Enter your search term

Search by title or post keyword

Lifestyle

The Definitive Guide to the Lifestyle & Care Industries

The gig economy has come to the rescue for anyone who needs help with care of lifestyle demands.

They say it takes a village to raise a child. And thanks to the gig economy, we have access to an on-demand village to help with caregiving tasks.

Whether you need help moving your things from your old apartment to a new one, babysitting, pet watching, or spending time with senior citizens, there is always something.

Some of us have family and friends willing to lend us a hand, but no one wants to be a burden. Thankfully, with nothing more than a smartphone and a credit card, you can get help for pretty much anything in a matter of seconds.

Since there are so many different companies out there, things can get confusing rather quickly.

To help you sort everything out, we’ve put together this guide of the different lifestyle and care options offered through the gig economy.

This page should help point you to the right service, and if you’re in the market for a job, it should help you find the best opportunity based on your interests and skills.

Table of Contents

Group 29

About the Lifestyle and Care Industry

Group 39

How Much Can You Make?

Group 19

Lifestyle and Care Worker Requirements

Group 27

Signing Up for Lifestyle Gigs

Group 12

How to Maximize Your Earnings

Group 32

How to Enter Promo Codes

Chapter 1

About the Lifestyle and Care Industry

What exactly are we talking about when we mention the lifestyle and care
industry?

The lifestyle and care industries are very broad. The care industry focuses on (you guessed it) caregiving. Caregiving services are things like babysitting or elderly care, but pet care (like dog sitting or dog walking) is becoming a very popular sector of the gig economy.

In the lifestyle space, things are a bit more spread out. Lifestyle gigs can be anything from teaching English to children in China to hosting online yoga classes to helping someone move into a new apartment.


There are dozens of gig economy companies that can fit in this category. Here’s a breakdown some of the available services based on the industry they’re in and the service they provide:

Care

Here are the different services that provide care to people, as well as a short description of each:

  • Care.com – Care.com is a platform to hire all sorts of caregivers. There are areas for babysitting, nannying, elder care, pet care, and more.
  • Papa Elder Care – Papa employs college students with experience in medicine to provide companionship for senior citizens.
  • Urbansitter – Urbansitter connects families and qualified babysitters in the same city and social circle.
  • Let’s not forget about our furry friends. Rover is one of the largest and most popular petsitting services.  Its primary function is helping pet owners find someone to watch or walk their pets.

Lifestyle

In the lifestyle space, here are the different options available to you:

  • Udemy – Udemy allows people to upload their own online courses and market them to the Udemy community.

Chapter 2

How Much Can You Make?

Helping people is great, but helping people while making money is even better.

As you can see, there are a lot of opportunities in the industry of helping people. But the question on everyone’s mind is: how much can I make?

Doing a good deed feels great, but it feels even better when you walk away with some cash in your pocket.

How much you can make depends on the service, but here’s a rough estimate of each:


Average Earnings for Care & Lifestyle Workers

Here is a breakdown of your potential earnings when working in the lifestyle or care industries.

Care.com workers can make $10-20/hour depending on the job they do and where they do it.

Papa “Pals” make, on average, $30 for a 2.5-hour visit, and the busiest Pals can make up to $1,500 per month.

Urbansitter rates vary based on location, but the national average for sitters is $13.50/hour for one child, $15.50/hour for two children, and $17.25/hour for three children.

Watching and walking people’s pets is big business. While working for Rover, you can expect to make $1,000 a month working part-time.

With Udemy, rates vary, but you can’t charge less than $10 or more than $200 for a class. How much you make also depends on how many students you get to sign up, as Udemy works on a revenue sharing model. This means you both make money when people enroll.

For Bellhops Moving, the average rate is $21/hour.

Chapter 3

Lifestyle and Care Worker Requirements

Find out what it takes to work in the care and lifestyle industries.

Because many of these services require you to work closely with other people, and in the case of Care.com and Papa, with elderly people, there are some requirements you need to fulfill to be hired.

Here’s an overview of what you need to be able to work for each of the services we’ve been discussing.


Care.com

The requirements for Care.com vary depending on the services you plan on providing. For example, if you want to work with seniors or children, you’ll need to pass a background check. Many people also ask to see credentials like CPR certifications.

If you’re doing tutoring, you might not need a background check, but you will need to demonstrate your proficiency on the subject.

You can learn more about what it’s like to land jobs on Care.com here.

Papa

The requirements for working for Papa are a bit stricter than some of the other services on this list. To work as a Papa “Pal,” you need to:

  • Be currently enrolled in school
  • Be at least 18 years old
  • Have access to a four-door vehicle
  • Have car insurance
  • Have a clean record
  • Live in an area where Papa operates (which right now are only cities in Florida.)

In addition to the requirements above, Papa prefers students with a medical background. That means people currently enrolled in nursing or medicine. Here’s some more information about what’s expected of you if you work for Papa.

Urbansitter

If you want to become a babysitter on Urbansitter, all you need is to be older than 16. Background checks aren’t required but they are recommended.

This guide outlines everything you need to know about getting set up to babysit on UrbanSitter.

Rover

To watch and walk pets with Rover, the only requirement is to be over 18 years old. When you sign up, you’ll be asked some questions about your experience with dogs. If you have experience with dogs of all sizes and temperaments, you’re more likely to land a gig.

Udemy

There are no requirements for becoming a teacher on Udemy. But to offer a course, you will need to submit your course syllabus and materials for review to make sure they meet Udemy’s standards.

And if you really want to succeed with Udemy, you’ll need to have video equipment to record yourself teaching. Editing skills are also a major plus that will make you stand out from the crowd.

Bellhops

At Bellhops, the requirements for getting involved aren’t much. You simply need to:

  • Be at least 18-years-old
  • Own a smartphone
  • Be able to lift at least 100 pounds
  • Have access to reliable transportation
  • Pass a free online background check
  • Have a standard checking account with a qualified financial institution.

For more information on how to become a Bellhop, click here.

Chapter 4

Signing Up for Lifestyle Gigs

Here’s how to sign up for some of the most most popular lifestyle and care
services.

If you’re interested in signing up for any these services, the process is a bit different for each one.

Here’s an overview of how to signup for each of the following care services:


Care.com

Signing up for Care.com is free for a basic membership, but you can upgrade to a more premium package. To get started with a basic account, all you need to do is create an account by providing some basic information.

After you create an account, you’ll need to build out a profile that outlines your experience and certifications. From there, you can start applying for Care gigs.

Papa

If you meet the requirements for being a “Pal,” then signing up is pretty straightforward. The essential requirements are that you must be in a Papa market (which is pretty much only in Florida at this point), a college student, and studying something related to healthcare.

Do you fit the bill? Here are the basics steps to becoming a Papa Pal.

Urbansitter

To sign up for Urbansitter, all you need to do is download the app and make an account, which requires you to provide your name, phone number, email address, social media profiles (if you want), and home address.

From there, you will need to make a profile, which includes uploading a photo, writing a description about yourself, and, if you want, making an introductory video.

If you’re ready to get started, here’s where you can apply.

Rover

If you’re over 18 and want to signup for Rover, make an account by providing the relevant information, such as your name, phone number, email address, mailing address, etc.

You’ll then need to make a profile and decide your rates. It’s smart to start low and then go up as you get more clients.

Here’s a link to the signup page if you are interested in working as a pet watcher or sitter.

Udemy

To start teaching on Udemy, the process is quite simple. You need to provide just your name and email address to make an account.

From there, you will need to fill out your profile and design your course, which will take time. But getting registered with Udemy takes all of about two minutes.

For more details about how to get yourself set up as a Premium Instructor, here’s a resource that provides you with everything you need to know.

Bellhops

To become a Bellhops mover or driver, you’ll need to meet some basic requirements. If you meet those requirements, you’ll also be interviewed to make sure you meet Bellhops standards.

From there, you will need to give Bellhops permission to run background checks on you and indicate which shifts you’d be willing to work. To start this process, click here.

Chapter 5

How to Maximize Your Earnings

Learning how to increase your earnings in the ever-growing lifestyle industry.

All of the different services we’ve discussed give you the chance to make some extra money, but for those looking to get the most out of your time, consider the following tips for maximizing your money:

In the care industry, you can maximize your earnings on each platform by doing the following:


In the care industry, you can maximize your earnings on each platform by doing the following:

For Care.com, you can make more by getting background checks and certifications so that you can offer more services and win more jobs.

For Papa, you can bump up your earnings by:

  • Doing more than five visits per week to earn a $20 bonus
  • Working more than 15 hours a week to earn a $50 bonus
  • Driving further to work, and also during your visit, to take advantage of Papa’s generous gas compensation.

For Urbansitters, you can earn more money by getting a background check and posting it to your profile. Also, try linking your social media profiles so that you can win jobs from past clients’ friends and families.

For Rover, make more cash by upping your rates over time as you get more customers and build up your profile. Also try to diversify your income by offering more services, such as overnight pet sitting. Here’s a full guide to making more money with Rover.

For Udemy, become a Premium Instructor so that you can charge premium rates. Over time, it could be worth it to develop more comprehensive courses so that you can charge more.

With Bellhops movers, your opportunities to earn above the standard rate are limited. The best way to do this is from tips, and you get these by providing customers with exceptional customer service.

To make more on TaskRabbit, you will need to offer more services and also slowly increase your rates as you get reviews and recommendations from previous clients.

Chapter 6

How to Enter Promo Codes

Save some money on any of these services by using a promo code. Here’s
how.

Promo codes are great because they give you free stuff, and let’s face it, who doesn’t love free stuff?

When entering promo codes with these companies, know this doesn’t affect how much the person you’re hiring gets paid. You spend less, but they earn the same, so don’t worry about selling anyone short.

Here’s how to enter promo codes for each of the services in the care/lifestyle industry:


Care.com

Most promo codes for Care.com are for upgrading to a premium membership, which allows you more options when posting and responding to jobs.

There are also many promo codes for parents and other people looking for care providers. Check out this list of Care.com promo codes for a full rundown.

Papa

Promo codes for Papa will give you access to discounted services. You enter them in the app or on the website right before you hire a Pal for a visit.

UrbanSitter

To redeem promo codes for UrbanSitter, you will need to log in to your account. Click on the drop-down menu and choose “Credits.” This will bring you to a page where you enter the code you have, and that’s it.

Promo codes can be used to access discounts on memberships as well as to pay for babysitters.

Rover

Rover promo codes get entered during the payment step when you’re ordering a service. A box will appear for you to enter the code, and then all you need to do is click “Redeem” to enjoy the discounts associated with that promotion.

Udemy

To redeem promo codes with Udemy, go to the course you in which you want to enroll. At the bottom of the signup form, there will be a link that says “Have a Coupon?”

Click on it and then enter the code. The discount will be applied to the course, and you pay the difference by clicking on “Buy Now.”

Bellhops

Enter discount codes on the checkout screen when booking moving services. Currently, Bellhops only allows one code per order, so keep this in mind when redeeming discounts.