Adam Montgomery. Contributed photo.
People who are busy or are older often need things done but can’t do them or get to them themselves. It could be something as simple as hanging a picture or weeding a flower bed, or a more time-consuming endeavor such as cutting the grass or mending a fence.
That’s where Adam Montgomery hopes ChoreTask comes in.
ChoreTask is a web-based app – there is not a version that can be downloaded – that is accessible at ChoreTask.com or the ChoreTask Facebook page. It aims to connect people who need things done with people who can do them.
“The interesting thing about ChoreTask is it kind of flips it around so that the person that needs the job done, they say, ‘Here’s the budget,’ and then someone who’s willing to do the job can come in and say, ‘Well, that’s a lot of work, I can do it for this amount.’ There’s an open negotiation there,” said Montgomery, of Brookfield, who created the service.
Sure, you could post a job on Facebook or Nextdoor, but ChoreTask takes away the “social noise” of social media, he said.
“It’s easy for people to get into arguments online over stupid stuff,” Montgomery said. With ChoreTask, “The conversation revolves around the job itself. It’s not members contact each other. People post something and (other people) make offers on it.”
There is no cost to post a task. If there is an agreement to do a job, ChoreTask collects 17 percent of the agreed-on price, with a minimum charge of $2.50, he said.
A task does not have to be a physical one, such as cutting the grass. It could be to post a review, or coach someone through a task he or she can do on their own, but don’t have the knowledge to accomplish, Montgomery said.
ChoreTask launched in mid-July and Montgomery has promoted it by handing out informational cards at places he goes to and events.
“Everyone I spoke to, they just loved the idea because there is that need there,” he said. “It’s something I genuinely hope builds more community.”
