The Business of Taking Babysitting Online

It’s safe to say that I never expected my 10-plus years as a babysitter to inspire a business idea that would win the Genesis Entrepreneurship Challenge.

But that's exactly what happened. It all started the day I woke up and realised that I’d inadvertently created a great informal business. I’d built my network up to be so huge I was frequently acting as a mediator between parents and other babysitters. Recognising a really big gap in the market, I came up with WeSit.com – a babysitting App or online booking system and referral network that connects parents with their trusted networks of babysitters. Parents no longer need to waste time texting forwards, backwards and around trying to find an available sitter they can trust, as my App simplifies and automates the whole process. Basically, it allows parents to mimic the long and painful offline process via an online space.

Being accepted to take part in this year’s Genesis competition on the basis of WeSit was an invaluable opportunity. Crucially, my participation allowed me to workshop the idea via some invaluable one-on-one mentoring and was instrumental in helping me really perfect my product. It taught me more about business than I’d learnt in my previous two-year corporate career. Genesis was something I really wanted to win, and I’m so happy that all my hard work paid off.

Despite the well-documented barriers to startup success, I’m now really excited by what the future holds. And while I know that many challenges lie ahead, I know that my interest and passion for the project will see me through. Meanwhile, all the parents I speak to love the idea of WeSit and can’t wait for it to be available. If all goes to plan, they’ll be able to use it for the first time at the end of this week when the very first version goes live to our private Beta. Follow the App on the WeSit Facebook Page or @tweetWeSit.

Author: Georgia Kia
CEO of WeSit; Graduate Certificate in Innovation and Enterprise student
Winner of the Genesis Entrepreneurship Challenge Best Business / Technology Startup Category