Marketing ideas for a Nursery

[butterfm]

Hi,

My wife opened a nursery a year ago an while she is doing well she has not yet reached capacity in terms of numbrs. She is now jus about to open a baby unit in addition to the existing nurery for 3 to 5 year olds and I m looking for the best ways to market the business.

In the past we have posted leaflets through letterboxess in the local village and this did generate business however i'm concerned that this doesn't target directly the people she wants to make aware of the business.
The Nursery is private business but is located in a school room which is rented. It is tucked away at the back of the school so is not obvious to passers by. A lot of the new customers we get were not even aware the business existed until they heard from other parents.

I'd be grateful for any advice from marketing experts as to how to make people aware of this business. It needs to be clear to people that it is a privae nursery and not part of the school. I'll probbly do another leaflet drop through letter boxes but also want some more targeted marketing. There are a few other villages nearby that are also in the catchement area.

Ideas I have had so far are :-

1. Asking all local schools to put up leaflets and also to put laflets in the book bags of school children. Some schools have already agreed to do this.

2. Asking local businesses to put the leaflets on their counters (fish shops, garage, supermarket advertiing boards etc)

3. Posting leaflets through people's letterboxes

4. Using a sandwhich board / banner on the school fence facing the main road so people see it as they drive by.

Any advice on these and other ideas would be greatly appreciated.

M.

 

[khalid1]

1. website + local seo - make sure if someone looks for "nurseries in *your city* you appear

2. sign - get permission from the school for a permanent sign - it looks professional and will help!

3. local paper - plenty of parents will be reading them, why not take out a small ad

4. radio - mums and dads driving to work, get on the morning show!

5. other nurseries - offer a fee for referring customers by nurseries who are at full capacity!

 

[MJBMI]

where in that area do Mums hang out a lot?
Coffee shops? M&S? Supermarkets ? wherever it may be target those places with your message , even consider a coupon on the reverse of the till reciept so you dont have to rely on their staff giving out your materials.

Where do the grandparents hang out and the Dads. ditto for the above for them.
Doctors surgeries are a great place to market this too.
Depending on price how about designing and supplying a cute well logod sweatshirt for each child to promote their own nursery , make it a great design the kids will wanna wear it, the parents will be happy to talk about it to others
Use the job centre and other such places for parents that will be new to needing your services

 

[butterfm]

Some excellent suggestions there - thanks V much

 

[cheekychums]

How Many Other Nurseries Are In The Area, What About Competition Are They Full, How Is Your Wifes Nursery Different,do U Have A Website Advertize Locally On Net Get Photos Of Happy Children With Permission Of Mums Of Course.offer Ballet French Etc For 3-5 Year Olds Swimming Lessons Take Them I Them In Mini Bus After School Pick Ups With Free Tea,

 

[JoTheEntreprenette]

Is there any play centres that you can advertise in?

Dont forget word of mouth, use your current parents to get out their and promote your services. That is how I heard about my daughters previous creche.

Regards

Jo

 

[Ian Feingold]

why not donate some nursery thermometers with your branding on to the local maternity unit and doctors surgeries to put in the packs they give to new mums? Send me a pm and I can get you a price...

 

[deniser]

What about some kind of "refer a friend" scheme where you give a gift to anyone that introduces a new parent? They do this in my gym.

Or have an Open Day which you could advertise in the local paper?

Could you sponsor a local child related event?

 

[Deleted member 83148]

You could also try a magnetic sign which can be taken off when required or if you are okay with a permanent ad conventional sign writing on your own vehicle - can be very cost effective !

PS my other half is a sign writer and could design and send a simple design with instructions on how to affix yourself - if you are interested.

 

[sjbeale]

Contact your local papers and ask if they would be interested in doing a large article on your nursery. You could link it to a planned open day for parents to come along and meet the staff.

 

[Sproston]

Local gyms. Mine has a noticeboard, and on weekdays it's full of mums, and on the weekends it's full of families with kids in the swimming pools.

 

[cautiouscapy]

Word-of-Mouth Referral is the BEST way to build a business like this.

- existing parent refers a friend, if the friend signs up their kid then the exisiting parent and their friend gets a free week (or other great offer that your wife calculates her business can afford to get the punters in).

If the staff are already there being paid, and the business has spare capacity, you've nothing to lose on this one.

 

[gemd89]

Open day is a good idea, i found one nursery through my local paper and another when i was search online. I found it easier to search online and looked at the google places listings and then take a look around there website. The one i eventually chose had web cams up all over it so i could watch my little monster while i was at work. This swung it for my in the end.

Gemma

 

[chiggs]

Is there a local magazine aimed at parents in your area that you could advertise in (eg families mag, early times mag etc)? Also look out for nearly new sales, the NCT run them in most areas, or local baby fairs that you could take a stand at, maybe hand out balloons with your logo on to the children.

 

[TheBalloonPrintingCompany]

sending you a PM now, with an exclusive offer should you wish to have some balloons with your logo!

 

[ThePublisher]

Is there a local magazine aimed at parents in your area that you could advertise in (eg families mag, early times mag etc)? Also look out for nearly new sales, the NCT run them in most areas, or local baby fairs that you could take a stand at, maybe hand out balloons with your logo on to the children.

I run a local magazine that has a private nursery in the distribution area in a quiet backwater. We deliver the magazine free through the door of 4000 homes. The lady that runs the nursery has a permanent booking of a full page ad on page 3 each time it goes to her delivery area (6 times a year), and she's booked again for another year, so I can only conclude it works very well for her, given that it's an expensive page in the magazine, and I offer many cheaper alternative options.

Could you find something similar locally? Try here www.findlocalmagazines.co.uk to see if there is something in your area.

 

[ecenica]

What about some kind of "refer a friend" scheme where you give a gift to anyone that introduces a new parent? They do this in my gym.

Or have an Open Day which you could advertise in the local paper?

Could you sponsor a local child related event?

I also think this is your best avenue. Trust is important in all business, and even more so when kids are involved.

Rather than a cash incentive you might get more success with offering freebies, like Hampers etc. This way those parents recommending you won't feel like they're getting cold cash from another parent's child.

Coming from a Web Hosts perspective, I would also make sure that you have a professional sounding domain name and email.

A simple single page with just a map to your nursery and contact form to capture interest would be enough to send out the right image.

Typing this on my iPad on a train so tricky to check. Apologies if you already have a website and domain name etc. If not please feel free to PM for advice.

^R.

 

[VoucherExpert]

Why don't you try contacting a vouchers website? If you can offer a great exclusive, I know moneysupermarket.com would be happy to include you on their website at no charge. PM me and I'll put you in touch with the right person.

 

[VoucherExpert]

You could try contacting a vouchers website and place a deal on there, many of them are happy to include smaller retailers if they can offer an exclusive deal. Moneysupermarket being one

Here's an example of a Pizza Express voucher on there site, if you'd like to get in touch with them just drop me a pm and I can tell you who I dealt with.

 

[Ian-M]

Do you take Childcare vouchers? If not you should look into as it is a tax efficient way for people to pay for childcare. Once you do take them you can write to all the local businesses as you may find some that are keen to tie up with a local nursery and to support parents through childcare vouchers.

 

[localstars]

Sorry for the blatent self promotion here - but I'd contact the Wigan Reporter and ask for a Localstars Advert to be shown on their website.

Something like this... http://localstars.co.uk//preview.php?clipid=2307&guid=cb42eac80b5d3a790885444c52882fcd

 

[surgery_cards]

Why not advertise in your local Medical Centre or Surgery?

We provide appointment cards that can display your Nursery Details. The cards are given out to patients, (most importantly mums!) when booking appointments for their children with the Doctor, Nurse or Health Visitor.

Its a great way to promote your Nursery in your local area.

Let me know if we can help you further.

 

[boylovell]

setup a referral competition with mums for prizes, most prizes wins a gift

local play centres, gymnastics clubs and fitness gyms with creche.

search engine optimisation, but only if your site has opt in and proper sales message (ideally with video of kids happy etc).

Publicity - send out top tips to your local paper on how to keep kids safe. Survey your parents, ask what their top concerns are as a parent, then use the results in an article.

Give away plastic 'gift cards' (same as credit card) with One Week Free Worth X and give them away in town.

Use kiddies to give out flyers (with parents around obviously). Wearing tshirts saying 'I love Being Safe a X Nursey).

Just a few ideas, check out my signature for more x