Demands for child care services are continuously rising with more and more families with kids who have both working parents. In fact, more than 61% of married-couple families have both the husband and wife working outside their homes. So, if you’ve been thinking of starting a modest home business, you can make extra income by babysitting kids in your home like a daycare service. Plus, you can watch your own kids and care for others simultaneously — making it a win-win situation for everyone.
Here’s how you can establish or start offering daycare or babysitting services at home.
Establish a Child Care Space Inside Your Home
Evaluate your home and see the best spot for your ‘child care space.’ For instance, you can use your dining room for mealtimes and the living room as the play area. For nap times, the guest room is ideal. Besides designating different areas around your home, you need to ensure it’s cleaned and sanitized, so have professional cleaners with experience in carpets and rugs come in and do deep cleaning as part of regular maintenance to keep the kids safe, healthy, and comfortable.
Purchase the Right Equipment
When you’ve set up your home, it’s time to buy the equipment you’ll need for the daycare. Necessary purchases include toys, games, books, sheets, mats, blankets, plates, cups, stepping stools, and child-sized utensils and furniture. If you’re going to be taking care of babies, you’ll need to buy playpens and high chairs.
Decide How Many Kids You Want To Look After
After setting up your home, you’ll need to decide how many kids you’re willing to supervise at the same time in your home. If you’re planning on handling more than five children simultaneously, it’s best to have a helper to ensure all kids are well cared for. However, this may not only depend on your preferences but also on the requirements of your state. For instance, if you’ll be watching over several babies, some states require you to have a helper.
Get Insurance
Getting insurance is essential when establishing any business, even if it’s at home. After all, looking after several babies and toddlers at the same time may get hectic and lead to unwanted accidents. You’ll usually need property damage coverage and liability insurance to protect you during a child, parent, or helper getting injured within your home. Additional policies to consider include homeowners’ insurance and car insurance.
However, it’s best to speak with a local insurance agent to discover what coverage options you’ll need for your home-based daycare business.
Market
After setting up your home and getting the necessary paperwork, if you want to ensure long-term success and a steady flow of clients, you need to market your home business. Typically, the prime candidates who need full-time child care are couples with infants to toddlers aged 3 to 5 years old. Parents with over five children or low-income families supported by the government are also good prospects.
With these in mind, when advertising your services, it’s best to market where parents mostly visit. These include posting fliers in grocery stores, libraries, and laundromat bulletin boards. You can also place ads in local newspapers or announce to friends on social media about your new business.
Running a home daycare or babysitting service can be a lucrative opportunity to explore and an overall rewarding experience. If you have the facilities, patience, and passion for taking care of kids, now’s the best time to pursue this chance — and the steps mentioned can help you establish a successful home child care business in no time.
