CASE STUDY: Using Facebook To Connect Babysitters With Families

An enterprising mom in California had an idea for an application that would be similar to OpenTable or Yelp, but for babysitters. Using Facebook's platform as a vehicle, Lynn Perkins started UrbanSitter about a year-and-a-half ago. So far, there are 15,000 babysitters in the program and 50,000 families — a number that grows as the platform rolls out to more cities. The app and website allow families (largely in areas such as San Francisco, New York, and Boston), to find college-aged babysitters, and to see who their Facebook friends have hired to take care of their kids.

An enterprising mom in California had an idea for an application that would be similar to OpenTable or Yelp, but for babysitters. Using Facebook’s platform as a vehicle, Lynn Perkins started UrbanSitter about a year-and-a-half ago. So far, there are 15,000 babysitters in the program and 50,000 families — a number that grows as the platform rolls out to more cities. The app and website allow families (largely in areas such as San Francisco, New York, and Boston), to find college-aged babysitters, and to see who their Facebook friends have hired to take care of their kids.

Perkins knew when she got the idea that she had to make sure it was Facebook-integrated.

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