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spud912 02:59 PM 07-12-2016
So I have 4 vacancies coming up in August . Two of them have been filled and I'm actively seeking to fill the last two. I went through my waiting list (which is how I filled the first two spots) so I started aggressively advertising last week. At first there was nothing but now I'm getting 3 phone calls a day on average. This is what it consists of:
  1. Oh, you are in-home and not a center? Nevermind. (this is very clear on my website and all ads)
  2. I know your ad specifically says you run a preschool program and you are seeking a child aged 2-5 years old, but will you make an exception for my infant? He/she is VERY advanced!
  3. Can you start at 4 am/work until 9 pm/do Saturdays/watch my children 60 hours a week?
  4. What are your rates? And then they either say the rates are not bad or they ask for discounts.
  5. They question why 30+ hours is considered part-time. Hey, I am more than happy to charge part-time rates for 30+ hours, it's just going to cost them more than my full-time rates .
  6. They want a variable schedule all over the place, but only want part-time rates.
  7. My services are simply not a good fit but they want to tour anyway.
  8. They question why I am interviewing multiple families for each spot.
  9. Both parents are in school or make meager wages and seem to have no problem paying full-time rates. I know some parents have income from other places, but I can't be the only person who wonders if I will be having problems collecting payment from these parents? My rates are mid-to-high.

Ugh, why is it so hard to find an older child these days?!
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Thriftylady 04:27 PM 07-12-2016
I have the opposite problem all I can get is SA, or they come with a SA sibling. And the same issues with hours and such, which is why I offer night and evening hours, but even that hasn't helped me much. It seems it is so hard these days. I know in my area a lot of people are on subsidy, and many of those people use centers, because in my county pretty much only centers take it. But centers typically close at 6 PM, so those who need night hours can't use them.
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AmyKidsCo 05:30 PM 07-12-2016
I just sent out emails to my waiting list to fill the 2 openings I have in September. Now you've got me worried about what kind of calls I'll get if I've got to advertise!

Good luck filling your openings - I hope you get great families!
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spud912 07:20 AM 07-13-2016
The good news is that people like my program a lot. The bad news is that I have a lot of people to reject . I know I'm being picky, but there are just so many non-potty trained 18 month to 2 year olds whose parents have strange jobs. I've had no contact from any families with children who are 4 and hardly any 3 year olds.
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EntropyControlSpecialist 11:42 AM 07-13-2016
Originally Posted by spud912:
The good news is that people like my program a lot. The bad news is that I have a lot of people to reject . I know I'm being picky, but there are just so many non-potty trained 18 month to 2 year olds whose parents have strange jobs. I've had no contact from any families with children who are 4 and hardly any 3 year olds.
Just watch now. Next month you'll get an influx of calls for 3yo's.


I just posted a month ago, or maybe less, about how I was getting NO interest. None! Then, this past week I've gotten a decent amount. Decent enough that I filled all of my spots.
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spud912 11:50 AM 07-13-2016
Originally Posted by EntropyControlSpecialist:
Just watch now. Next month you'll get an influx of calls for 3yo's.


I just posted a month ago, or maybe less, about how I was getting NO interest. None! Then, this past week I've gotten a decent amount. Decent enough that I filled all of my spots.


And yes that always happens. I fill all my spots and then a bunch of perfect candidates start calling.
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Controlled Chaos 11:53 AM 07-13-2016
Maybe the students have grants, scholarships or loans? I don't worry about where the money comes from or what they do for employment as long as they pay

I have 1 spot opening in August. I interviewed 2 families off my wait list, chose one. Great, they did a few drop ins as their current provider was on vacation. Great. Then they disappeared. I told them they got the spot mid June gave them 2 weeks to get the registration fee and signed contract to me...they stopped answering texts, emails, moms phone is no longer accepting incoming calls..super weird.

So now I have 2 more interviews this week for the spot. I got this interviews from my wait list too. I haven't advertised in a long while...makes me nervous thinking about it though...all the crazies

Good luck!
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EntropyControlSpecialist 12:03 PM 07-13-2016
Originally Posted by spud912:


And yes that always happens. I fill all my spots and then a bunch of perfect candidates start calling.
My new people are not perfect... in fact they're both a little high maintenance. I'm tuning most of the adult craziness out. I'm getting better and better at that...

But, at least the spots are filled and we can move along with our days!
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