Ask The Entrepreneurs is a regular series where members of those involved in the Young Entrepreneur Council are asked a single question that aims to help Lifehack readers level up their own lives, whether in a area of management, communication, business or life in general.
Here’s the question posed in this edition of Ask The Entrepreneurs:
Shared economy is big business. Name one sharing service that’s catching a buzz among your fellow business owners for making life easier.
1. SittingAround for Mompreneurs
Babysitting coops is a concept that many mompreneurs find interesting in the early stages of startup when you can’t justify paying a babysitter or nanny, but you also can’t justify not. Sharing the responsibility with other trusted parents is a great way to work around the expense of childcare while building your business. Services like SittingAround makes it easier to manage!
– Jennifer Donogh, Young Female Entrepreneurs
2. Soar With SurfAir
SurfAir is getting a lot of buzz, despite not having launched or owning any planes yet. The concept is simple — “all you can fly” short-haul routes on small, private planes for a flat monthly fee, without all the hassles of big airports or the TSA. I’m hoping they succeed; it’s a great and very disruptive idea.
– Matt Mickiewicz, Flippa and 99designs
3. Exec Offers Assistant
Exec, a new startup, allows you to hire an assistant for $25 per hour. A few of my startup friends use the service when they need to quickly increase temporary staff (i.e. during a big sales day). Another uses Exec staff to run personal errands, thereby freeing up the entrepreneur’s time to run her business. Sharing an hourly assistant provides incredible flexibility for startups.
– Aaron Schwartz, Modify Watches
4. Carpool Through Ridejoy
Collaborative consumption meets carpooling with Ridejoy, an awesome service that helps you find and share rides with friendly people across the country. Sounds scary, maybe, but it disrupts a market that too many people trust to Craigslist and opens up an entirely new one.
5. TaskRabbit Gets It Done
TaskRabbit, the site that helps you get tasks done efficiently, is part of the collaborative consumption economy. Anyone can post a task that needs completion, and other people on the platform can bid to complete the task. Whether someone needs a courier, an editor, or someone to help set up IKEA furniture for the office, TaskRabbit is used a lot by business owners.
6. Overnight With Airbnb
Business owners today are more mobile than ever, and sometimes we feel like we don’t have a home when going from hotel to hotel. Airbnb still allows us to stay in a home in the cities we’re traveling to and do it for rates that often trump the best deals you can get in a hotel. In the next few months, I’ll be in NYC a lot, and I’ll use Airbnb and the reviews there to locate where I’ll stay.
7. Coworking With Regus
Shared office space is great for small business owners who don’t have the money for an actual office, or for those who simply don’t need one. I used a shared space via Regus for several meetings with local clients. Also, sharing office space can provide you with a professional network, as you work side-by-side with like-minded individuals.
– Andrew Schrage, Money Crashers Personal Finance
8. Settle Down via DeskWanted
DeskWanted helps you find coworking spaces all around the world, which is fantastic for us entrepreneurs who are always en route. It helps you find coworking spaces that you can work at for the day, or meeting spaces to meet with clients or partners in the city you’re in.
– Natalie MacNeil, She Takes on the World
9. Drive Anywhere Wtih Zipcar
Owning a car can be expensive for an entrepreneur trying to save money and stay lean. With Zipcar, I don’t have to worry about parking, gas, insurance, or maintenance! I can get to all my meetings and save money!
– Bhavin Parikh, Magoosh Test Prep
10. SnapGoods for Gadgets
SnapGoods allows you to easy and safely rent/borrow gear or gadgets for as short as a day. It’s a great way to try out a product before buying it or rent a bike for the day.
11. Hire Help Through Zirtual
My Zirtual assistant saves me a ton of time each day. Given the excess demand for the service, you can’t sign up unless a current client invites you. If you message me, I’ll gladly help!
– Kevon Saber, Fig
(Photo credit: US Dollars with Coins in Front via Shutterstock)
