KiddyUp: The Crowdsourcing App That Makes Parenting Easier, And Cheaper

It takes a village to raise a child — an Internet village, that is, according to Zoe Bermant, co-creator of a new Israeli-made app called KiddyUp. “There’s lots of information on the Internet there that moms can’t get to because they are strapped for time. They can’t spend hours doing research. And there are lots of things they would like to do or buy for their kids but can’t because they’re strapped for cash, and need help finding bargains,” said Bermant. “By bringing all the information, offers, and discounts relevant for moms in one place, KiddyUp makes it easier for moms to raise their families.”

If there’s any market that could be considered mature, it’s the one made up of young mothers of infants, toddlers, and early elementary-school age kids. It’s a demographic pounded day and night with media advertisements from diaper companies, toy manufacturers, cereal producers, and the many other industries that supply goods and services for babies and children. There’s plenty of mommy-baby action online as well; there are thousands of forums and chat groups where mothers can exchange tips, buy and sell baby buggies, swap recipes, and commiserate over how difficult it is, or how much they love, raising kids.

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The thing is, said Bermant, there is no single marketplace that brings together all these elements. That’s the gap KiddyApp seeks to fill. “We have an app, and a web site, and a widget system for including our information on other sites,” Bermant said. “It’s the first overall information system that brings together diverse sources of information that will make it easier for parents to raise their kids.”

KiddyUp aims to gather offers and coupons from major manufacturers for products moms buy for their kids (diapers, clothing, school supplies, etc.), as well as from local businesses. The app has a Waze-like interface, reading the user’s location and showing the offers available in that area (on non-GPS chip-equipped devices, like computers, users will be able to input their location).

In addition, the app and site includes information on activities in the area, and provides a marketplace for parents to swap, buy and sell needed and unneeded items (like car safety seats a child has outgrown), along with the tip and chat forums where users can share and crowdsource helpful information. For example, said Bermant, if a mom sees that diapers are on sale at a certain store, they can inform other moms in the area with a single message (called a “toot,” said Bermant) that will show up not only in the KiddyUp community, but on the user’s registered social networks like Twitter and Facebook.
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This article was first published on The Times of Israel and was re-posted with permission. To continue reading this article on their site, click here.

Photo: KiddyUp