Promoting your business...

A daycare is the ideal job I would like to accomplish, as I get older. Owning a daycare is what I have always dreamed of! As parents look for daycare you want your name to stand out. You can help make this happen by promoting your business even when you don’t have a vacancy, so, when you do have space, you already well known and highly-regarded.

These tips will help you remember that your child minded and also helping out the benefits of your business.

Regularly update your families information service (FIS), details make sure that you complete any forms sent to you by your FIS, and aim to answer every question. If something changes about your service, for example, you gain a qualification; remember to tell your FIS.

Talk to others about what works for them, your FIS, childcare support workers, and other childcares will be able to let you know what type of advertising is successful in your area and how they fill vacancies. Find out what parents want. Talk to the people above, and the parents you know, about what families would like from their ideal childcare service. Ask the parents you already work with how they found you and what attracted them.

Sign up for vacancy schemes find out if any vacancy schemes are running in your area. Many schools and children’s center’s now offer vacancy-matching schemes.

Get involved in local projects, try contacting your local authority, children's centre, or child minding development worker to see if there are any projects you could get involved in, for instance, offering respite care. As well as helping to fill places, these projects give you experience in different types of work, which can lead to future interest in your service.

Join a child minding network, you’ll have the support of a coordinator when you have vacancies to fill and may get the chance to become quality assured or accredited to offer early years education — another string to your bow! You can find out whether there is a network in your area by contacting local authority early years team.

Turn your successes into news stories, if you have some good news, share it! Contact your local paper, radio station or child-minding newsletter, or produce your own newsletter for the families you work with. Always display best practice - wherever you are, make sure that people remember you for the quality of care you give the children.

Join a group or network; Joining a child minding network or group is one of the best things you can do to promote registered child minding and your own business. By working together you can reach a much wider audience. You can work together to fill vacancies by letting one another know when you have vacancies to fill or know of families looking for childcare. Many networks and groups have a vacancy coordinator whose contact details are put on publicity materials and held by the FIS.

Hit the headlines, it’s easier to get publicity as part of a group, so organize lots of events and invite the papers along, or send them photos afterwards.

Promotional materials, Produce leaflets, posters, and a website holding your group’s details. This can be cost effective and some places will only display general group adverts. You could even invest in a radio advert.

Attend events, Arrange stands at school events or shopping centers, or give a talk at a Sure Start centre. Some groups arrange drop-ins where parents looking for childcare meet child minders.

Reach employers, Make a list of employers in your area then share them out and contact their personnel departments to find out if your group could have its vacancy coordinators details put up in the staff room or in the office newsletter.

Get yourself heard, Nominate group members to attend local authority meetings, take part in early years forums and respond to any consultations to make sure child minding is on people’s minds.  

How would you promote your daycare? What would you do to help your business survive.