Every childcare program needs to have a carefully thought out, on-going marketing program. You are never, never done marketing your program. You are selling safe childcare, clean environs, and appropriate curriculum. Since your clientele changes yearly you need to keep your positive name out in front of everyone who either needs childcare or knows someone who needs childcare. And that’s just about everyone.

Here are a few things that can be done to invite people to know your program.

 Create an uncluttered and inviting informational brochure. State the Who, What, Where, How and Why of your program. Provide your contact information. Make it easy to get in touch with you. Every teacher should have informational brochures available when they take the children to the park or on neighborhood walks. The public often approaches teachers and the public will report to each other on their observations.

 Create a dynamite web site; it’s worth the time and expense. Make it interactive and provide a lot of free information on topics of interest to parents. The web site should include information about your administration, staff, curriculum, parents’ association, calendar and fees. If possible, allow parents to apply for their child’s admission on line. Encourage them to arrange for a center visit via a quick email.

 Develop an annual Open House event. Each year you can select an interesting topic and invite the neighborhood to visit. It may be a short seminar on the importance of poison control in the house or perhaps a mini-seminar on the local public school kindergartens. Whatever it is, this will position you as a local, accessible expert in early childhood care. Take this opportunity to capture email addresses and mailing lists. A follow-up activity might be a short thank-you note for the parent inviting them to take a personal tour of the center when they will be able to speak with teachers and the director. The goal is to build a trusting and satisfying relationship with everyone who enters your door…even if they never apply and never are admitted to your center. How you treat them will become your word-of-mouth and on-the-street advertisement.

 Create an informational DVD that parents can take home to view. These are inexpensive to make as promotional giveaways and really let prospective clients get a better view of your center.

 Cultivate your current families and let them know you appreciate their referrals. Invite them to bring a friend to visit the center. Work with enthusiastic parents to develop them into center tour guides. They have credibility with incoming parents and they often remember to tell visitors the daily details of transporting a child to school.

 Remember to do what big business calls “Branding”. After you have selected a logo be sure it appears on everything. This means your letterhead, your signage, your center’s t-shirts, your invitations and your web site.

Marketing is just one way of formally letting people know who you are so it should always be fun. You will find that the more involved you get you will be able to see how constant marketing really pays off.