One of the biggest perks of being a Tasker is having flexibility over when you work. Your tasking schedule is all about you. The highest demand for Taskers is on weekends, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t plenty of tasks during the week to tackle. Regardless of when or how frequently you decide to task, keeping your calendar up to date is necessary to keep your metrics high and show the most accurate availability to TaskRabbit clients.
We’ve gathered five top tips to help keep your clients coming back and your schedule in perfect order. Continue reading to learn more!
1. Set Your Schedule and Update It
You can set your schedule up to 17 days in advance. The more time you have available, the higher your chances are of getting a task invitation from clients. But the further in advance you set your Tasker schedule, the higher your chances of having a schedule conflict that can hurt your business metrics. If you do set your schedule in advance, be sure to update your availability frequently to avoid receiving tasks you aren’t available to complete.
Note that most tasks take at least 2.5 hours of time to complete (including travel time), so we require that you set at least 2.5 hours of availability in order to get hired for a task in any given time block.
So, your availability must account for:
- 30 min travel time before any task
- 2 hours of time blocked for the task
For a block of 8am – 4pm availability…
- The earliest you’d be asked to start a task is 8:30am
- The latest you’d be asked start a task is 2pm
If a conflict arises after you’ve already scheduled a task, let your client know as soon as possible to see if the task can be rescheduled for another day or time.Pro tip: Most clients search for Taskers on Mondays, when they’re planning out their week. It can help to finalize your calendar availability by Sunday each week to maximize your earning potential.
2. Monitor Your Same Day Tasking Schedule
To make sure you don’t receive a Same Day task first thing in the morning, your Same Day toggle is automatically turned off at midnight every night. To start receiving Same Day tasks, simply navigate to the “Home” screen of your app and click “Same Day Invitations.” If you haven’t already done so, you can set your Same Day-specific preferences for your availability, work area map, and categories.
Remember: You’re more or less “on call” when you activate Same Day invitations, and it’s essential that you respond to these invitations within one hour. If you’ve opted into Same Day tasking, make sure your notifications are on, and check your app frequently for updates.
3. Adjust Your Map as Needed
Just as important as setting your calendar availability is setting a work area for your map — which you can set separately for Same Day and non-Same Day tasks.
Consider making your Same Day map smaller than your regular map to ensure you can easily get from task to task in a short period of time.
4. Add travel-time buffers between tasks.
A great way to start a task off on the right foot is to add travel-time buffers between each task. Your Tasker app will automatically set a 30-minute travel-time buffer before and after each task appointment by removing any overlapping availability. You can add, remove, or edit this buffer by further adjusting your availability.
Some Taskers bike to tasks; some drive; and some use public transportation. Whichever method you choose, you should consider how much buffer time you need between each task so you can stick to your schedule. If there are unforeseen traffic circumstances, be sure to communicate this to your client so they can know when to expect you.
Regardless of traffic patterns, one thing is certain: showing up on time is a key indicator of great customer service and can go a long way toward building trust with your client.
5. Triple Check Your Tasker Schedule After Booking a Task
Check your schedule after booking a new task to make sure you’re still happy with the remaining availability you have set for that day.
Some tasks can run over time, so it’s a best practice to make sure you’ve added the right amount of time buffer to allow for traveling between tasks.
You’re the master of your own schedule. It’s the backbone of your business on TaskRabbit and the better you manage it, the better experience you—and your clients—will have.
