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MelissaP 06:01 AM 05-16-2018
How do you market to your clientele if you only want teacher's children? I'm not sure on where to begin. The idea is to get the teachers kids during the school year and only have school aged children in the summer and school breaks. Any ideas?

Thank you,
Melissa
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Blackcat31 06:13 AM 05-16-2018
Originally Posted by MelissaP:
How do you market to your clientele if you only want teacher's children? I'm not sure on where to begin. The idea is to get the teachers kids during the school year and only have school aged children in the summer and school breaks. Any ideas?

Thank you,
Melissa
So the kids under school age that attend during the school year won't attend during the summer months?

You would take only the school aged kids during the summer months?

Almost like two different daycares?

Just trying to grasp exactly what you mean so it's easier suggest how or what to advertise....
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Cat Herder 06:14 AM 05-16-2018
Two things worked best for me.

1. Make sure your schedule works with the school system hours.

2. Offer a curriculum that is well researched, proven, respected and that they can follow along with at home.
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MelissaP 06:24 AM 05-16-2018
Originally Posted by Blackcat31:
So the kids under school age that attend during the school year won't attend during the summer months?

You would take only the school aged kids during the summer months?

Almost like two different daycares?

Just trying to grasp exactly what you mean so it's easier suggest how or what to advertise....
Exactly.
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Blackcat31 06:39 AM 05-16-2018
Originally Posted by MelissaP:
Exactly.
I would have a separate name for each program and advertise as such.

Business A
Teacher friendly child care. Only open during the school year! (No services available June 1- August 30)

Business B
Summer Camp/Care for school aged kids. K- Grade 5
Service only available from June 1-August 30)

Is that kind of what you mean?^^^ Not for advertising in regards to operating?

I think it's kind of a neat idea but I can see where you'd run into some issues during the first part of summer and then again at the end of summer when BOTH groups of children/families are needing care. Which age groups gets priority?
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LittleScholars 07:20 AM 05-16-2018
Originally Posted by Blackcat31:
I would have a separate name for each program and advertise as such.

Business A
Teacher friendly child care. Only open during the school year! (No services available June 1- August 30)

Business B
Summer Camp/Care for school aged kids. K- Grade 5
Service only available from June 1-August 30)

Is that kind of what you mean?^^^ Not for advertising in regards to operating?

I think it's kind of a neat idea but I can see where you'd run into some issues during the first part of summer and then again at the end of summer when BOTH groups of children/families are needing care. Which age groups gets priority?
I'm rolling out this model beginning summer 2019, so I'll share in case this is helpful or you have feedback.

I was an elementary school teacher for many years, so I already tend to attract teachers. When parents inquire about spaces, I make sure to tell them I offer care that follows the school calendar, as well as a first-come-first-serve summer camp that requires advanced enrollment. I'm offering a mix of half and full days with specific themes/focuses, which I'll be officially sharing in a few months. In your case, I'd just say you offer care following the school calendar and, when it applies, share that you offer full-time summer camp for school-agers.

Although I'm not making the switch until next year, I want to get the word out ASAP because this will be great for some families, and terrible for others. I want families with schedules that work with mine to keep me at the top of their list.

Blackcat has a good point regarding the overlap of need. For example, here my school agers would need care beginning June 20 and my little ones need to stay with me until June 22. Similarly, although our school year doesn't start until after labor day, teachers often need to head back for professional development early. It is a small, but inconvenient window here, but something worth thinking about. If taking on extra kiddos isn't an option, perhaps offering names of back up providers or drop in programs is an option?
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Ariana 10:05 AM 05-16-2018
I would advertise that I am teacher friendly and post the months available and then advertise for summer care and post the months available.
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daycarediva 11:18 AM 05-16-2018
This would be a nightmare for me. Teacher clients AND sa?

Teachers (and support staff!) would love not paying for breaks, or flat monthly tuition, plus no (or low) deposit holds for summer spaces. What about those that teach summer school?
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Play Care 11:22 AM 05-16-2018
Originally Posted by daycarediva:
This would be a nightmare for me. Teacher clients AND sa?

Teachers (and support staff!) would love not paying for breaks, or flat monthly tuition, plus no (or low) deposit holds for summer spaces. What about those that teach summer school?
This. I rarely have teachers now who don't use some part of the summer. Most have other jobs, teach summer school, or have curriculum planning days and need day care.
But one of the best things I did was to say NO to SA summer care. What a PITB!!
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MelissaP 12:50 PM 05-16-2018
I had a teacher ask me about that today, that what happens if they need summer care also (for summer school purposes) and I said that they would get 1st dibs on those summer spots (she has 7 weeks of summer school to work). So those summer spots would be guaranteed for the teachers first. Does that make sense? I would just fill in the blanks with summer kids.

Thank you everyone for your input. I appreciate it.

Melissa
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MelissaP 12:52 PM 05-16-2018
I will probably not take on any school agers and be just a teacher friendly place. Not sure yet.

Melissa
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Blackcat31 12:58 PM 05-16-2018
Originally Posted by MelissaP:
I will probably not take on any school agers and be just a teacher friendly place. Not sure yet.

Melissa
Personally, I think you should try it out!
SA kids aren't for everyone but those that do take them seem to enjoy them.

The first 10 years I was open, I allowed school teachers to take off the summer and not pay. I just held their spaces for free. I didn't even charge a deposit. I only charged them if they attended. No charge if they didn't attend all summer (not one day). Made up for the loss of income by taking in SA kids. Worked well.

Now, you couldn't pay me enough to do that. But only because I know my personal limits and know what my personal formula for happiness is and it doesn't include SA'ers.

BUUUUUUT it worked great when it did. I had my own SA kids so that helped alot. I was in the groove of knowing what SA kids needed and basically liked/disliked. Once my kids grew and left home, my tolerance and patience for that age simply dwindled and SA kids played no role in job happiness so I eliminated them from my roster and that was that.

So, I think you should atleast give it a whirl.... see what happens. See how much interest there is/isn't in your area. See if you really enjoy that age group or if they drive you to whimpering in the corner by pick up time. It's different for everyone. Depending on the kids/families....it can be a good or bad experience but either way, you'll know.

Better to know for sure than to just wonder.
Know what I mean?
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MelissaP 05:49 PM 05-16-2018
Thank you BC! I would at least like to give it a try. I'm just not sure how to do it. LOL. Where do I start?

Melissa
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LittleScholars 05:23 AM 05-17-2018
I also think it is worth a try. I think it is a bit trickier totally switching from little ones to SA, but doable. Could you begin sign ups now so that both you and parents can feel secure knowing spots are filled? If it goes terribly wrong that will also give you some time to back pedal and re-think who you can take? Worst case scenario seems to be that you get closer to your goal this summer and perfect the formula next summer.
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Second Home 06:24 AM 05-17-2018
I currently have 4 families out of 6 who work for the school system .
I offer credit for snow days ( easier for me if I don't have to worry about cleaning the walk/driveway) and summer vacations . I also offer part time ( min 2 days per week ) for the summer , but no Fridays . It gives me a break with fewer kids and more time to spend with my family .

I have 3 interviews in the next 2 weeks , 2 are teachers families .
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Indoorvoice 03:09 PM 05-17-2018
I don't have only teacher families, but I only take families who can work with the school calendar. I subtract breaks during the school year and about 10 days of the summer from my yearly tuition and then spread it over the entire year, so they pay me the same each week. I sell this as they are not technically paying for breaks, but it allows them to budget appropriately and allows me to keep a reliable income to keep the daycare up and running and fresh when they don't need me. I have found that teachers actually like to have 2-3 days a week in the summer to work on their classrooms or run errands without children so I do allow limited days during the summer since they are paying me the same no matter what. This gives me at least 2 days off during the week in the summer and a reduced load for the same paycheck. It has worked well so far. The only thing I haven't worked through yet is if a parent leaves mid-year, and they have already paid tuition spread over the whole year...but haven't run into that yet (fingers crossed!)
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MelissaP 07:45 AM 05-18-2018
Thank you everyone. I appreciate all the information.

Melissa
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