Mum in Business
Find A Babysitter.com.au - Delia Timms
1. Briefly describe Find A Babysitter.com.au
www.findababysitter.com.au is a website that introduces parents to babysitters and nannies in an efficient and affordable way. Parents can email/SMS carers and post jobs online to find the ideal carer for their families. Carers’ profiles on the site give details about their experience, qualifications, availability and rates. Find A Babysitter.com.au is not an agency; it simply introduces parents and carers. By cutting out the middleman it keeps costs low and gives parents more control. The site has expanded rapidly, going nation-wide within 6 months of starting and exceeding all expectations.
Find A Babysitter.com.au has been running for almost four years and is the market leader. It has helped over 17,000 parents and has had over 35,000 carers online across Australia.
In 2008 Find A Babysitter.com.au won the National Telstra Business Award for Micro-Business. In April 2009 Find A Babysitter.com.au won 3AW’s Momentum Small Business Success Award.
2. Why did you start Find A Babysitter.com.au?
The idea for the business really grew from a genuine need. My husband and I had two children under 2 and were sleep-deprived, exhausted and desperate for help! We languished on childcare waiting lists for months on end, so we searched for nannies and sitters so I could return to work (and also for an occasional night out!). Like many other parents we didn’t have a big network of family nearby to call on. During this process I realised that the old-fashioned ways of finding help were either slow, very expensive or ineffective.
We read about a web-site in the USA that had a directory of babysitters and realised this was exactly what we needed ourselves! The internet seemed such a simple solution to the problem we were experiencing – just a way to help people in communities connect with each other. So I did some market research (quizzed my mothers group, playgroup, Oz Kick parents, friends, family and anyone else I could find!) and wrote a business plan. My husband, Jeff, was an IT expert and developed the site. We launched www.findababysitter.com.au in July 2005 and it took off!
The site literally took itself around Australia – from Melbourne, to Sydney, Brisbane, Perth and other cities in between. Evidently there were lots and lots of parents across Australia suffering from the same problem!
3. What did you do before Find A Babysitter.com.au ?
I am a qualified speech pathologist and specialized in treating adults with acquired brain injuries. I also have a Masters in Human Resource Development.
4. Has starting your own business lived up to expectations?
It has far exceeded my expectations! It has been a really rewarding, exciting experience.
I didn’t realise how rapidly the business would grow. I started the site with modest expectations – hoping it would meet a need. I was really thrilled by how parents (& the media) embraced the site across Australia – it has been wonderful to know that we’ve helped families in genuine need.
My favourite thing is receiving emails from parents telling me how much the site has helped them – to cope with several children and busy schedules, to manage a night out with a husband, or to get a break after a difficult time. The testimonials people write are so touching and personal – I feel like my site has made a difference.
5. What have you enjoyed the most about running your own business?
The freedom and flexibility are brilliant. I feel very fortunate to manage my own working hours to suit my family and my life.
Winning the Telstra Business Award in 2008 was also a great achievement that was enjoyable! It was very special to be short-listed, then chosen as the national winner from the long list of applicants. A great ‘stamp of approval’ from business and industry.
6. What is the biggest challenge in running your own business?
The biggest challenge initially was taking a financial risk, starting a business from scratch and letting go of a ‘paid job’. However once the first steps were taken it was actually really empowering to take responsibility and work towards an exciting goal.
7. Have there been times when you’ve thought ‘this is just too hard!’ Tell us how you got over that.
In the early days of the business there were definitely times when I wondered if it would all work out. We have had hiccups along the way – like one time when our (outsourced, “infallible”) servers failed! When this happened we quickly replaced the servers then emailed all of our customers to apologise and offer some free membership. We were amazed by the lovely emails we got in response – our customers were so touched by our honesty and customer service.
Over the years I have also come to realise that resilience is important. You need to be prepared to ride the ups and downs that inevitably come with a risk-taking adventure! In the end you need to believe in your business and yourself.
These days I am confident – even in a global financial crisis! I know that we’ll continue to offer a wonderful web-site that helps thousands of families. I recognise how very fortunate we are to have a business that works smoothly and I enjoy this.
8. Delia, how many children do you have and what are their ages?
Two children – Meg (6.5yrs) and Tom (5).
9. How do you manage the juggle of running your own business with family life? Do you have help?
There is no doubt that it is difficult separating work from home life – as it is for many working parents. Running your own business can be all-consuming. You need to plan how you will balance the demands to ensure you manage the competing priorities well. I have a weekly schedule for work, exercise, family time etc. I get help with childcare (a part-time nanny) and fit my work tasks into child-free chunks of time as much as possible.
My husband and I also share many of the responsibilities related to home and family, so this is helps keep things running smoothly. That said – I know that I talk about work too much when my kids start chatting about logos and web-sites in their make believe games!
10. Does the business dominate your life? Can you effectively break away?
I am a big believer in ‘working on your business, not in your business’ (from the infamous Emyth book). From the very beginning we set out to create a business that would not dominate our lives. We use technology to automate the business as much as possible – this makes my job streamlined on a day-to-day basis. I also have rules with myself about when I’ll check emails and take phonecalls. We are fortunate that the internet business is very portable – so we can run the business easily from any location. This means that we are not tied to desks, which helps us break away!
11. How involved is your partner in the day to day running of FAB?
My husband and I both work part-time on the business. We have clearly defined roles which works really well for us. We outsource some areas (like Book Keeping) as needed.
12. Is there a particular woman in business you admire? Tell us who and why.
I am always learning from others around me and am inspired by women who have been able to create happy and successful lives for themselves – however this is defined.
Close to home - I admire my mother for her remarkable resilience, hard work and optimism. She was widowed at 37 with 4 children (under 14yrs) and bank loans on 2 businesses. She continued to run these businesses and over the years then sold these and bought other businesses successfully. Along with business success my mother also shows compassion and care for those around her – I admire this too, realizing that success is measured in many ways.
13. How do you motivate yourself?
There are a range of ways I stay motivated in business. I have a ‘widget’ on my desktop giving me key information about the business in real time, so I can see how we are tracking. I set goals in my annual business plan and write quarterly reports – to keep me on track with Find A Babysitter.com.au
More broadly I enjoy learning about business in general – whether this is attending networking groups, reading books and information online, or chatting to others in business. I often work from home – but I also have a desk in a shared office space, which I really enjoy. Over the last year a few girlfriends and I met regularly to discuss our goals and keep each other accountable – this has been a great way to stay motivated. Chocolate and caffeine also keep me motivated!
14. Where do you see Find A Babysitter.com.au in 5 years?
Find A Babysitter.com.au will continue to be the market leading, quality web-site that helps parents find nannies and babysitters in an affordable and efficient way.
It is an exciting time to be in an internet business. Technology is changing so quickly and bringing so many new tools for us to use. Our motto is that ‘the site is never done”. We are always developing and adding new features in response to customer requests. So in the coming years I anticipate that we’ll continue to add innovative features and functionality to deliver results to our FAB customers.
15. Do you have a favourite networking opportunity or event?
I don’t have a specific networking event that I attend regularly. I pick and choose things that suit me from a range of sources.
Some of these include the Australian Business Women’s Network, Australian Institute of Management and some events held by corporates like Westpac.
I enjoy reading information online and one of my favourites is www.smartcompany.com.au
16. Do you have any advice for anyone out there who may be thinking about starting a business
- arrange dedicated child-free time to get work done. Working from home is still work (& babies, inconveniently, stop napping at some stage!)
- conduct thorough market research to identify a genuine need – ask 'what is the problem others are experiencing and how can I solve it for them'?
- choose to build a business you are passionate about, because you will live and breathe it
- identify your strengths, get expert advice and outsource as necessary.
- a good idea alone is nothing without great implementation – implement it right!
- keep a pantry stocked with chocolate and coffee for the extra energy needed!
Visit Find A Babysitter.com.au to find your own Nanny or Babysitter
