DoMyStuff.com: Let the World Be Your Assistant

Can you outsource your life? David Davin thinks so.

Davin is COO of DoMyStuff.com, a Beverly Hills-based online community where busy people can find someone else to do their chores and errands. Need someone to fix a dripping faucet? Just post your task on DoMyStuff.com, wait for the community to bid, and pick your assistant.

"Our lives are supposedly getting simpler with the advent of technology, but most people find themselves busier than ever," Davin says. "Everything comes together to form a white noise that distracts you from what's important."

The site started as a joke between founders Darren Berkovitz and Stacy Stubblefield. "Berkovitz said he wished he could outsource finding a girlfriend," Davin says. "He and Stacy had a good chuckle but when the laughter subsided, they thought, 'Why not?'"

A DoMyStuff.com member can be an employer, an assistant, or both. Employers can choose based on price, location, expertise, satisfaction rating, or the assistant's job history. Once an assistant is chosen, the employer puts money into an escrow account so the assistant knows it's there. Then work can begin. Afterward, the employer releases the funds from escrow to the assistant's account and employer and assistant can rate each other. DoMyStuff.com takes a percentage of each transaction.

"We don't think employers and assistants are mutually exclusive," Davin explains. "You can be both. If you're a plumber you can find work at DoMyStuff, while outsourcing that which is distracting you. It can free you from the trouble of mowing the lawn or fixing the house."

DoMyStuff.com is free for employers and assistants. The business is in its sixth month and now has 40,000 users. Tasks listed recently at the site ranged from installing an electronic dog fence to writing an erotic story.

Davin sums up the business's success with one word: persistence. "We encourage a sense of urgency, whether it's a big or small task. But we also realize that patience is the spine of that urgency. You have to have a balance between the two."

The number of DoMyStuff members continues to increase, along with interest from investors. "We're talking with a select few groups of venture capital companies," Davin says. "Word keeps spreading. I wouldn't be surprised if the next time you check in with us, we have over 100,000 users."