How to Write The Most Effective Listing on Nanny Websites

July 28, 2016

Our customer support manager, Freya, has literally seen millions of nanny and family listings in years of experience with CanadianNanny.ca. She has seen what it takes to create listings that get noticed. So whether you are looking for a nanny or nanny job you’ll want to check out her tips on how to write the most effective profile or job description on a self-serve nanny website.

How To Get The Most Out of Your Listing on CanadianNanny.ca

We often get asked the questions…

“How can I improve my job post?”

“What should I include in my nanny profile?”

“How can I bring more attention to my listing?”

Well, you have asked and we shall deliver!

If you find that your listing is not getting the attention you need or expected, we suggest you take a look at the top tips we have outlined below on how to improve your listing which should help get you noticed and bring in some great candidates.

And for you job seekers, these pointers can also help get families noticing you and potentially landing you those most anticipated interviews!

There are four critical areas of your profile that you should take a second look at, and they are as follows:

  1. Headline
  2. Profile Photo
  3. Description
  4. Details

Headline

Your headline is one of the first things your prospective matches will see and so you will want to make sure you’ve got one that stands out from the rest to entice people into reading more about you; just like with any good book or movie title.

In all seriousness, no matter your headline, you’ll want to follow these suggestions…

Headline Recommendations

  • Use proper capitalization (not all caps, not all lowercase)
  • Try to be unique
  • Be specific
  • Be descriptive

Headline Examples

For families, examples of good nanny job description headlines include

  • “Seeking Energetic Nanny for 3 Busy Boys/Girls/Children”
  • “Looking for a Fun Nanny for Full-time, Live-out Position”
  • “After-school Nanny Needed for 2 Great Kids!”
  • “Need Experienced, French-Speaking Nanny for Bilingual Family”
  • “Seeking Amazing Nanny to Join Our Family - Full-time, Live-in!”

For nannies/babysitters, examples of good nanny profile headlines include

  • “Experienced Nanny Available for the Summer”
  • “Patient and Loving Nanny Available Immediately - Flexible Hours!”
  • “Qualified and Dependable Nanny You Can Trust”
  • “Outgoing Nanny Who Loves to Have Fun!”
  • “Date Night Sitter - Available Evenings and Weekends”

Profile Photo

It is completely optional to upload a profile photo, but did you know that listings with a photo get seen 5x more than those without!

Families and nannies alike appreciate being able to see who they are messaging and this also makes it easier for them to remember who they’ve reached out to.

Avoid using “glamour shot” style photos.

Cautionary note to nannies: If you decide to use a photo that includes a child or children that is/are not your own, please make sure you have permission from their family before you post it on your profile!

“Listings with photos get 5x the exposure than those without!”

Description

Now that you’ve captured the attention of your potential match, your listing’s description plays an important role in getting them to actually want to reach out to you.

Families (Nanny Job Descriptions)

You will want to make your requirements clear and upfront for the nanny so they will have a better idea of whether or not they will qualify for what you are looking for.

Some things you should include

Availability required:

Are you needing full-time, part-time, or occasional care? Short-term or long-term? Do you need just before and after school care or the full day or just evenings? Weekdays only? Weekends only?

You should try to be as specific as possible and include what hours of the day you will need and which days of the week if you already know this ahead of time, as well as include an anticipated start date (i.e. a particular date or ASAP). This will help the nanny know if they can even be available for when you need them.

Tasks required:

This is where some families can get a little carried away and sometimes actually scare off candidates! While you want to outline what tasks or duties you are to be done, you don’t want to include every single detail and possibly overwhelm the nanny before they’ve even started. Just stick to the basics and cover those minor details during the interview or when you’re going over your contract with the nanny. Some basic things you can include are if you need help with meal preparation, driving the children to/from school or activities, light housekeeping, homework supervision, etc.

Experience and Qualifications required:

Here you can include whether you require the nanny or babysitter to have “X” number of years of previous childcare experience, have their First Aid and/or CPR, a driver’s license, clean criminal record check, any additional languages, experience with any special needs or allergies, etc.

Wage:

Including a wage or even just a wage range can make your position more attractive to nannies.

We usually see the average wage for a live-in nanny falls between about $11-$16 per hour and about $12-18 per hour for a live-out nanny, depending on the experience and qualifications of the individual, as well as your position requirements (i.e. number/age of children, duties, hours, etc.).

The wage is always negotiable between you and the nanny but it is required they be paid at least the minimum wage of your province, and you should compensate for additional housekeeping duties as well as any special skills and/or experience they may have.

For an updated list of the provincial minimum wages across Canada, please visit the Government of Canada’s website here.

Nannies (Nanny Profiles)

Your listing acts like your resume and helps families get a feel for what you’re all about and if you’re just the right candidate they are looking for.

Some things you should include

An introduction:

You don’t need to tell your life’s story but you should make a friendly introduction to prospective families and let them know why you are interested in doing childcare and what your passions are. This is where you can really try to set yourself apart and sell yourself!

Availability:

Families want to know when you’re available - whether you are seeking full-time, part-time, or only certain hours of certain days, etc. Are you available to start right away or are you only available after a certain date? Also, are you available for short-term or long-term? Try to be as clear as possible.

Experience and Qualifications:

As mentioned previously, your listing is similar to your resume and so you will definitely want to include what experiences and/or special skills you have with child care. What ages of children have you cared for? What sort of duties were you expected to perform? Do you have any special training or certificates that pertain to caring for children (i.e. babysitter course, First Aid/CPR, ECE, etc.)? Try to avoid including work history that doesn’t pertain to child care.

Wage/Rate:

Including an expected wage or rate can help families have a better financial judgement of what it may cost them should they decide to hire you. This can minimize wasted efforts and precious time (for both you and the family) should they not be able to afford what you’re asking.

Be aware that you don’t want to set your rates too high where families will just move on to the next profile, but you also don’t want to undersell yourself should you have great experience and qualifications.

Wages are always negotiable between you and the family, but it is required you are paid at least the minimum wage of your province. In addition to your qualifications, your rate can also depend on the job requirements (i.e. number/age of children, duties, hours, etc.).

Generally, the average wage for a live-in nanny falls between about $11-$16 per hour and about $12-18 per hour for a live-out nanny.

For an updated list of the provincial minimum wages across Canada, please visit the Government of Canada’s website here.

Details

Your “Family/Nanny Details” section of your listing is also important to complete as much as possible. You may have already outlined most of your details in your description, but you will still want to check off as many of the boxes that apply to you. The more boxes you select in this section, the more searchable your listing becomes when matches are conducting their search using our filters.

We Are Always Here to Help!

Although we may be a self-serve service, we are still very much devoted to helping families and caregivers succeed in their search for a match. Our customer support team is always here and happy to offer any advice to our potential and existing customers.

We at CanadianNanny.ca understand it can be stressful trying to find the perfect nanny or child care provider. Not only is it stressful for those seeking help, but it can be stressful for the nannies seeking work as well.

Although we have more nanny jobs than any other Canadian nanny service, in most cases, nanny profiles will outnumber the jobs available so there can be high competition depending on the area.

We hope that our tips above will help ease some of this stress, give you the confidence to create an amazing listing and help you find that perfect match! Now go…

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