I started following the story of TaskRabbit a couple months ago and briefly mentioned it on the work at home jobs page. I decided this innovative and growing company definitely deserves a full write up as it could be a nice source of extra income for many of you – if not now, then soon (you’ll see why I say that as you read through the post).
I want to mention ahead of time, that while most of the feedback I’ve read about the company has been positive, there are concerns that people have expressed that warrant looking into further. I cover those at the end of the article. If there are other questions or concerns you have after reading the article, please post them in the comments section and I’ll try to get the answers for you.
What TaskRabbit Does – It’s Much More Than Just “Helping People Run Errands”
Many articles about TaskRabbit mistakenly state that the company “helps people run errands”. That was my first impression as well. However, as I learned more about the company, watched its videos, read through its success stories, I realized it is MUCH more than that.
In fact, the TaskRabbit stated mission is:
“Our mission is to connect busy people with entrepreneurs who can help them get things done. In the process, we’re bringing back that old time neighborhood spirit.”
Once you get to know more about the company, you’ll quickly see it’s not just about “helping people run errands”. I’ve looked through their member stories and have seen a successful task matchups of all kinds including:
- Getting paid to plant trees.
- Getting paid to get bikes ready for road travel.
- Dog walking
- Scanning Receipts
- Grocery Shopping
- Organizing Family Photos
- Organizing QuickBooks
So, no matter what your background, skills, or experience, there’s likely to be some sort of task that you’re qualified to do.
Questions And Answers About TaskRabbit – Interview With Founder Leah Brusque
The following video is a brief overview of TaskRabbit. I’ve included the video time segments that correspond to each question and answer section:
- What is TaskRabbit? (1″ – 28″)
- How Does TaskRabbit ensure safety for its users? (29″ – 49″)
- How did you come up with the concept of Task Rabbit? (50″ – 1’24”)
- What is TaskRabbit’s vision? (1’25” – 2’34”)
- How much growth is TaskRabbit Experiencing? (2’35” – 3’03”)
- Where is TaskRabbit Based & What Is Your Expansion Strategy? (3’04” – 3’51”)
- Who are the TaskRabbits and TaskPosters? (3’52” – 4’28”)
- How do people use TaskRabbit? (4’29” – 6’07”)
- What’s the most innovative task you’ve seen on TaskRabbit? (
Why TaskRabbit May Be Coming To Your Area Soon
As of this article, TaskRabbit is available in certain metropolitan areas of the following states:
- California
- Illinois
- Massachusetts
- New York
- Oregon
- Texas
- Washington
You can keep track of their expansion on their TaskRabbit Directory here.
So why do I say they may be coming to your area soon?
Because they have stated their plans to enter many U.S. cities. They’ve also indicated their plan to start expanding to London and Vancouver. because they are getting the funding to help them carry out their vision:
- It raised 1.8 million dollars in funding within a couple of years.
- May of 2011 – closed a 5 million dollars round of financing lead by Shasta Ventures
- December of 2011 – closed an additional 17.8 million dollars round of funding.
Not only have they been successful in raising money for their venture, but in Januaray 2012 TaskRabbit acquired SkillSlate – a similar company with “a focus on skill-based and artistic tasks – including personal training, tutoring, DJing and even fire dancing.”
Concerns About TaskRabbit
While feedback about the company seems to be mainly positive, here are some concerns some people have expressed about TaskRabbit (note: I do not know if any of these concerns are valid at this point):
- Concern that because of the auction process some TaskRabbits end up getting paid very poorly.
- Claims of excessive markups by the TaskRabbit company.
- Concerns about lack of financial transparency
- Concerns about screening of the TaskPosters
TaskRabbit founder, Leigh Busque addressed most of those concerns in her reply here to this article about a somewhat unhappy TaskRabbit. Personally, I found the article quite bizarre – and while it did raise possible concerns, most of the article consisted of the unhappy TaskRabbit contradicting themself several times and clearly not understanding how the TaskPoster review process operates.
Are There Questions Or Concerns You Have About TaskRabbit?
This is a young company and I only recently started paying attention to it. I like the concept, but I would like to look into some of the concerns that I’ve run across – especially about the transparency of the markup amounts. If you have any other questions or concerns, please post them in the comments section and I’ll try to find out what I can either through research or through contacting the company directly.
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