Nowadays, it seems as though a child care center is on every street corner. If you google daycares in your city, you will usually find at least a dozen or more. With the competition being so vast, many child care programs are struggling to stay full. Our center has been fortunate to remain completely full for the last several years, with over 100 people waiting to enroll.

Before we get started on my tips to max out enrollment, If you're new here, My name is Dena, and I have been a center director for 20 years and love what I do, but it is WORK! My goal is to help other providers with their child care programs and help relieve the stress that the daycare world brings. Don't forget to snag my free daily schedules for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers before you leave!

Now here are my top 5 tips to max out your enrollment and create a massive waiting list.

1. Differentiate Yourself – What makes you unique? What sets you apart from your competitors? Make a list of ways that you are different from the other child care programs in your area. Do you have lower child to teacher ratios? Do you use a particular curriculum? Are your teachers bi-lingual? Is your playground different?

   If you struggle to think of anything special, brainstorm things that you could incorporate into your program to set you apart. Could you offer virtual lessons? Could you theme or decorate your rooms in a unique way? Could you install cameras and offer parent viewing? Could you ditch the paper daily sheets and sign-ins and use an app instead? There are many parent communication apps from which to choose. My favorite is Procare.

2. Make Yourself Visible- Use online and offline methods to generate business. People need to know you exist.

 Facebook: Create a page for your center and post often. Ask your parents to like and follow you. Post about upcoming events, crafts the kids made, field trips, outstanding teachers, picture dates, etc. Post pics of the children playing (with parental permission), and parents will almost always share the post of their adorable kiddo. Click here for my photo release form: http://bit.ly/daycarephotorelease. 

Have A Killer Website- Have a well-designed website listing all of your benefits and features. Make sure to include parent testimonials, great pictures, and several ways to contact you. You can hire website designers on sites like Upwork and Fiverr.

 Google Maps & Google Pay Per Click- Register your business on Google so that your child care business shows up in the search results. You can also run google ads using specific keywords to target your ideal client.

 Facebook Ads and Boosted Posts: You can run advertisements targeted to only the people with young children in your surrounding area.

 Posted Signs- Use bright, colorful signs to grab the attention of people passing by. Post signs on nearby street corners and busy intersections. Make sure to get permission from the city or local businesses if needed.

 Local Businesses- Carry flyers and business cards with you to give out to the community. Many businesses have an information board that you can post on for free.

3. Offer Enrollment Incentives-Offer free registration as a special incentive for new families. You could offer a discounted rate for the first month to entice them to choose you over your competitor. You could offer a $200 bonus credit to new enrollments ($25 weekly discount for two months). You could present a $50 gift card after the first week. Your options are endless. Just make sure you mention your special promotion in your advertising.

4. Ask For Testimonials & Referrals- Social proof is your most powerful marketing tool and can be used to influence the behaviors and actions of your potential clients. You can sing the praises of your program, but if someone else does it, it will have a much more significant impact.

Referrals- Offer current parents a free week of child care for every new family they refer to your center. Give the free week credit AFTER the new family pays the registration and the first week’s tuition. Again, make sure you set guidelines and communicate them to parents.

Offer teachers and staff a day off with pay or a $50 gift card to their favorite store for every referral.

Parent Testimonials- The best way to get parent testimonials is to ask for them. When a parent approaches you and expresses how much they love your program, ask them if you can write their comment down and use it as a review or give a testimonial card and ask them to write it down. You could also use your phone or tablet and ask them to record a video to post on your website. You can get my NEW Parent Testimonial Card FREEBIE here! It’s super cute!

5. Provide Excellent Care- Never forget the reason we do what we do…the children! The bottom line is that if your program is top- notch, your curriculum is excellent, your center is clean and safe, and you have highly qualified staff that smile, communicate well, and take great care of those little ones, you will stand out. Parents will go miles out of the way for excellent care, and you can bet they will tell their friends about your program. 

Do you have tips that have helped boost your enrollment? Comment them below. I would love to hear from you!