At Bark.com, we’re all about linking local service professionals with customers looking for help in their area.

One of our service professionals, who has been trading through the site since the beginning of 2017, has reached out to us with a very special request.

We’ve pasted a screenshot of the email and the full text below, take a look:

Hi ,

Hope you’re well.

I’ve been trading through your site as a paranormal investigator for a year or so now, and the majority of my business does come from you guys – most of the requests for my services come through Bark, and I was wondering if you could help me on a request of my own.

On the 31st as I’m sure you’re aware it is Halloween, which many believe stemmed from the Sahmain ritual, and was celebrated during a time dedicated to remembering the dead, and I need five people to accompany me to a graveyard.

I don’t want to reveal too many details here, but I need five people to come to a paranormal hotspot which I discovered recently in Worcestershire. I’ve been researching the area for quite some time, and waiting for the right moment to test my theory, and as the 31st tends to be a more active time for paranormal activity that’s the night I’ve chosen to do it.

I need five people, who I will pay £200 for a night’s work with me. They won’t be required to do anything as such, except follow my instructions and stay at the location all night. It’s also worth noting that they’ll be required to sleep in an inverted pentagram and if they do decide to leave, which they are free to do at any point, they won’t receive payment.

I’m planning on performing various rituals in order to attract spirits near the epicentre of the energy surrounding the area, and will need the five people chosen to participate in them with me. For anyone who is keen to participate, they’ll need to send me detailed background info on their childhood and family history, as well as every tragedy that has occurred in their life.

I’ll be choosing the five people on the 30th October and contacting them on the morning of the 31st via phone, where I will disclose a meeting place and time. From there, we will travel together in my vehicle to the graveyard. Again, it’s worth noting that all participants must travel alone to the location, and if I suspect they’ve disclosed it to anyone else I will be forced to call it off.

I’ll also need detailed feedback the next day, and one week on from the event to see what energy transmitted through each person and what they saw, as well as whether they felt any spiritual presence come over them during the night.

I must stress this is a serious event, and attending should not be taken lightly. We will be calling on spirits and entities from the other side, and if anyone feels they won’t be able to stay for the entire night, I would recommend they don’t put themselves forward.

Other info: I’ll bring food and drink but people will need their own camping equipment. Ideally, and if weather allows, we won’t use tents but October in the UK is known for rain so pays to be prepared.

I know this isn’t typically how your site works, but if you could help me find people willing to attend I would be eternally grateful.

Thank you,

—

If you fancy making £200 and think you’re brave enough to spend the full Halloween night in a graveyard, you can submit your details here. Good luck!

We’re launching a professional service to help you get cast for next year’s Love Island show – the Reality Star Squad.

We decided to launch the service after this year’s Love Island was the most popular yet, with around 85,000 people applying, which is more applicants than Oxford and Cambridge receive combined every year*! Additionally recent research shows 20% of millennials secretly want to be famous**, so there’s obvious demand for a service like this.

You can hire the Reality Star Squad here.

The aim of the squad is to coach those who want to spend the summer of 2019 in the Love Island villa, so they have the best chance of being cast by producers. Some professionals in the squad have had first-hand experience appearing on a show like Love Island and some have worked extensively within the TV and media industry.

The service is aimed predominantly at people aged between 18 and 35 years old, however if you’re older than that you can still hire the team (we’ve only said that because previous Islanders have been between that age group). The Reality Star Squad’s main aim is to give clients the best chance of being noticed by ITV2 producers and appearing on Love Island, using ‘insider’ knowledge of the process, expertise and tips.

Clients will have to surrender their social media profiles to the social media expert, who will tutor them on what type of content to post and assist them with gaining more exposure through platforms like Twitter and Instagram. A personal trainer, wardrobe consultant, hair stylist and make-up artist will get the client in shape if needed and give them a modern makeover in line with the latest trends.

The Reality Star Squad will also teach the client how to do makeup, hair and pick stylish clothes so they can continue their practices after the coaching ends. An acting coach will also be on hand to teach the client how to behave on screen and in scripted situations.

Professionals who work within personal training, acting, social media, make-up, hair styling and fashion can sign up to be a part of the Reality Star Squad here. 

The service costs £500 a month, with a minimum three months of coaching recommended, however that’s up to you! Currently the reality star coaching is only available in London, but we are recruiting for professionals in other areas to make the service available nationwide.  

Kai Feller, co-founder of Bark.com, said,

“Reality TV, and more specifically Love Island, is huge right now. It’s a viable career path for millennials, a lot of money is to be made from these shows, you just have to look at past Love Island contestants to see that. Obviously, we’re not saying everyone who is coached by our Reality Star Squad is guaranteed to end up with fame and fortune, but it will give them the best chance at it.

“Our squad will not only coach clients on how to get noticed by ITV2’s producers and gain a bigger following on social media, but prepare them for life in the public eye. We’re equipping them with the tools they need to be a success, at a very reasonable price! I encourage any professionals who work within the stated sectors to register online to be a part of the squad, demand is huge, and it’s just going to get higher!”

*https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5807981/Twitter-row-people-apply-Love-Island-Oxbridge.html

**http://clapit.com/press/the-new-dream-job/

A family in Surrey is looking for paranormal investigator, and perhaps even an exorcist, to help them with supernatural problems in their home.

With such a wide range of professionals on Bark.com, we can get unique requests for help that sometimes border on the bizarre. When one of our professionals highlighted this bark to us, we realised it definitely fit the ‘bizarre’ category.

The family behind the bark wishes to keep their identity private, but they have agreed for their request to be made public in the hope someone can help them. You can read the full advert below:

This is definitely not a situation I ever imagined I’d be in, but my family and I are at our wits end. For about 12 weeks now, we’ve been experiencing what can only be described as supernatural and we’re desperate to be in control of our home again.

It started with items being moved around when we were all out of the house at the beginning of the summer holidays at the end of June. The final straw came earlier this week when our nine month old’s walker was thrown across our kitchen. Thankfully, she wasn’t in it at the time, but we have three children and my wife and I can’t take the risk any more.

Not sure if it makes a difference, but things are more intense at night, usually around 8-9pm, but we have had problems in the day too. Rattling pipes, strange wailing sounds and for several nights recently we’ve experienced what can only be described as an eerie laugh. The house also felt cold, even on days when temperatures were in the mid to high 20s.

We only moved into the house in late April this year as I relocated for a new job, so moving again would be a last resort. My wife has tried to research into the house’s history and looked at previous owners, but so far she’s not found anything significant.

Having never done anything like this before, I have no idea how much it will cost to sort, but as a guide we’ve set aside a budget of up to £5,000. We’re looking to hire someone immediately.

Do you think you can help? If you’re a professional paranormal investigator register your services here to apply for the job.

Our co-founder, Kai Feller said,

“While we do have professionals in this area on Bark.com, it’s still unusual to get a request for help with the supernatural. Obviously one of our first thoughts was this was a joke, but after talking to the family it’s clear it isn’t, and we’re keen to help them however we can.

“The advert has garnered some attention from relevant professionals, however no one has formerly put themselves forward for the job. Even though it’s an unusual request, we’re hoping to try and find someone for them as quickly as possible – not feeling comfortable in your own home must be an awful feeling.”

We get thousands of Bark’s each day, however, some are a little more unique than others and catch our eye. Last week, a man posted a Bark for a Personal Investigator – specifically a PI to find out if he has unknowingly fathered any children over the course of his life.

The job advert states that the 61-year-old man has been trying to track down former lovers for the past six years, but hasn’t found any leads. He’s now enlisting the help of a professional in a last-ditch attempt to find out if he has any family. He’s asked to remain anonymous, however has agreed to let us make the Bark public in order to help him find the right person for the job.

If you think this job sounds like something you are qualified for, here’s the request in full:

I am a 61-year-old bachelor who has never settled down with a woman for more than three months at a time. I think it’s fair to say I have led a ‘promiscuous life’, and whilst I don’t regret this lifestyle, I find it hard to believe that out of thousands of women I’ve never fathered any children.

Some may think this is reckless, which I would have to agree with, but times were different back then! Contraception has not always been widely available like it is now. I’m a successful businessman from London and I’d like to build a relationship and share my success with any children I might have – life can be lonely in your later years.

I’m able to provide some details about most women I’ve been intimate with. The nature of my job meant I travelled regularly around Europe, so a PI with European connections is a big bonus, and he/she must be willing to travel to France, Switzerland, Denmark and Austria if needs be.  

I’m willing to pay a seasoned professional up to £5,000 to conduct a thorough investigation, with additional money for travel and expenses. I’m also willing to provide a handsome bonus if he/she successfully finds any children of mine and I’m able to connect with them.

Over the last few years my health has deteriorated and like a typical older man I’ve started to feel sentimental and come to the realisation there is more to life than success. This might be a desperate and futile attempt to find a family, but I know I’ll always regret it if I don’t try.

Please get in touch if you think you can help, thank you.

Do you think you can help this man out? If you answered yes and you’re an experienced Personal Investigator, then register your services here to apply for the job.

Here’s what our co-founder, Kai Feller had to say about it:

“The advert was pointed out to us by one of our PI’s because of how unusual it is. We were curious and decided to get in touch with the man who posted it to see if we can help him find the right professional. He was happy for us to lend a hand and share his story, however wished to remain anonymous because of his job, which is fair enough.

“Six years is a long time to be searching for leads, and although we have thousands of personal investigators on site, I think with a bit of exposure we’ll be able to find one that has the right knowledge, contacts and skills to put this matter to bed finally for our mystery bachelor.”

We have seen a huge surge in demand for tutors in the last month with an 26% increase in tutors since September last year! As well as the spike in requests, we have also discovered a demand from parents looking for GCSE level tutors for their Primary School aged children from parents looking to get their kids ahead from an early age.

To get more specific, there’s been a:

• 31% rise for Foreign Language tutors
• 27% rise for Maths tutors
• 21% rise for English tutors
• 18% rise for Science tutors

Overall, service requests are up by 26% on this time last year.

If you’re looking for a tutor, you can place your own Bark here.

Given the rise, we decided to speak to our network of tutoring professionals and ask why they thought demand for their services has increased so dramatically. A third (33%) said it’s due to the lack of resources in schools and education cuts, while almost a quarter (23%) believed the current state of the economy and lack of jobs is making parents fear for their children’s futures. The amount spent per pupil in English schools has fallen by 8% since 2010, according to analysis by the Institute for Fiscal Studies**.  

More than two fifths of tutors on the site (42%) said it was common for them to get requests from parents looking for tutors at least two academic years above their child. Of this 42%, 11% said they had even had parents of children under 10 enquire about tutoring to help their child eventually secure a place at a top University.

One in 10 (9%) of our tutors felt that ‘pushy parents’ were responsible for the rise, with 12% of tutors admitting they had turned down work in the past because they felt the child in question was too young to benefit from sessions.   

If you are a tutor in the UK, you can sign-up to offer your services here.

Kai Feller, co-founder of Bark.com, said,

“I’m not the least bit surprised that our tutoring professionals have been experiencing a surge in demand for their services. As schools settle into the new academic year, parents become acutely aware of the competition their children face in the classroom, particularly with recent changes to curriculum and exams.

“As more and more children of millennial parents enter the classroom, we would expect to see this trend continue. Not least because millennial parents know the fierce competition they had to face for even the most basic, entry level jobs. It makes sense they would want to arm their children, the next generation, with as many skills as possible to help them succeed in a challenging economy.   

“Of course, all parents want their children to be successful, but we were surprised to see just how far ahead modern parents are looking in terms of their child’s education. We hope these parents find the tutors they’re looking for and encourage any tutors who haven’t already, to sign up and help them out.”

* http://uk.businessinsider.com/learn-a-new-language-2018-4?r=US&IR=T

** https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-44794205

While they might have an app to tackle most tasks in life, society has failed to teach Generation Z some of life’s most basic skills.

That’s why we have partnered with our tutors, accountants, mortgage brokers, mechanics and more to offer ‘adulting’ classes, to help equip young people with essential life and workplace skills not taught in schools.

The classes, which will launch across the UK, have been announced after internal data from our site revealed a 15% rise in requests, or ‘barks’, for basic jobs such as repairing clothing, changing a tyre, cleaning and basic home repairs.

Classes start at £50 per day and will cover a range of skills, including:

•         Changing a tyre
•         DIY repairs
•         Applying for a passport
•         Professional communication
•         Filing a tax return
•         Managing personal finances
•         Preparing for a job interview
•         First aid
•         Mortgage types & saving for a deposit
•         Sewing & repairing clothes

People looking to attend an ‘adulting’ class can register their interest here.

A recent study* by Young Money reported deep concerns around financial education awareness in UK schools, while further data** from International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt revealed that over the next decade, 387 million children are set to leave school without the basic skills needed to get on in life.

The ‘adulting’ classes have been designed to tackle these gaps of knowledge which have grown steadily from Generation X to Generation Z.

Professionals working in areas such as accounting, home economics and mortgage advice can apply to work as tutors to take an ‘adulting’ class, to pass on these essential skills.

Tutors can expect to earn around £100 per class but, as with all Bark.com service providers, they can set their own rates.

Those interested in becoming professional ‘adulting’ coaches can register here.

Kai Feller, co-founder of Bark.com, commented:

“We noticed an increase in requests for professionals who can offer cooking classes, fix basic mechanical problems and provide careers advice, among many other basic life skills that are simply not available in schools.

“Young people are coming out of higher education with gaps in their knowledge and are effectively thrown into the deep end when it comes to ‘adult’ responsibilities, such as creating a budget or filing a tax return.

“We want to fill these gaps and ensure that young people are given the opportunity to learn the skills they need in order to be self-sufficient, successful adults from the moment they leave home.”

Selling a house can be a complicated process, especially when it comes to trying to please potential buyers. So, we’ve teamed up with a panel of our home improvement service professionals to create a guide to find top buyer turn-offs which could significantly impact the price of homes.

Through analysing data from 20 estate and lettings agents, interior decorators, plumbers and gardeners that advertise their services through the site, Bark.com has revealed that cluttered bedrooms could knock £10,000 off the value of a house. An overgrown garden can also devalue a property by 20%. In comparison, adding an off-road parking space to a property could boost its value by up to 10% and replacing a dated bathroom suite could earn you £2,500 more when you come to sell.

The experts also found that on average, homeowners in the UK planning a renovation of their property in the next year will spend more than £20,000 on home improvements.

If you would like to find a local service professional to renovate your property, you can place a Bark here.

Here are the top ten buyer bugbears:

1.    Evidence of pets: 45% of people in the UK own a pet, but buyers won’t necessarily welcome them when viewing your property. Concerns over cleanliness can reduce the value of a house by more than £11,000.
2.    Illegal improvements: a surprising number of people have made home renovations without the proper planning permission, but it’s not surprising that this can cause big problems when it comes to selling and can even render your home untouchable for buyers.
3.    Unusual décor: people do judge books by their covers and while you might love bold colours, quirky carpets and oddly patterned wallpaper, they might not.
4.    Overgrown gardens: many people won’t even consider looking inside a house if they don’t like what they see on the outside, but if they do decide to book a viewing, a potential buyer could negotiate a 20% discount for an unappealing exterior.
5.    Poor parking: having a parking space is highly sought-after by potential buyers. Not only could it add up to £22,500 to the value of your house but it can provide more space, security and even the opportunity to earn extra income.
6.    Swimming pools: in warmer climates swimming pools are expected and typically used throughout the year. In cool climates however, pools often mean money down the drain.
7.    House numbers: superstition can have a major influence on house prices. If you live at number 13, you should consider changing your house number to a name to earn up to £4,000 when you come to sell.
8.    Outdated appliances: buying a property is already a big investment, so many buyers won’t want to spend additional funds on installing a new kitchen or bathroom.
9.    Poor energy efficiency: spending money on energy efficiency will not only save you money on your bills, but it will insulate your home against loss of value when you decide to put it on the market.
10.   Cluttered rooms: tidying your home before a valuation or viewing is one of the easiest things you can do to make a good first impression and could also boost your property value by up to £11,000.

Other things that make buyers cautious when looking for a new home include antisocial neighbours, a history of suspicious activity, expensive additions such as solar panels and the performance of local schools.

Superstition can also have a major influence on house prices. Research conducted by Zoopla* found that homes at ‘unlucky’ number 13 could be worth £3,900 less than neighbouring properties.

Kai Feller, co-founder of Bark.com, said:

“Selling a house can be a complicated process, especially when it comes to trying to please potential buyers. However, there are several steps homeowners can take to add as much value to a property as possible.

“We’ve been monitoring the demand for our home improvement service providers and decided to do some research into the effect these services could have on house prices. Some of these changes are simple, such as thoroughly tidying bedrooms for example, but research has shown that they really do make a huge difference to potential buyers.”

He continued:

“The resulting guide highlights the most common things that affect property value and we hope that it will be a useful reference for homeowners around the UK, potentially earning them thousands of pounds when they come to sell. If you do spot something you’re guilty of in our guide, there’s a local service provider on Bark.com who can help.”