The principle behind the sharing economy – the newest, coolest and most eco-friendly form of consumerism out there, is simple: why pay too much for something when you could pay just a little and still get the same goods or services? Money saving strategies are at the core of every urban house wife, especially those mums with new born babies.
How it Works
We’ve been sharing things with our friends and family for years and now, we’re sharing them with strangers. Although you might still have some reservations about the sharing economy, as more and more people start to contribute and more and more companies get on board, regulations in the industry are increasing and consumers are becoming more comfortable with the idea of sharing with people from all over the world. You opportunities to make or save money are around the corner.
More sharing startups crop up every day from home sharing and rent a room sites to taxi firms, car hire and clothing hire companies. You can now hire pretty much anything you can buy, which has benefits for everyone involved. The matchmaker companies – those who team up consumers and owners – can take a cut of the hire cost. The owners benefit from making a little extra money by hiring out goods that they might not use all that frequently and consumers can save money by hiring goods directly from an owner, rather than from a larger commercial company. This way, house wives can save money by paying only for what they use.
Practical Examples
The sharing economy boom has largely coincided with the massive increase in smartphone ownership. When you’re on the move, it’s really easy to hire a room on your phone with the help of GPS and location tracking – online payment systems such as Paypal can take care of payments and billing and online review sites mean that consumers can hire from trustworthy owners. It’s now easier than ever before to share, and to share on a massive scale.
Although the sharing economy is still mainly peers hiring to peers, it’s likely that many people and companies will turn hiring goods and services into a business – for example, buying a car or a holiday home solely for the purposes of hiring it out. Those with a large budget could invest in a large quantity of the most-hired goods and will enjoy an instant return on their investment – benefitting the consumers as well as the owners, so everyone wins.
How to Get Involved?
If you have goods or services that you want to hire out, placing free classified ads with Hire Jungle is as easy as can be. Just fill out the form, include a few images and wait for the enquiries to come rolling in. House wives can also use HireJungle Marketplace to compare prices and hire the right item locally.