Some odd job ideas please
By moonchild1au
@moonchild1au (6240)
Australia
November 15, 2010 4:00am CST
My friend & I are going to start up a business & are trying to come up with some other ideas...basically, our business is doing odd jobs for people - we live in a beachside town where the majority of the population is either the elderly or young families & we are both stay at home moms. So far, our list of things we can do is:
Office cleaning
house cleaning
catering (parties, funerals)
Alcohol servicing for parties (we both have our service licence)
de-cluttering
laundry/ironing/folding
dog washing/walking
watering plants/weeding/gardening
Filing paperwork
grocery shopping (for elderly, disabled, etc)
lawn mowing
job matching
data entry for businesses
resume writing/cover letter writing
rubbish removal
house washing
gift basket making
driveway/patio/pathway washing
packing houses for relocation
We are basically going to list the crappy jobs that no one likes to do themselves. We will start off small & once our business grows, we will expand like buying a car/van & other such equipment. My friend has owned businesses for 16 years or more so she will teach me that side of it. Can you think of any other jobs that we could possibly add to the list?
Also, we are trying to think of a name for the business...has to be short & catchy...what can you think of?
1 person likes this
7 responses
@tovk12 (234)
• India
15 Nov 10
You could also add paying bills and getting groceries and other shopping done for people. Usually the elderly are not able to carry the heavy items and the young are too busy and will not have the time. You could also include gift shopping. You could help people find unique gifts for their loved ones.
1 person likes this
@moonchild1au (6240)
• Australia
15 Nov 10
Thanks for reminding me that my friend had suggested paying bills but I hadn't added it to the list...I have added the gift shopping to the list too - these are great ideas 
@marguicha (216507)
• Chile
15 Nov 10
I cannot think of any other job at home. You are a couple of busy bees.
About names, how about a name with the word "bee" there? Or "Off chore" instead of offshore? I hope your business works out fine!
.
About names, how about a name with the word "bee" there? Or "Off chore" instead of offshore? I hope your business works out fine!@moonchild1au (6240)
• Australia
15 Nov 10
I like the name Off Chore...I am going to suggest that to my friend in the morning & see what she thinks.
@moonchild1au (6240)
• Australia
15 Nov 10
You are welcome...I really like the name & to tell you the truth, you type/talk like English is your first language
@marguicha (216507)
• Chile
15 Nov 10
I´m flattered that you are even considering my suggestion!. Although I have a love affair with language, English is not my native language so it means a lot for me. Thank you.
. Although I have a love affair with language, English is not my native language so it means a lot for me. Thank you.
@gdesjardin (1918)
• United States
16 Nov 10
My son and I were thinking about doing something similar. We wanted to be a Concierge Service of sorts. Of course, he dumped that idea as soon as he got his great computer tech job with benefits and great pay...so much for mom! Anyways, I think it would be a great idea. The nice think with a business like this you have little overhead. We too live in more of a retirement community, and there is a big retirement community on the mountain as well. The elderly people don't want to drive up and down the mountain to run errands, so for my area it would be perfect. I guess I have to wait until the other kids get old enough to help out..lol. I wish you luck on your new business venture.
@macdingolinger (10386)
• United States
15 Nov 10
It looks like you have a pretty good list started already. i might add other types of yard work like raking leaves or planting seasonal plants. Maybe trimming trees and bushes too! And maybe sitting with a person so the caregiver can get out for a little while.
@moonchild1au (6240)
• Australia
15 Nov 10
The other yard work you have suggested I had thought of but just decided to include that in general gardening...Carer relief is a great idea - I know we would need our first aid certificate for that but that's not too hard to get.
@NoWayRo (1061)
• Romania
15 Nov 10
Good luck with your new business, sounds like a really nice idea.
I can tell you that I've been looking for people to help me out with some stuff I have in my house, and couldn't find anybody here so far, maybe this gives you more ideas.
Basically I want to sort out, pack and deliver things I want to give away to charity, mostly books and clothes, but I was looking for people who would sort them out carefully - check if the clothes are in good condition, wash & iron them, sort through the books for some very specific titles I want to keep, throw away those that are torn apart and have missing pages, and so on.
I think a de-cluttering service is a great idea, but I can tell you it's very time consuming. I've already spent two weekends on this and I've done about ten percent of what I have stored in my house.
@moonchild1au (6240)
• Australia
15 Nov 10
What you are wanting is part of what we want our business to offer...I know decluttering is time consuming - I have been decluttering my belongings in & off for the past 3 years & moreso in the past 2 months but in saying this, I can only get into it properly when my 3 1/2 year old daughter is at kindy.
@maximumgravity1 (245)
• United States
15 Nov 10
Especially with an elderly community, just adding companionship is a benefit. Many times when older people have slight disabilities, it can lead to doubting themselves. Even offering cooking service or "companion walking" service might be of help. My wife has run into this numerous times in cleaning for older people. Sometimes just knowing someone else is around helps things go more smoothly for them.
Also, look into what some of the more active retirement communities are offering. People like to gather together, maybe even organizing walks, or public chat and discussion forums might be a hit. My suggestion is find the need of the community, fill that need, and the money will follow.
@moonchild1au (6240)
• Australia
15 Nov 10
They are some really good ideas which I have put to my friend & she seems to like some of them too.
@nobbsy123 (851)
• Australia
15 Nov 10
bookkeeping taxation/tax returns/ business activity statements
myob
catering business
basic computer repair
painting houses, roofs
a few more ideas
@moonchild1au (6240)
• Australia
15 Nov 10
Thanks for the ideas - I will write them down...we're not qualified with the tax & bas but I'm sure we can do something like sort the paperwork out for the person/business to get it ready.
