company for yourself as well. Also it gives you the chance to set a good example and mentor children as well.
Some things to consider:
Have a background check on done on yourself and show this to the parents you will be working with. An FBI background check should include fingerprinting, and can be done locally through your county or local law enforcement.
Look into having your insurance coverage to cover you for this adventure. It might be a good idea to become bonded as well.
Ways to market your idea:
Bulletin boards, classified ads, business cards, magnetic signs for the car, Angie’s List, Google Listing, Phone Book (Ads in the phone book were once expensive, but now you can put in a listing for your ad starting as low as $10 per month.). Put your business card in supermarkets, hospitals, clinics, beauty salons, barbers, and wherever moms are. Also you could volunteer on a radio talk show and get free publicity.
Some tips:
1) Don’t judge parents on their parenting!
2) If you are asked for your opinion, then give it.
3) Just do what grandmothers do!
4) Provide warmth, encouragement, and love.
5) Always be welcoming to all members of the family!
What to charge:
I believe you could charge by the hour, in this economy, say anywhere from $10-15 an hour to up wards of $20 an hour depending on what your local economy can handle.
You could also charge by the day. A flat fee of $50 for a 2-4 hour stint. Many parents might be willing to pay this amount maybe once a week just to have the privilege of your company for their children. You can also let them know that you are willing to stay with the children while they get out for a bit of relaxation. And This is also a good selling point. Again, how much to charge depends on what your local economy can handle.
If you are very ambitious you could expand by hiring others or creating a franchise once you have a plan and have worked out all the kinks and pitfalls.
You could also base the charge on the amount of work expected of you. You could go and have a trial period of a couple of hours and at that time let the parents know what you think is a fair amount to charge based on the amount of work.
Kind regards,
Susan Farmer
A-S
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