Hrucker,
There actually is a good deal of information available about this
topic if you spend enough time poking around. But you're really
talking about 3 different industries that do not overlap in terms of
workers or buyers: babysitters, pet sitters, and house sitters. This
added question element makes our research a bit trickier. But here
goes.
Let’s take babysitting first. Babysitting is a part-time "job" usually
done by teens from 11 to 15, although older teens and even some adults
are involved. By "babysitting" I assume you mean an individual coming
to the baby's residence and sitting with it during the parents'
absence. If you are referring to larger babysitting centers/daycare
centers of course these are tightly regulated by each state.
I found a wonderful resource to find out about the business of
babysitting. It's produced by the University of Illinois Extension
Service and has a wealth of information on all phases including how to
conduct babysitting as a business, information on the stages of
infants, and how to baby sit older kids. This would be my first stop
and can probably answer most of the questions you asked.
University of Illinois Extension Service / Babysitting
http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/babysitting/
The American Red Cross offers a babysitting course that you may be
interested in. The webpage for the course is:
American Red Cross Babysitting Webpage
http://www.redcross.org/services/hss/courses/babyindex.html
The Mesa Arizona Police Department actually has a pretty good website
about babysitting, including a checklist of what information should be
left for babysitters:
Mesa AZ Police / babysitting
http://www.ci.mesa.az.us/police/babysit.htm
In response to your question, "In what ways do people find
babysitters" - The following babysitters resource and newsletter site
Hey Babysitter Lets Play Cyberspace Newsletter
http://www.inqpub.com/newsletter.html
conducted an online survey of babysitters asking them how they got
business. Here are the results:
"RESULT: Teens: majority (more than 90%) located jobs through
"word-of-mouth" such as friends of parents (including at work), church
(many said they volunteered in the nursery & received jobs when
parents saw how well they played with their children) and friends who
offered their names when unavailable to baby sit at their regular jobs
or with whom they team babysat.
Other ideas included flyers or "business cards" passed out to local
neighbors, at church or local playground. Always remember! safety
concerns--meet parents/child first, references, have your parents know
where you will be, etc. First aide safety classes were listed as a
plus too.
Adults: We had Moms, nannies, college students... who responded as
well to this survey. In addition to the usual newspaper ads, flyers...
they had some interesting techniques for job location too. Most
depended upon knowing the area where they worked very well. Many
reported good response from ads at grocery stores & local restaurants.
Another had a sign for her car that advertised her name/number when
she was babysitting in public, such as at a local park. She reported
lots of jobs!"
In other words, the vast majority of business is obtained by word of
mouth - A daughter of a neighbor, or someone a friend knows, etc.
There are no babysitting associations that I was able to find (I'm
pretty sure there are none) nor how many people hire babysitters or
how often.
The website below is a very amateur website produced by a 17 year old
babysitter and it appears to have pages and pages of great
information. However the site does have popup ad windows, so be
cautious.
Expage / babysitting tips
http://www.expage.com/babysittingtips
The following website has additional good information on babysitting:
Kid's Health - For Parents
http://kidshealth.org/parent/positive/family/babysitter.html
Children's Safety Zone - babysitting tips
http://www.sosnet.com/safety/babysitters.tips.html
Okay, lets move on to pet sitters. There are several associations of
pet sitters, and to me they appear very similar.
Pet Sitters International
http://www.petsit.com/
NAPPS - National Association of Professional Pet Sitters
http://www.petsitters.org/
Pet Sitters Associates
http://www.petsitllc.com/
According to the Pet Sitters International site, "As an educational
organization, PSI works to promote, support and recognize excellence
in pet sitting. With 4000 plus members, we are the leader in the
fastest growing industry in the pet care arena." You can search for a
pet sitter by zip code anywhere in the country. To me it appears to be
a collection of work-from-home businesses run by one or two people,
and provides these businesses with advertising support, liability
insurance, education, literature, and a common voice.
I would think that any one of these organizations can answer specific
questions to members on how often these services are used. There are
literally thousands of mom-and-pop pet sitting businesses throughout
the country. My best friend's wife runs a pet sitting service and I've
become somewhat familiar with this business. They tell me that when
they first started out, they went to pet stores and vets asking for
referral business and to be allowed to leave business cards. They also
did a fair amount of advertising. Although they still do some
advertising, 3 years 80% of their business comes from repeat customers
and referrals. This seems to be the trend from my research as well.
I'm told that there is a class of client (people who travel for a
living, elderly) who use their services almost weakly on an ongoing
basis. Other people may ask them to pet sit once a quarter or even
less frequently, so it's hard to generalize. They charge $35 per visit
and many people ask them to stop by twice a day to feed, walk, and
play with their pets for about 20 minutes per visit.
Here are some more pet sitting links:
Pet Sitters.biz
http://www.pet-sitters.biz/
This is kind of a referral network and worth checking out.
Pet Sitters Yellow Pages
http://www.petsitters.com/
Pet Sitting for You
http://www.petsittingforyou.com/
Okay, on to house sitting. From my research it appears as if house
sitting is more akin to babysitting in terms of industry organization.
And to my surprise, there is less information on house sitting than on
babysitting. Business seems to come by one party or the other asking
friends, or knowing someone, or as a last resort putting up a 3x5 card
in the local student center. The referral networks do a good service
by screening sitting applicants, but there doesn't seem to be enough
business for anyone to provide a consistent income. As a matter of
fact, more often than not, a friend or known college student will sit
for free in return for getting the run of the house and pool.
That's not to say that this type of revenue opportunity couldn't
become an occasional adjunct for a pet sitting and/or babysitting
business.
Here is an interesting site that acts as a referral network for both
sides of the equation:
Worldwide House sitting
http://www.housesitworld.com/
The following site appears to be the sister-site to the pet sitting
website Pet Sitters.biz above. It has a great house sitting contract
you can use at http://www.housecarers.com/guide_to_housesitting_pages_9.html
Housecarers.com
http://www.housecarers.com/
This site again offers referrals. But in this case handles all 3 area:
pets, houses, and babies!
Sitters 4 Hire
http://www.sitters4hire.com/house_sitters.htm
Well, I hope I've given you enough information so you can find the
answers to your questions. But in the event that you need more help,
just respond with a request for clarification and I'll do my best to
come up with help. Especially in the case of the pet sitting, I'll be
glad to ask my friend and his wife whatever you need. Thanks for your
question! |
Request for Answer Clarification by
hrucker-ga
on
06 Jul 2002 09:36 PDT
Prof,
This answer is a good start in that it gives me some other websites to
visit and continue my own searching. (Actually, I've already been to
most of these sites just by doing Google searches.)
But I was hoping to get more quantitative data other than the small
survey you pointed me to. And I'm only interested in the "cottage
industry" in which, typically, parents hire kids, seniors or neighbors
to watch the kids or pets; not agencies or groups that screen and hire
out nannies and such.
The most important question to answer is:
How many people hire babysitters and how often? In other words, if
babysitting was a business, how big is the business?
The second most important question to answer is:
How do people find babysitters and petsitters, broken down by
percentages? (I did read the one survey that said 90% was word of
mouth. But that was just an informal online poll.)
I understand that this is a difficult question to answer because the
whole babysitting thing is so unregulated and usually is just a parent
using a "neighbor kid". But I was hoping some governement agency or
business school or demographics research firm had put together some
data.
Please see what you can find.
Thanks again - Hal
|
Clarification of Answer by
prof-ga
on
06 Jul 2002 11:28 PDT
Hi Hrucker,
It might help me to know exactly why you need this information. If
you're just using it for personal reasons that's one thing. On the
other hand, if you need it for a business plan, for example, that
could send me in a different direction. I do have access to a very
comprehensive database of research studies and I'm now going through
them.
I've talked to several people in the research field, and when I ask
how to get volume or research data on babysitting I get a lot of blank
stares. It is an informal industry and there has been surprisingly
little research in that area.
However, there's a good bit of formal research when it comes to pets
and/or pet sitting. Some of the material below does not directly
answer your questions, but does give some good insight into the pet
sitting industry. FYI, I'm going to keep going through the hundreds of
research papers I've found on pets/pet sitting.
Title: Pet spending market size and demographics
Source: RDS Business and Industry Database (published research
reports/subscription only)
Title: Animal Magnetism
Source: American Demographics, 24 (5): 31+, May 2002. ISSN: 0163-4089
Publisher: PRIMEDIA Business Magazines & Media
Document Type: Journal; Cover Story
(You should be able to find this periodical at your library)
In summary, this research studied attitudes toward pets and compared
the years 1995 and 2001. The findings show a marked increase in
American's attachment to their pets and their willingness to spend
money for their comfort. (This translates into an assumed rise in pet
sitting.)
"The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) projects that veterinary
services will be one of the fastest growing industries of this decade,
expected to increase 44 percent by 2010, compared with overall
employment growth of 16 percent. According to the BLS's Occupational
Outlook Handbook, this growth is partially attributable to the
consumer demands of aging Boomers with larger-than-average disposable
incomes. In addition, according to the report: 'Pet owners are
becoming more aware of the availability of advanced care and may
increasingly take advantage of nontraditional veterinary services,
such as preventive dental care. [They also] may more willingly pay for
intensive care than in the past.' "
The article references a 2001 survey of 1,225 pet owners by the
American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA). "24 percent say they
would spend more than $1,000 to save their pet's life, and 35 percent
claim they would spend "any amount." Twenty-one percent would travel
more than 1,000 miles to obtain specialty health care for their pet.
..Pets are on the go more than ever: 68 percent traveled with their
owners in 2001, compared with 58 percent in 1995, according to the
AAHA. And almost a third (29 percent) of pet owners stays in a hotel
or motel with their pet, according to the Travel Industry Association
of America (TIA). 'As they become more a part of the family, people
would rather take their pets with them when they travel than leave
them in a kennel,' says Cathy Keefe of the TIA. 'The industry is
making it much easier for them to do that.' In fact, in 2001, 41
percent of hotels and motels allowed pets, up from 31 percent in 1998,
according to the American Hotel and Lodging Association.
But today's hotels are doing much more than simply allowing pets
in--they are catering to them as consumers. Two years ago, the Loews
chain of four-star hotels launched Loews Loves Pets, a loyalty
marketing program that offers pet-sitting and walking services, as
well as special bedding and such menu options as grilled lamb for dogs
and salmon for cats. Spokeswoman Emily Kanders explains that prior to
the chain-wide program, some individual Loews hotels did allow pets.
"At the hotels where we accepted pets, our guests were very grateful
and loyal," says Kanders. "Based on that enthusiasm, we did some
research and found that with changes in demographics--more single
households and more couples having children later--Americans were
bringing their pets along."
As for the pets that do get left behind, pet-sitting and pet-walking
services abound. While teenage baby-sitters maybe just fine for human
children, when it comes to pets, many owners want a pro. Lynn
Blumenthal, a writer in Chicago, says that ever since one of her three
cats got lost while under the supervision of a teen neighbor, she has
turned to professional help. She's not alone. Pet Sitters
International, an educational association for professional pet sitters
based in King, N.C., has attracted more than 4,200 members in its
brief eight-year history. In fact, the BLS reports that the number of
"animal caretakers" is expected to grow much faster than average--22
percent between 2000 and 2010--as more consumers seek out professional
care for their pets."
This latter information reinforces my belief that an industry
association such as Pet Sitters International (http://www.petsit.com/)
would have the data your seeking and would be willing to provide it to
members. I have emailed them but so far have received no response.
The research report listed the following pet owner demographics:
"* Forty-five percent of women ages 35 to 54 who have been divorced,
separated or widowed own a pet. These females are 18 percent more
likely to own a feline, and 52 percent more likely to own a bird than
the average American.[*]
* Americans ages 45 to 54 spend the most per year (an average of $281)
on their pets. The average U.S. household spends $209.[**]
* Spending on pets in single households is expected to grow at an
annual rate of 4.1 percent between 1999 and 2004.[***]
* Single households make up 28 percent of total expenditures on
pets.[***]
* Thirty-nine percent of Americans ages 55 to 64, and 25 percent of
those 65+, own a pet.[*]
*While (seniors) are less likely than the average American to have a
pet, their projected growth makes seniors a potentially important
future market. By 2020, 1 in 6 Americans, or 6 Americans, or 56.2
million people, will be older than 65.[**]
* Spending on pets by adults ages 55 to 64 is expected to grow the
fastest of all age groups (4.8% annually) in the next few years, from
an average of $246 per year in 1999, to $310 in 2004.[***]
* Fifty-two percent of 18- to 34-year-old married Americans without
children own a pet, 36 percent own a dog and 26 percent own a cat.
This group is 33 percent more likely than the average American to own
more than one pet.[*]
* Twenty-eight percent of women ages 25 to 29, and 20 percent of those
ages 30 to 34, were childless in 1998, up from 16 percent and 11
percent in 1976.[**]
* Childless couples ages 22 to 45 spend $345 per year on average on
their pets, compared with $282 that married-with-children couples of
the same ages spend.[***]
* Fifty-two percent of married 35- to 54-year-olds without children
have a pet, and 31 percent have two or more. This group is 27 percent
more likely to own a pet, and 30 percent more likely to own more than
one than the average American[**]
* In 2000, married couples without children spent more on average on
their pets ($284) than married-with-children households ($275).[*]
* Married-without-children household spending on pets is expected to
grow the fastest (5.2 percent annually) of all household groups
through 2004.[***]"
The article duplicates several response forms from this survey. One of
the comments:
"AD: What types of pet services do you wish there were more of?
LD: I wish there were more doggie-sitters in more places, especially
at vacation spots. If there were ski resorts that had day-care for
pets, that would be fantastic. It would give you an opportunity to
spend some of your vacation doing things you want to do without your
pet, but then you could also spend time going hiking or doing other
activities with her. I'd rather spend an extra $100 to take her along
than pay a boarder $30 a day and have to leave her behind."
This is from one research report article. Give me another day to plow
through some more to see if I can come up with answers to your
specific questions.
Prof
|
Clarification of Answer by
prof-ga
on
06 Jul 2002 11:38 PDT
Hrucker,
The following short abstract may be on target for what you're looking
for. Unfortuantely, the study was done several years ago, and I don't
have access to the entire article. But you should be able to find it
in your local library.
From RDS Business & Industry Database (subscription only)
Summary: Petsitting has grown eightfold to 2,500 businesses nationwide
and a $535 mil market
Title: GOING TO THE DOGS, CATS AND LLAMAS
Source: Plain Dealer (Cleveland, OH): 1H+, August 24,1997
Publisher: Plain Dealer Publishing Co.
Document Type: Regional Newspaper
Record Type: Abstract
Publication Country: United States, Language: English
Abstract:
"Petsitting has grown eightfold to 2,500 businesses nationwide and a
$535-million market. The American Boarding Kennels Association
estimated that professional sitters and walkers cost the average
kennel up to $300,000 a year in business. The business has grown
largely to an increasing fondness by Americans for exotic pets such as
llamas, iguanas, ferrets, skunks or ducks which have special needs.
Pet-sitters normally spend 30 minutes with a client and charge up to
$11 and more for a visit, depending on the number of animals and the
amount of work involved. Career pet-sitters must be devoted to animals
and prepared for anything. An overnight stay might cost $50 for a
client with 17 cats and five dogs. Pet Sitter International estimated
that professional sitters are serving less than 1% of the potential
market, and that 60 % of households currently have pets. The
organization noted that the profession is a growing industry in
Canada, Ireland, Australia, Japan and England. Americans spend $20
billion on pets."
Back to work!
|
Clarification of Answer by
prof-ga
on
06 Jul 2002 13:42 PDT
Hrucker,
I found out a bit more industry information about pet sitting.
According to the American Boarding Kennels Association (www.abka.com)
the "pet sitting business accounts for more than $500 million of the
more than $20 Billion Americans spend each year on their pets."
This is from a 2/2/01 article entitled "Who Let the Dogs Out"
published in The Business Journal, Raleigh, NC.
BTW, I've got some good statistical informaton on day care centers if
that's what you happen to need. Let me know.
Prof
|
Request for Answer Clarification by
hrucker-ga
on
07 Jul 2002 10:01 PDT
Hi Prof,
The information you provided about Petsitters is great.
To answer your question: although this is not for a business plan, the
information I'm looking for is the kind of data you would find in a
business plan. So yes, if it helps clarify things, do proceed as if
this information will be used in a business plan.
Having said that, please also be aware that I'm more interested in
babysitting data than petsitting data. So if I'm starting to max out
my $100 worth of your time, please focus on finding whatever you can
on babysitting.
Does that help?
Thanks - Hal
|
Clarification of Answer by
prof-ga
on
07 Jul 2002 12:10 PDT
Thanks, Hal,
Yea, that does help a lot. I've got some sources and I'll concentrate
the balance of my time on babysitting. Give me 24 hours.
Prof
|
Clarification of Answer by
prof-ga
on
08 Jul 2002 09:40 PDT
Hal,
I found a good study on youth employment that might be relevant.
Apparently this entire issue of Monthly Labor Review is about youth
employment, so if you can get a copy it might be very helpful.
My source: Proquest (database of periodicals, subscription only)
Source: Monthly Labor Review; Washington; Aug 2001; Donna S Rothstein,
author. Vol 124, Issue 8, pp. 6-17
Title: Youth employment in the United States
"Babysitting and yard work were by far the most common freelance jobs
youths reported having worked at at ages 14 and 15. Table 9 shows that
43 percent of youths engaged in freelance jobs at age 14. Of these, 62
percent worked as babysitters and 38 percent did yard work. 14 At age
15, 40 percent of youths worked in freelance jobs, of whom 60 percent
worked as babysitters and 37 percent did yard work.
There are dramatic differences in freelance occupations by sex. At age
14, more than 91 percent of female youths who held freelance jobs
worked as babysitters, compared with less than 25 percent of male
youths. In contrast, almost 73 percent of male youths in freelance
jobs did yard work, compared with less than 11 percent of female
youths in freelance jobs. The pattern continues for youths who worked
at age 15, with, again, about 91 percent of female youths in freelance
jobs having worked as babysitters, but only 20 percent of male youths
having done so. At age 15, male youths who held freelance jobs were
far more likely to do yard work (73 percent) than were female youths
who held freelance jobs (9 percent).
Whites were more likely to hold freelance jobs at ages 14 and 15 than
were blacks or Hispanics. At age 14, whites holding a freelance job
were more likely to work as babysitters than were blacks."
The table is broken down by various demographics (income, race, family
structure, age 14/15, and sex) and shows the % holding a freelance job
by that age, and that % broken down by babysitting and yard work. If
there's any particular info from this table that would be helpful, let
me know. Of if you want me to fax it to you, I think I can do that.
From what I'm able to discover, the only research being conducted on
babysitting is in connection with youth employment, and that is the
keyword you should use to find additional information. Below are a two
examples of what I found on Google:
National Youth Employment Coalition
http://www.nyec.org/
Canadian Gov't Youth Employment Info
http://jeunesse.gc.ca/index_e.shtml
Unfortunately, after several hours of more search that is absolutely
all I can come up with re hard statistics on the babysitting industry.
And I have access to every newspaper, periodical, and research report
going back several years. So I'm guessing that there really isn't much
out there in terms of hard data. It's a very casual, unregulated,
freelance business run by mostly female teenagers age 12 to 15,
earning from $3 to $5 an hour average, who don't yet flex any
political clout. Thus the lack of data.
Hal, I hope this helps. And I truly wish I could have come up with
additional data. Let me know if you want the data from the table. At
the least, I can duplicate it in an answer clarification if you need
the data. Thanks for using Google Answers!
Prof
|
