How to Start a Babysitting Business

No matter if you're young, old, or in-between, babysitting is a great way to make some serious extra cash. Babysitting is especially lucrative for girls 13-25, who often make thousands of dollars a year on caring for other people's children. When my mom babysat as a teenager, she made 50 cents an hour. The pay has risen drastically- I make $10-$12 dollars an hour, an impressive wage for watching kid's play. I started babysitting around 3 years ago, and I want to tell you how to start and maintain a babysitting business.

Step 1: Get Some Training

Get Babysitter training from Girl Scouts or your local YMCA and get CPR and first aid certified from your local Red Cross. Just having certification keeps parents calm and can help you get $3-$5 more per hour than if you had no training. The expenses of certification will soon pay off, and your CPR skills might actually come in handy.

Step 2: Figure Out Your Schedule

Figure out when you're available. As a quality babysitter, you can truly plan your own hours. Decide when you want to work and you can accept clients who will follow your schedule. TO keep track of your engagements, keep a small pocket planner.

Step 3: Advertise

Advertise, Advertise, Advertise. Create flyers and put them on local bulletin boards and around local elementary schools. Advertise in your neighborhood newspaper. You can even use Internet sites, such as Craigslist, to advertise (just be safe about it). Create some business cards to pass out whenever an opportunity presents itself. Use promotions, such as giving clients a free hour of babysitting to gain reputation and a large clientele. SitterCity.com and Babysitter.com are two great on-line babysitter sites that will connect you to a huge list of possible clients.

Step 4: Actually Interact with the Kids- Get a Babysitting Bag

Most babysitters watch TV while half-heartedly supervising children. Don't do this. Instead, interact with the kids and get a babysitting bag- a fun colored bag filled with stickers, weird paints, and games to bring with you wherever you go. You'll soon be the favorite babysitter of all the kids you care for, and parents will usually choose their kids' favorite babysitter as a more permanent (and better-paid) caretaker.

Step 5: Network

Ask your dedicated clients to act as references and to recommend you to others. Word of Mouth is sometimes the most effective way to gain clients.

Step 6: Treat Your Clients Well

Treat your clients well: remember kid's birthdays and write Christmas cards for families. These niceties will pay off- families will often give you a few hours' pay as a Christmas gift, and you will often receive sizable gift certificates for your birthday.

Step 7: Don't Be Afraid to Charge More

Don't be afraid to request a raise- if you have families lining up to have you as their babysitter, then you have the flexibility to charge top dollar.

Follow the above-mentioned 7 steps and you will soon be running a lucrative babysitting service. Supervising kids can be fun, and provides great experience for prospective pediatricians, daycare managers, cruise ship directors and more. Good Luck!