Parenting Advice for Modern Times with Hello Weldon

Hello Weldon is a tech-enabled on-demand coaching platform for parents that provides access to professionals for one-on-one parenting guidance. Hello Weldon’s providers are licensed professionals, psychologists, speech and language pathologists, and marriage and family therapists. Providers work part-time at Hello Weldon, removing the red tape associated with getting guidance through the school system or their primary care providers by connecting experts directly with parents. To get access to these providers in schools, your child has to qualify for special educational assistance. Parents with kids that are not yet suffering from educational or development challenges do not have access to professionals.

What is the family of the future and how does Hello Weldon fit into that?

“I think there’s been a bit of a shift where families in the past were fearful of asking for help, parenting was seen as a rite of passage, and difficult conversations with kids were the norm. It was all about figuring it out as you go and now there’s this great push for mental health and wellness for children and promoting positive social-emotional functioning.”

Moment of inspiration for Hello Weldon?

Founders Marc and Lynn are a unique brother-sister duo. Lynn brings years of experience in school systems working with children from early childhood to young adulthood. Marc became a father and his kids had temper tantrums every time they would leave the playground. He started asking for advice on how to handle the tantrums from Lynn. Their experiences led to the concept of parents seeking guidance and getting evidence-based advice without provider backlog.

What is Hello Weldon’s overarching mission?

Hello Weldon’s mission is to reach as many parents as possible with curated guidance and expertise. They hope to collaborate with schools to identify children and parents that would benefit from their counseling services.

Their long-term goal is to develop a sense of brand recognition for their guidance to the point that parents ask: “what does Hello Weldon say about this topic?”

Hello Weldon is about giving caregivers access to professionals they can trust enabling healthier parenting and healthier children in our world.

What type of customer research did you conduct before launching Hello Weldon?

Hello Weldon is centered around trying to understand the different personas of parents and the type of advice and reassurance they need to ensure they are on the right track. From customer feedback, Hello Weldon identified that parents want easy ways to communicate with professionals via text and call options versus video. Building trust is incredibly important and Hello Weldon establishes credibility with their staff of experts that have Master’s degrees and Ph.Ds in a range of topics related to children’s education and psychology.

Lynn shared that parents seek out information on a wide array of topics, including:

· Development milestones

· How to talk to your child about being bullied and bullying

· The teenage years

· Tantrums

· Discipline and rules

· Parental communication style

· Technology & screen time

5. What are your entrepreneurial words to live by?

“In the very beginning, it does not have to be perfect. Let’s try and learn. Don’t be afraid of mistakes and do not be afraid to talk about your struggles. Don’t be afraid of having the hard conversations. We all have areas of growth.”