“Oh my goodness, Emily! Where do you find all of these good babysitting jobs?”
If you have been keeping up with my posts over the past few months, you know that I make a decent amount of money from babysitting. I used to be a date-night/occasional sitter in addition to being a nanny, and it just got to be way too much. I switched over to going back to a date-night/occasional sitter like I was in my high school days, except this time, I revamped my approach to make a regular income from this.
Right now, I have about 7 families that I babysit for. Some are on a set weekly or bi-weekly basis, and some are spread out to a random occasion or two throughout the month. I have found these families in very different ways. Sometimes I approach a family and sometimes a family approaches me.
How to Land Babysitting Jobs
Babysitting can be a great way to make money on the side (and some may say that it serves as a great form of birth control)! Here are some ways that
Word of Mouth
This is an awesome way to meet new families because, if somebody is recommending you, the family won’t have to question your credibility. Oftentimes, parents who I have babysat for will pass my name onto a parent who they know who is looking for a sitter. Also, this is typically how you would get into babysitting for a family member!
Online Services
The two online services that I have used are SitterCity and Care.com. I have personally had more luck with SitterCity, but I know lots of people who have been more successful with Care.com.
An app that I have recently started to use is Bambino. Bambino is very new, so it does not have a lot of parents on it yet, but it allows parents to book and pay sitters directly through the app, so I am looking forward to this app growing and becoming more useful.
Online Local/Neighborhood Groups
I have found quite a few babysitting jobs from the Nextdoor App and local Facebook groups. Some neighborhoods have groups that you can join online to be better connected with your neighbors and people in surrounding neighborhoods.
I typically post in these kinds of groups every six months or so. I list a little synopsis of my childcare experience and a little bit about myself. I give my availability and how to contact me to get to know me better. I also watch out for posts by parents saying that they are looking for a sitter.
Local Childcare Facebook Groups
Different areas have different babysitting, nanny, or general childcare groups on Facebook. These work the same way as the groups mentioned above, except every post on there is about childcare. These can be very helpful!
Network with Other Sitters
A have a couple of friends from high school that I share babysitting jobs with. I recommend them as my backup sitters and they do the same for me. We pass on jobs to each other if it better suits a different one of us.
I am also part of a nanny group, even though I am no longer really a nanny. Since my schedule is flexible, I always offer my services to the nannies of the group when they need a back-up and I pass jobs to them, as well. Having these connections are very helpful.
Find a Babysitting Job Today
So, there you have it. That is how I have scored so many amazing jobs. Keep in mind, that many parents will want you to provide references or a resume. Even if you have not been a babysitter, you could certainly get jobs if you have experience with kids as a volunteer, camp counselor, or something of that nature.
If you are a sitter and have other ways of getting jobs, please share your tips in the comments!
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