SeekingSitters OC

“I don’t have a sitter.” How many of us have missed out on fun (adult only!) event because of that statement? Personally, my husband and I almost had to cancel on friends for a fun couples’ dinner coming up this month because my parents and other babysitting options were not available. That is until I got acquainted with SeekingSitters, an on demand OC babysitting referral service that does all the work to find you a great, trustworthy babysitter when you need one.

After talking to the local OC owner Kim Kane, I felt completely comfortable booking a sitter through their service because there were so many things that gave me peace of mind. I will share my personal experience using one of their sitters next month, stay tuned!

Let me share a little of what I learned about SeekingSitters and how their service works.

First, it takes one to know one. The owner, Kim is also a local OC mom with two young boys, and has owned the OC Coastal, Central and South region for three years. As a fellow mom, she knows how hesitant families are to leave their children with someone they don’t know.  Because of this, she has personally screened and interviewed every sitter on her team.  She only picks babysitters that she would feel personally thrilled to look after her children. And many of them have.

Safety, safety, safety. The national SeekingSitters company was started by a former licensed private investigator with three young children of her own, so safety is the company’s number one priority. Every single applicant goes through a thorough background check by a licensed in house private investigator that knows all the red flags and ins and outs of the systems. All bases are covered when the sitters are screened and the private investigator presents each SeekingSitters owner with a comprehensive report on each background check that is run.

Not only are the sitters screened, but the families are as well.  This is to ensure the safety of their sitters and is unique to SeekingSitters.

No fuss, no hassle, no work, no time. Once you become a member, when you need a sitter and a make a request, you don’t have to do anything else except submit the date and time and your part is done.

No money talk or exchange. Your credit card will be charged after your job is complete so you avoid the awkward “how much do you charge?” conversation. Even better, you don’t have to worry about having money to pay your sitter.

Fun stuff. All the sitters arrive with a hot pink Seeking Sitters tee-shirt and a Seeking Sitters bag of goodies filled with age appropriate activities to entertain your little ones.  At the end of the job, they will provide you with a “Fun Time Sheet” detailing all the important stuff that went down.

Backup plan. How many times have you had a sitter scheduled that had to call in sick or cancel at the last minute? With SeekingSitters, you know you are covered because if unfortunately a sitter has to call in sick (things happen), Kim has a team of backup options she can text at t moment’s notice to ensure your childcare is covered.

So, do you need a babysitter for a one-time event?  I am sure lots of us have holiday parties coming up! Or maybe you are hosting a special event like a holiday party where children are invited, but wouldn’t you love a sitter to keep them busy so you can entertain? Keep SeekingSitters in mind to use for wedding receptions as well!

Or, maybe you need more regular part-time or full-time babysitting help? SeekingSitters can help with all the above and more.

Here is how the process works:

First you will sign up to become a Member. You will go online to fill out the application. You will enter your zip code and follow the registration steps.  A one-time application fee of $39.99 is charged to become a member.

Member privileges: Once your info is entered, it is sent to their in house private investigator for the background check. Once complete, you can access the database of sitters and make your babysitting request.  Each member is able to read sitter profiles, view pictures and read other parent’s feedback.

Pricing: Based on how much you want to use the service, there are two ways you can go as far as service fees.  For someone who plans to use the service frequently, there is an unlimited monthly fee of $10.99 available with a one year commitment. If you are looking for more one-off situations, you can pay a flat rate of $15 per babysitting request.

Please note, the service fees cover the administration to coordinate the babysitting requests only. For the actual babysitting, hourly rates apply and vary by location and number of children. Visit the website and click on your area of the map for more information on pricing.

Members can enter babysitting requests at any time 24 / 7 and Kim will get back to you with a sitter confirmation.

Babysitting S.T.Y.L.E.

I personally love this. Each professional babysitter that works for SeekingSitters must adhere to their Babysitting S.T.Y.L.E.

S – Safety – every sitter has their CPR and first aid certifications.
T – Time –   each sitter uses their time with the kids wisely to engage and entertain with activities, while TV time is kept to a minimum.
Y – Yack – sitters are only to use their cell phones in case of emergency. No texting allowed!
L –  Look – each sitter will arrive to your home looking professional and appropriate.
E – Exit – each sitter will leave your home in the same condition or better than when she arrived. Toys, dishes, etc. picked up.

If you are interested, SeekingSitters is running a deal today on Living Social which is a fabulous value. If you are new to Living Social, and sign up through my referral link, they will put $5 in your account, which makes the deal even sweeter!

With this deal, pay only $49 which  includes the sign-up fee of $39.99 plus 4-hours of your first babysitting job. Click HERE to buy it! Great way to save on the sign-up free AND get a sitter for an upcoming event.

For more information visit, www.SeekingSitters.com.  You can also visit SeekingSittersOC on Facebook and follow @OCSitters on Twitter.

Kim Kane, Owner, SeekingSitters OC Coastal, Central & South
949.294.1003
kimkane @ seekingsitters.com

[Disclosure: SeekingSitters OC is a Tiny Oranges Sponsor. And photos above all provided by Kim. I asked her if those were all her real babysitters and the answer was “yes!” Looks like an enthusiastic team – love it!]