Show HN: Get Maid - Uber for Maid Service in NYC
getmaid.com
getmaid.com
It's a good idea -- maid service can be commoditized, and particularly if you need a last-minute sort of thing, it seems smart. It's also notoriously difficult to find a good maid without playing the traditional "networking" game -- referrals, Craigslist, etc.
Personally, however, I see this only as a fill-in-the-gaps kind of service (which may be exactly what they're looking to provide). I have a regular maid who's been working at my place for 6+ years, charges a very reasonable rate ($25/hr), and most importantly, knows the apartment inside and out - exactly where to clean, how I like it, how to do the laundry, etc.
The biggest issue I see is the risk of extra-market activity. Whereas with Uber, car service is a true commodity, if Get Maid sends over a really terrific maid, there's a good chance that the buyer and maid are going to make a private arrangement for future work and cut Get Maid out of the deal. Which leads back to the ideal model being speed and "non-regular" usage.
Unless Get Maid can provide the users and maids with enough useful features that they see a value in keeping the long-term-arrangement through the system.
e.g. convenient (recurring) payment processing, giving maids increased visibility in one-off job searches based on number of long-term relationships, centralizing maid scheduling [1], factoring maid schedules into one-off job availability, factoring required commute time/distance into job feasibility [2], seamless arrangement of Maid-approved 'fill-in' Maids when they need to take time off or something comes up, centralized 'gig notes' that would be made accessible to any in-system fill-in maids [3], etc.
There's plenty of opportunity for Get Maid to make a compelling pitch to keep everything in-system.
[1] keys being: allowing the maid to set 'availability' to reflect their personal-life scheduling demands (including vacations and such), keeping all job schedules in one place, automatically keeping this calendar up-to-date on their smartphone, etc.
[2] A maid may technically be available at 3pm for another job, but if the 3pm job is uptown and she just wrapped a weekly 2pm gig downtown, it's not going to work. Keeping everything in-system will spare users the hassle of contacting maids who can't actually make the scheduled time and spare the maids the hassle of seeing jobs they can't actually take.
[3] how the client likes the laundry done, high-traffic areas, etc.
Demetri from Get Maid here...
This is something that has traditionally been a problem in the maid sector. It's not perfect, but we take several steps to minimize this. On the customer side, we provide things that individual maids can't, such as on-demand booking and cashless payments. All of our maids are also bonded and insured so if something breaks by accident, you’re covered; individual maids rarely are. On the maid side, we give maids an opportunity to fill their idle time by getting them bookings on days/time that they are not very busy and/or are close to their current location. In addition, we pay an above-average rate (which also helps us recruit quality maids).
If you are home and see that your house needs to be cleaned, you are probably near a computer. This isnt like Uber where you need to use their service across town. They have just alienated a bunch or their potential user base by just being on iOS (for now, ok whatever). But that's just me.
Here is the link to the app in itunes: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/get-maid/id561621297?mt=8
1) only needs maid service occasionally, and not on a fixed schedule
2) needs maid service fast, when they do need it
3) is willing to take a risk on the quality, and hoping that the premium price they pay is an indication that they'll get quality service.
So ... I'm thinking the target audience is bachelors, people who don't frequently entertain at home, etc.
The one thing that would worry me, as a customer, is whether the by-the-hour payment model might tempt the maids to work slower.
They purposefully work slower, they don't come next time.
The substitution of "maid" doesn't help.
The ratings in the App store (all 5 stars, all glowing and highlighting different aspects/application of the service) are a bit fishy...
We have a regular housekeeper that comes just twice a month but it would be great -- especially once we have kids -- to be able to get an on-demand maid the morning after a dinner party or a kids sleepover or whatever.
We love Uber, and I'd love to try this out.
1. Is it not possible to schedule one using the website? I'm too lazy to download an app and 3G at my office is terrible.
2. If the maid steals something, can I file a claim with you?