Running a daycare center marketing can seem overwhelming, but it doesn’t have to be…
In a competitive market it can be hard to get the word out about the great childcare your center is offering. Maybe you’ve tried a few approaches with limited success. Maybe you’ve had one big successful daycare marketing campaign but then a whole lot of nothing after that.
That’s why running a daycare center marketing campaign can seem overwhelming. Luckily, our guide can help make it easier. Take a look at our seven tactics to ensure your daycare center marketing campaign turns into a huge success.
Improve your daycare marketing on a budget:
1. Make sure your daycare marketing is targeted
Know your target audience, what they care about and where they live and work. Check out our article on targeting your ideal daycare clientele. Research the average incomes, most common careers and other relevant data of parents who live in your daycare center’s geographic area.
Most of all, research demographic data. If your center is in between four neighborhoods, focus your marketing on the neighborhood that is rapidly growing with young children! Prioritize your flyers and ads to neighborhoods and areas that have a high birthrate and that don’t have many daycare centers. Focus on areas that may be under-served in terms of childcare services but that have a big demand.
2. Marketing isn’t all about money
Even if you have almost no marketing budget, there are great ways to promote your daycare center.
One is to hold an open house or an event that showcases what you have to offer. Invite the community and welcome parents. An open house is relatively low-cost and lets parents browse your facilities, talk to teachers and get to know the feeling of the daycare. If you’re in a neighborhood with plenty of daycare centers, make sure you highlight what makes your daycare different. Do you use software like Hopping In that lets parents drop and book spots, as well as earn their tuition money back if their child is absent (while helping you earn more)? Let them know.
You can also hold other fun events like a special art day, a fun-filled family day or a special students versus teachers activity day that the community is welcome at. It’s more than worth the price of light refreshments and renting a few extra chairs.
Events are also an excellent place to hand out pamphlets and more information about your daycare center. You showcase your center at its best and get potential customers’ names and information for follow-up contact. It’s a win-win!
3. Get your branding consistent and sparkling
Hiring a pro photographer to do a photoshoot is one way to get this step down pat. In addition, though, branding also involves logos, graphic design work and slogans. You want to ensure that your daycare center’s logo is consistent across all platforms and that it’s eye-catching and attractive. If you have a slogan for radio, ads or online, you want it to build trust and spark interest.
4. Buy smart
Realizing that the best place to buy ads might be grocery store carts was a huge breakthrough for me. It was more than worth the money that was spent.
Having said that, it wasn’t about the amount I was spending, it was about the impact of what I was spending advertising dollars on. Any successful daycare center marketing campaign is more about where and how you advertise than how much you spend. Also look for special deals where you can run an advertising campaign for a bit less than usual. As long as it’s a good opportunity, it’s always worth considering!
5. Get allies
Consider having a win-win relationship with several local allies. Maybe groups in your area that serve mothers and mothers-to-be. You recommend them and keep their pamphlets in your daycare center, they do the same for you. Other ideas? Child agencies and education sector partners who also serve parents with young kids.
You want to be making friends and professional allies who can boost your center and you promote them in return. In addition to being a cost-free way to get the word out, forming professional friendships with other groups and businesses has a magnifying effect on positive word-of-mouth marketing. If a group that parents trust and enjoy just recommended your daycare, they are likely to be quite interested. Partnering up and befriending local organizations also is a valuable chance to share insights and information with each other about your related fields.
6. Referrals and promotions work!
Referrals bring in business and they build trust. Mention a discount or promotion in your ads, whether they be online, in print, on grocery carts, on the radio or on a billboard. Offer a promotional rebate for those who refer someone else, maybe by handing out business cards that have the deal written on them, for example. This offers an incentive and it increases trust. You’d never recommend somewhere you didn’t approve of and parents think the same way. If their friend they trust recommends your daycare center, it’s because it’s going well for their kid. Any promotion of discount they get for referring a friend is just an added bonus.
You can also do referrals and promotions in conjunction with your allies. Offer special deals to a parent who is a member of a certain group. That group, in turn, can offer new members a discount at your daycare center. It’s an ever-growing circle.
7. Online ads, radio ads, newspaper ads
Author: Hopping In Blog
Sholom Strick is an expert on the business of running daycare centers and founder of Hopping In, a tool that helps childcare centers and family daycare providers fill unused spots.
To contact him or for media inquiries email s.strick@daycareteam.com
