2021 Child Care Business Rebound: Creative Ways to Help It Along

The end of this trying time is finally in sight and your business may have started to see a healthy rebound already. Cheers to that!

Returning to the pre-pandemic state of business may not be happening as quickly we wish it would. All of us have been impacted on a deeply personal level and making important decisions will take time for families.

While these things are out of our control, business owners can help encourage recovery along by getting creative with the things that are within our control.

Give your business recovery an edge with these creative ideas from centers around the country.

Offer Self-Scheduled Tours or Zoom Calls

When a family is ready to make plans for a tour with you, remove the obstacles. Be ready when they are by offering a self-schedule option. This eliminates the back and forth emails and calls to make plans together.  Use a free scheduling tool like Calend.ly or Doodle to allow families to book with you. These tools will add the tour to calendars and sync with your school’s Google or Outlook calendar automatically to prevent double booking.

Flexible Program Options

Work arrangements and finances may have changed dramatically for your community and the need for childcare or enrichment been altered as a result. Are there creative ways your program can evolve to meet the needs of your community? 

Part-time options can be hard to fit into your utilization numbers and staffing. But a structured part-time program could work. For example, can you open a classroom for three half days per week? Is remote learning for school-aged kids sticking around in your community? Consider a remote learning lab for families looking for facilitated remote learning that you can offer. 

Re-Engage Families That Left 

Families who paused their enrollment are the ones who know the value you provide and care for you and your team the most. Treat it like the strong relationship it is.

• Call to check in with the family. As you would with an old friend, sincerely call to say hello and ask how they’re doing. Rather than a sales call or inquiry about whether they’re coming back, it’s showing them that they are important to you. Give them updates on the school, teachers, or other special things they may not know about. A brief phone call or message goes a long way.

• Invite them to school events once you start having them again.

• If visitors won’t be in your school for a while yet, invite these families to a “drive-through” event where your teachers are outside to say hello and hand out a prepared gift or a note. There is nothing better for a child than seeing his school or teacher after an absence.