Keeping waitlisted and enrolled families engaged can be hard, especially during school holidays.
School holidays are jam-packed with different types of tasks, events and celebrations that keep everyone busy. At these times, parents can be easily distracted and may be less communicative with you and your centre. Read on to learn three key strategies that will keep parents engaged during the holidays.
1) Host a Parent Information Night
Parents can be nervous to put their child into care, especially if it's their first time. Offering a parent information night can help the parents become more comfortable with the centre and the educators. All educators should be part of the Parent Information Night so that parents of all ages are able to attend to communicate and get to know their educator.
A few days before the event – send out a survey that allows families to provide feedback on what they’d like to learn about the educators and centre. This interactive strategy ensures parents are more likely to attend and be attentive during the session.
Tip: Offer a short-term care service in the centre during this time so that parents can listen to the information session without any interruptions.
2) Send Centre Newsletters to Your Families
Families always want to know what your centre and the children are up to. They might get a small snippet of what is happening in the centre from their children, but they also want to hear about updates regarding the staff and the rest of the centre.
A newsletter is the perfect way for you and your team to get creative and create a relationship with the families. This communication is beneficial for all your families – including those who are on holidays, who aren’t enrolled yet, who are on the waitlist, and the rest of your currently enrolled families.
Tip: Newsletters don’t always need to be in paper form. Do your part for the environment and send an email or use a page on your website to display your latest newsletter in PDF format.
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3) Use Text Messaging to Get Instant Replies
60% of today’s parents prefer to communicate with businesses through text messaging. They see text messaging as less invasive than phone calls and more personal than other forms of communication, such as email.
Additionally, childcare centres that use text messaging to communicate see higher and faster response rates. Compared to email, open rates for text messages are as high as 98%, and on average it only takes 90 seconds for someone to respond to a text. Use text messages to remind families about tours, enrolment paperwork, centre closures, and events.
Tip: Limit your text messages to 160 characters (including spaces).
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Keep parents engaged during school holidays with automated email and text communications. With LineLeader by ChildcareCRM, you and your staff can send and receive text and email messages from one central location - ensuring every message that gets sent fits your brand. Plus, our email template editor can help you build beautiful newsletters in just a few clicks. Schedule a quick demo to see it in action!
Learn more about how to promote your centre during School Holidays by downloading our free guide.
