rather concerned.

[timeforanewnickname]

i have not had to fill vacancies for such a long time and now i have 2 (of my biggest earners) leaving in a couple of months. I am advertising in all the usual places and have a website but there seem to be so many cms in this area (south croyon) with vacancies also that I am really starting to worry what i will do if i can't fill my spaces. any ideas, what could i offer to grab peoples attention?
have already said i will negotiate fees and work 7 till 7!
thanks

You need to find a usp (unique selling point) that sets you apart from the others. But be careful of offering too much, especially when it comes to negotiating fees as you need to keep your sanity and sufficient income.

consider your own skills, lifestyle, culture, hobbies, previous jobs and see if they can be incorporated in some way. Look at what other childminders and nurseries are providing and see if there is anything missing?

Some things that I've collected from other peoples ads & forum posts:

• pick up/collection service from childs home
• babysitting in child's home
• early starts and/or evening care
• special arrangements for shift workers
• overnight care in childminders home
• packed lunches for siblings/parents to take to school or work
• all-inclusive service, nappies etc all included in fees (make sure you have a high enough fee to pay for it!)
• nappy laundering facilities
• bilingual setting
• sign language
• music tuition
• laundry, sewing or ironing services
• typing/secretarial services
• experience in a particular condition
• sibling discounts
• full timer discount
• ad-hoc/emergency care

good luck!

thanks for that. some great points to think about

I would say exactly the same as above. I offer overnight care, weekends and bank holidays and I also do babysitting for my regulars if needed and this has pulled in a lot of business as people like the flexibility - I have had a lot of people doing night classes or shift work making enquiries.

I would be careful about negotiating too much on fees. And do you really want to work 7-7 and how will that impact on your own family life?

I agree, the fees thing you should still be strict about because once you've got them in you don't want to be stuck with low fees for months.

Hi there,
I agree with all that has been said. Don't undersell yourself as I believe not only will you get the type of people that will want rolls royce service for skoda prices and may take the mick, but also people will assume your service is not as good, as you are cheaper than most.
I say get your face out there, go to loads of playgroups and get to know the mums. I am unindated with people from word of mouth and all the new mums go there. Also put your details on www.childcare.co.uk as I have lots of interest from there too.
I am lucky as I am in an area with less childminders but with these two ideas I have had more enquiries than anyone else in the area (according to what other childminders are telling me.)
Good luck and don't panic!
xxx

Don't forget to ask your current families to spread the word about your vacancies. My CM was fantastic but when number 2 came along we no longer needed her, I still send people her way (2 years later) as she was that great.

I have always found that word of mouth is best. I ask my existing parents to distribute my card with details of my service (if they are happy to of course!) - word of mouth has generated most of my enquiries over the last 11-12 years. Also get yourself an entry in Yellow Pages or similar. I believe that Yellow Pages is free but you may have to pay for Business Pages. Also two of my nearest schools have been happy to keep my details on file as on a lot of occasions, potential parents will ask the school office if they know of any childminders. Do not under-sell yourself on price as people will wonder how you are able to cut the price when someone half a mile away is charging £1 an hour more - they may worry that cut price equals cuts in service but if you feel that you are not even getting the enquiries maybe the demand in your locality is just dropping off a bit at present - are other minders getting enquires?
If you know who is getting all the enquiries and successfully converting them what is it about them that attracts people - as ayla99 said, find the USP. Good luck!

I think parents will pay more for a CM who is willing to do ad hoc weekends or evening babysitting, I would find out where your local health vistor clinic is and ask if you hand out flyers then. Also advertise get one of your mums to do a write up for you on netmums local (sorry to use the competition here) and if you have an areyoulocal.co.uk. Good luck

hi, am in same boat and am taking on saturdays and sundays now ...try putting an ad on www.childcare.co.uk
Good luck

if u have a car put an advert in your window people willlook cause they think its for sale ...go and speak to your local schools get in touch with your local hub leader for your area i made my self availble to everyone linked to cm s they now ring me when the need a cm for our area and i pass it around our group good luck ...