SelectSitter, a Springfield-based app, is taking the angst out of hiring a babysitter in Springfield, MO and surrounding areas. Launched in November 2017, the handy technology was invented to help parents find babysitters they can trust by allowing users to find and share childcare recommendations in their own social media network.
The invention is the brainchild of mom Sarah Howey, who wondered how she’d find a new babysitter when hers moved away. Howey and her husband, Adam, partnered with their friends Kari and John Hamra to launch SelectSitter, which
already has nearly 1,000 users.
Parents can see which sitters their friends are booking and endorsing as well as see a sitter’s availability and set their own price when submitting a job request. It’s free to download and use, and the owners are adding an in-app payment feature so parents don’t have to worry about carrying cash; they can pay their sitter through the app. “Parents who use it, love it,” Sarah says. “We get suggestions for additional features, which we hope we will be able to add, but we will not do that until in-app payment takes off.” Based on feedback from users, Howey is working on adding an icon inside the app to indicate if babysitters are pet sitters, too. Stay tuned for more possibilities.
RUNNERS UP // Easy Access Hunts • FiTbyPhase, LLC
