Utilising your community to market your centre

• Do you pay thousands in advertising?

• Your Centre’s growth is all about strong word of mouth

• Word of mouth starts and stays in your local community

Childcare Sales Australia is proud to publish an article from Succeed Consultancy. Succeed begins a new journey of articles on occupancy growth and marketing. The first article in this series; “do you pay thousands in advertising?”- It’s all about strong word of mouth in your community.

As usual it is sound practical information for owner operators, investors and new buyers alike. You can contact Succeed Consultancy on the numbers provided below or visit the Succeed Consultancy website for more information at:

www.succeedconsultancy.com.au

Knowing what is in your local community that surrounds your centre is not only important in building positive networks but it is a great marketing strategy for your centre. Why pay thousands of dollars in advertising when you have the best advertising opportunity? Your community!

Large scale advertising can become very expensive, not financially viable and not realistic for centres. A lot of money spent on large advertising is money that can be placed back into other more resourceful areas of the centre, especially when you have more useful marketing strategies right around the corner…or even at the front door step of your centre.

Did you know that 90% of enrolments are from word of mouth…?

Word of mouth is your most successful and powerful marketing strategy or your worst nightmare...

Families, friends, local schools, local businesses and people in the community will talk about the centre that stands out in the community and will refer the centre to people they know because they know that the centre offers outstanding services and high quality care for children.

Child care is becoming a competitive market place and your child care centre is the one that needs to stand out from the rest. Building positive and collaborative relationships with your community and people in your community, will allow for your Centre to be known as the Centre of choice for families in the community.

I’m sure you will agree that this is your ultimate goal as a Centre owner.

How? The answer is simple and cost effective!

You need to research the predominate businesses that cater to families with young children within your community.

Then you will need to compile a community profile for marketing that lists a range of local business, schools and other organisations that will assist you in marketing the centre. Drive around your local community, walk through the main shopping areas, undertake internet research and look in your local yellow pages and local papers to assist you in knowing what is in your community.

You can either visit or ring them but remember that the first initial meeting and contact is one that they will remember; so being approachable, organised, professional and appreciative of their assistance will be something they remember. As the saying goes, “First impressions last!”

Ask the local business and organisations if they would allow for you to display and or leave some flyers of the centre either in their shop, in their window, or on their notice board and or in their staff room.

You can also ask if they are happy to take some flyers that can be left for customers to take. You will be surprised how open and helpful many businesses are.

To further build the strong collaborative networking you can also request that you take some flyers for their business to put at your centre or advertise them in your newsletter. Helping each other is a win win situation.

Talking with your local schools is also a great strategy in building positive community relationships and to further market your centre. Schools and childcare centres both predominately have the same goal and that is to build the early foundations for children’s learning, development and education.

Having this as a common goal is the start to a collaborative, open and two way relationships. Talk to the school about advertising your centre in their weekly newsletters that gets distributed to the families. Again each week many families (with the strong possibility of the families having younger children, family, friends etc with children) have direct access to your centre and if they require care your details are right at their finger tips.

This networking and assistance can also be returned when the schools wish to advertise their New Year enrolments for Kindergarten and display their poster at your centre.

Local playgroups offer a great marketing strategy for your child care centre also. Building networks with your local playgroups is not only a great marketing tool to market your centre but it is a great opportunity to build the strong; positive on ongoing networking with new mothers and a referral point for both organisations.

You could go and complete a free talk to a mother’s group on developmental milestones, settling or social skills in babies. Not only are you networking and marketing, you are positioning yourself as a knowledgeable and professional organisation. When these mother’s are ready for child care, which Centre do you think they will remember? Why not leave a brochure and a call to action incentive.

Every time that a family looks for child care, they will ask people in their social networks, family, friends, colleagues, other play group mothers, school friends mothers, the local shop attendant etc.

Let’s analyse ….. Building strong community relationships, increases your Centre’s occupancy and income, creates greater and further positive word of mouth, a larger client base, with a marketing strategy that cost next to nothing. With the excitement that your centre is building a very positive reputation within your community, this definitely out ways the thousands of dollars that many childcare centres spend on other forms of advertising such as local papers.

The possibilities are endless… Get out there and see who you can network with in your community.

Once you have completed building these great collaborative relationships with the community you have a data base; a list of local businesses, playgroups, schools and other community organisations that you can ring every few months to see if the pamphlets and flyers are becoming low and need to be re stocked.

What about the flyer or the promotion material?

Having all this we also need to remember that you need an effective flyer / brochure that explains your childcare care and all the great quality care that it provides. Many business owners feel that they also need to spend thousands of dollars on getting a pamphlet / flyer designed by the best graphic designer and spend even more money on having these printed and laminated at the best printing shop in the suburb. For me this is a common trend that many people follow as they feel the more money they spend the better the advertising will work…. wrong… you have the best designers right under your nose….your staff.

Utilise the great talents and skills of your staff to assist you in creating brochures, flyers, posters etc for your marketing. It will surprise you how well your staff can assist you in completing this. After all they are proud to work at your Centre and know the great strengths and benefits of the Centre.

Your staff will feel valued and appreciative that they have had the opportunity to work on the creative process of the marketing materials that are being distributed into the local community. No only have you tackled cost effective marketing strategies but you have empowered, acknowledged and valued you staff. How can you not be rewarded from this? Not are you only marketing but you are also empowering and valuing one of the most precious areas of your centre…….your staff.

Your common computer programs (word, publisher, paint) and the most commonly used technology today, the internet, are cost effective ways of creating these marketing materials. If you get the basics, you then can choose to take it to a graphic designer or continue to complete the printing at a Centre level. Laser printer’s are fantastic and now quiet cost effective.

Having managed and consulted with many various centres, I have personally been involved in and seen this strategy work immensely well. I have had the joy of seeing these great marketing strategies assist the centre’s rapidly increase with their occupancy and further build on the centre’s reputation and build very strong collaborative relationships with their local community. These for me are goals that are very rewarding to achieve.

So let’s put this all together. You pay thousands of dollars advertising in the local newspapers, radios, billboards that last for generally only one to two weeks. Networking with your local community and business with flyers and pamphlets provides your centre with constant and consistent exposure all year round.

Which one would you prefer to choose?

The answer if simple! Utilising your local community to market your centre. Why would you do it any other way!

Tanya Clayson
Succeed Consultancy.
Operations Manager

Proudly brought to you by industry expert; Tanya Clayson from Succeed Consultancy.

Email: enquiries@succeedconsultancy.com.au
Web: www.succeedconsultancy.com.au

Phone: (02) 4233 1564            Fax: (02) 4233 1568

Industry Advice: Negotiating the purchase Childcare Sales Australia Dec 08
Buying an existing centre - more than just a building Educational Experience Oct 08
Equipping your new childcare centre Judius Educational Resources Sep 08
Finding the right staff for your team Expect a Star Sep 08
The benefits of using consultants Maximise Childcare Consultants Aug 08
Doing it right for the children Childcare NSW Jul 08
Buying a childcare centre Childcare Sales Australia Jul 08
The challenges of recruitment Succeed Consultancy Jun 08
A peek into business in the future Care Central Solutions Apr 08
Are you surfing the CCMS net? Care Central Solutions Mar 08
Building a strong team Succeed Consultancy Mar 08
Are you new to business? Here are some handy hints business.gov.au Feb 08
Preparing for the Child Care Management System Succeed Consultancy Jan 08
The Childcare Industry - A Valuers Opinion Egan National Valuers Jan 08
The Benefits of a Professional Employment Strategy Expect a Star Nov 07
CCB Acquittals: What are they? Am I losing money? Succeed Consultancy Oct 07
Traineeships - the future of childcare Expect a Star Oct 07
CCB: The Importance of a strong system Succeed Consultancy Sep 07
Are you ready to expand your business? Maximise Consultancy Sep 07
Take your centre to the next level Maximise Consultancy Aug 07
In the lead up to the first day Maximise Consultancy Aug 07
What to look for when buying... Maximise Consultancy Jul 07
10 Marketing Tips Marketing Angels Jul 07
Special Audio Interview Pt 1 Maximise Consultancy Oct 06
Special Audio Interview Pt 2 Maximise Consultancy Oct 06
Aged Care Sales Launch ACMA Aug 06
Who's Minding the Kids National Apr 06