There just aren’t enough hours in the day, at least for most, to get everything accomplished we would like to. Our priorities tend to focus on the businesses we own, as well as our family and social lives, and we tend to never get around to picking up the dry cleaning or mowing the lawn.

Well, some fellow entrepreneurs recognized this need in their own lives, decided to do something about and DoMyStuff.com was born. The basic premise is that buyers (a.k.a. busy people) post a task they need done, such as mowing the lawn, and assistants (local individuals or businesses willing to do the work) bid on the task. The buyer picks the best bid, which aren’t just about how much the assistant would charge, but how they would get the job done.

For example, one of the DoMyStuff owners, Darren Berkovitz, needed to find a new apartment, but didn’t have the time to look for one. So, he posted the task on the site and recieved eight bids. One bidder event provided an Excel spreadsheet showing the available apartments in the area, including amenities and prices. Needless to say, that bidder won the job.

You may be wondering what the cost to participate in DoMyStuff is. Well, for buyers it’s free. Bidders who win their bid pay a percentage of their wage to DoMyStuff. Additionally, there is an escrow system through DoMyStuff which assists in building a trust relationship between buyer and assistant.

Once an assistant is chosen, the buyer pays the agreed upon amount into the DoMyStuff escrow. When the buyer indicates that the job is completed, DoMyStuff pays the assistant, less their percentage (much like PayPal for eBay transactions). Assistants are also rated when a job is complete, much like the feedback of eBay and Amazon.

This errand outsourcing business has basically been flying on it’s own from the get-go. The four owners contributed a total of approximately $50,000 into the startup for website construction and initial marketing, but very little has been needed for further marketing since then. Word-of-mouth continues to bring in approximately 600 new members a day.

If you are just starting your own business, I recommend signing up as a bidder/assistant. There are currently no monthly fees to use the service and bid – you only have to pay something if your bid is chosen. It’s a great way to get your business name and services out there to the community. What better marketing could you have for free!

Source:
• Entrepreneur.com: Do My Stuff and Get Paid