I. Industry Risk Analysis

(1) Policy Risk

The domestic service intermediary service industry currently faces the risk of periodic policy fluctuations: During the policy – making stage, newly introduced policies such as intensive employee qualification certifications (e.g., real – name certification on “Domestic Service Credit Inquiry”) and service standard specifications (e.g., operation guidelines for home cleaning) continuously increase compliance costs. During the policy implementation stage, there are regional differences in law – enforcement scales (e.g., Beijing requires all employees to hold a “Home Service Certificate”, while this is not yet enforced in third – tier cities), resulting in institutional frictions in cross – regional expansion. During the policy evaluation and adjustment period, possible regulatory shifts (e.g., the tightening of supportive subsidy policies during the pandemic led to the cash – flow break of some enterprises) require enterprises to have the flexibility to quickly adapt to regulatory changes. Entrepreneurs need to be vigilant about the sunk compliance costs caused by rapid policy iterations.

(2) Economic Risk

The domestic service intermediary service industry currently faces multiple risks during the downward phase of the economic cycle: The tightening of consumers’ disposable income leads to a shrinkage in the demand for high – end domestic services. The influx of unemployed people into the low – and middle – end markets intensifies price competition. The rigid increase in labor costs coexists with customers’ price – pressing, squeezing the profit margins of enterprises from both sides. Under economic uncertainty, families are more inclined to reduce non – essential service expenditures or turn to informal channels to obtain low – cost services. The cash – flow cycle of the industry is lengthened, the financing difficulty of small and medium – sized enterprises increases, and the vulnerability of the capital chain becomes prominent. In some regional markets, there have been chain debt crises caused by the closure of intermediary agencies.

(3) Social Risk

The generational consumption gap has exacerbated the demand gap. Young people prefer digital and standardized services but have limited payment willingness, while middle – aged and elderly people have high trust in traditional intermediaries but their consumption frequency has decreased. The industry has fallen into a vicious cycle of low – price competition and uneven service quality. At the same time, the new generation of practitioners has low professional identity and high mobility. Coupled with the sharp increase in labor rights and interests protection costs under stricter policy supervision, it is prone to cause labor disputes and social public – opinion risks.

(4) Legal Risk

The domestic service intermediary service industry faces multiple legal risks: Failing to sign a standardized labor contract or service agreement with domestic service workers violates the Labor Law and the Social Insurance Law, leading to employment disputes. The lack of health certificates or skill qualifications of service personnel may trigger penalties under the Interim Measures for the Administration of the Domestic Service Industry. Improper custody of customers’ privacy information violates the Personal Information Protection Law, resulting in civil compensation and administrative penalties. Unclear liability definition for accidental injuries during the service process can easily lead to tort lawsuits. Failing to establish a service dispute mediation mechanism may cause complaints to escalate into legal lawsuits. If the platform fails to fulfill its promises such as “certified employees” and “background verification” in its promotion, it constitutes false advertising prohibited by the Advertising Law and may face a maximum fine of 2 million yuan.

II. Entrepreneurship Guide

(1) Suggestions on Entrepreneurship Opportunities

Focus on two major directions: community – based instant domestic services and refined vertical services. Establish small service stations within the community radius that can respond within 15 minutes, integrate the resources of part – time cleaners and maintenance experts in the surrounding area, and use the LBS dispatching system to achieve instant access to emergency services such as household appliance cleaning and pipeline dredging. Develop an integrated solution of intelligent storage and infant care for families with children born in the 1990s, equipped with an ultraviolet disinfection tracking system and a database of baby food production. Combine wearable devices to make the care process transparent. At the same time, build a skill – certification platform for domestic service workers, connect with vocational training colleges to supply certified nursery workers, and break the trust crisis of traditional intermediaries with differentiated services.

(2) Suggestions on Entrepreneurship Resources

Entrepreneurs in the domestic service intermediary industry need to focus on integrating idle venue resources in local communities (e.g., neighborhood committee activity rooms) to reduce store costs. Build a dynamic database of full – time and part – time domestic service workers to achieve flexible allocation of human resources. Connect to third – party skill – certification platforms to establish a standardized training system. Establish a sharing mechanism for cleaning tools and equipment with property management companies. Use the WeChat ecosystem to build a visual customer evaluation system to enhance trust. Focus on exploring cooperation with community elderly – care service stations to obtain government subsidy resources. Simultaneously develop a profit – sharing cooperation model with value – added service providers such as household appliance maintenance and establish a community group – leader distribution system to expand low – cost customer – acquisition channels.

(3) Suggestions on Entrepreneurship Teams

Entrepreneurs in the domestic service intermediary industry should give priority to forming a team with complementary skills. The core members should include an operation manager with the ability to integrate local community resources (responsible for recruiting and training domestic service workers), a technical expert familiar with Internet platform construction (developing an online matching system and a customer management system), and a marketing specialist good at brand marketing (planning precise customer – acquisition plans). It is recommended that the founder personally oversee the construction of a standardized service – quality system, establish a hierarchical certification mechanism for domestic service workers and a two – way feedback system for customer evaluations. The team should be equipped with a legal advisor to standardize the terms of service agreements, establish an emergency response team for sudden disputes. The core management must have first – hand service experience in the domestic service industry to avoid the situation where a team with only an Internet background ignores the management of offline service details.

(4) Suggestions on Entrepreneurship Risks

Entrepreneurs in the domestic service intermediary industry need to conduct strict real – name authentication and background checks, establish a dynamic credit file for service personnel and purchase employer liability insurance. Build a standardized training system, ensure service quality through pre – job skill assessments and GPS positioning during the service process. Use electronic contracts to clearly define service content, responsibility division, and dispute – handling procedures, and introduce a third – party insurance mechanism to cover property loss risks. Build a customer privacy protection system, standardize the scope of personal information collection and use, and conduct regular data security audits. Establish a rapid – response customer – complaint handling mechanism and set up a service deposit system. Closely monitor the updates of regulations such as the Interim Measures for the Administration of the Domestic Service Industry, and regularly organize special training on labor laws and consumer rights protection.