AirRun app gives local work force a boost

June 19, 2011 at 12:00a.m.

Local is a good thing, especially when you need something quickly. Oh sure, you can order something online and have it delivered to your doorstep in a day or two. But there’s always a need for local goods and services and that’s where online websites such as Craigslist have really found their niche.

But even Craigslist has its limitations. Yes, you may be able to find local goods and services, even buy a used car.

But too often, the local buy really isn’t local. It may be some company looking to sell you something but they’re really located in some nearby city.

Don’t get me wrong. Craigslist certainly has some great deals but unless it’s fairly mainstream, you’re really going to have to dig to find what you want if you can even do so.

Let’s say you are looking for someone to pick up your medication from the local drugstore and drive it over to your house. Or you may want some groceries and you’re just too busy to hop in the car and get them. Or perhaps you want someone to run down to the local theater and buy tickets. Wouldn’t it be great if there were some kind of service that would let you place your task up for grabs and let someone local deliver it to you? Or what if you just want someone to stand in line for you at a movie until you get there?

Well, now there’s a new iPhone App that does all that and a lot more.

AirRun is defined as a location-based community job hunt. It’s an iPhone app that lets you outsource anything you can think of and gives all of these job opportunities to anyone who may be looking for work.

Here’s how it works. AirRun operates with two basic people groups. They are Runners and Seekers. You first download the AirRun app for free on iTunes. Then you register for free with AirRun by providing some basic information about yourself, such as where you live or work.

Once you set up an account, you are ready to describe what it is you may be looking to do.

Seekers select “Post New Job” within the “Me” tab. You give the job a title such as “Mow the lawn,” a description and location. Next you map where you’d like the item to be delivered or job to take place using the app’s built-in mapping function. You can select your current location, favorite location such as a friend’s house, intersection, whatever.

Next you specify when and where you want your items delivered or job done. Finally set the price of the items or how much you are willing to pay for the job to be completed. Then hit the submit button and that’s it.

Runners looking for work use AirRun to find all of the available jobs near their current location.

With the List View, just click on any job and you’ll see the detailed job description, the mapped location and a discussion board.

With the Map View, you get a live map of the area with push pins highlighting all available jobs in the area. Just click once on any pin for a brief description. Clicking twice will give you a detailed description.

AirRun is that simple. You get to see all of the jobs in your area in an instant and Seekers get to post their jobs to a work force that’s local and ready to get the job done. The Seeker gets to choose the Runner who has applied for the job and they can check out their rating on how well they have performed in the past.

So far, AirRun has been operational for three months and it’s only recently begun to catch on.

Obviously, bigger cities and more densely populated areas will have more Runner and Seekers, but even now, opportunities are popping up in even the most rural locations.

Whether you’re a Runner looking to make some fast cash or are a Seeker who needs something local, you should definitely give AirRun a try.

For more details, go to www.airrun.com.

Craig Crossman is host of the computer radio talk show “Computer America,” heard on Business TalkRadio. For more information, visit his website at www.computeramerica.com.

2011, McClatchy-Tribune Information Services