1. Friends and Family: Friends, family and colleagues should be your first resource for child care clients. Contact friends and family to let them know of your new daycare business.  With the current state of the economy, many parents are returning to work or taking on second jobs and need someone to care for their young children.  Your child care business is a great resource for excellent, reliable, safe daycare from someone they know and trust.  Then ask them to spread the word about your high quality services.
2. The internet: The internet is a great resource for connecting with a wide variety of people and organizations. Create a simple website which details your location. Many daycare software systems allow you to purchase a website template which lets you easily plug in your own business information. Once you have created your website, advertise your daycare service on Craigslist, Facebook, and Twitter. Register your child care business with many of the online daycare directories for home daycare providers, so that your daycare is searchable on the internet.
3. Advertise: The best way to find new clients is to increase your business’ visibility. Your licensed daycare provider you should create flyers, brochures, and business cards to advertise your daycare service.  Your advertisements should include your, your daycare’s philosophy, the programs you offer, any special services available, general location of the business, hours of business, and business phone number. Business card magnets are also a good tool since potential clients can stick your business card on their refrigerator and always have your business information close at hand.
4. Community Organizations:  Visit schools, churches, hospitals and other community organizations to let parents know about your high quality child care services. These organizations are also great places to leave your daycare flyers, brochures and business cards.
5. Television, Radio, and Workshops:  Contact local radio and television stations. Let them know you are an expert early childhood development and a licensed daycare business owner. Explain that you would be willing to be interviewed to talk about parenting, daycare, or the business of child care. While on the air be sure to plug your daycare business Make mention of your business’ web address and emphasize any unique or superior services you r business offers. Offer free parenting or educational workshops to those in your community.  Pass out flyers and brochures after the workshop to promote your childcare center.

Once you get the word out that you are a licensed daycare provider and that you provide safe, high quality childcare, getting new clients will be a snap. Of course you can only take in a limited amount of clients so be sure to start a waiting list and keep potential clients updated with regard to your availability.

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Consider the following resources when starting your home daycare business:

How to Start a Home-Based Day-Care Business by Sherri Steelsmith [Globe Pequot, 2006] For guidance with both the business and educational aspects of starting a home based or family daycare center, consider this guide by Steelsmith. The book contains the necessary basics to get your business up and running. Topics such as creating policies and procedures, activities for young children, interviewing parents, helping children, discipline and guidance. There are also worksheets and templates to help you take a personal inventory and determine profitability. There are also sample menus and examples of daycare forms.

Family Child Care Contracts and Policies: How to Be Businesslike in a Caring Profession by Tom Copeland JD [Redleaf Press, 2006]. For those home daycare business owners that are struggling with contracts and policies, Copeland offers loads of information in this area. The text helps you create contracts and policies with both your business and your clients in mind and indicates how to enforce them. There are also sample contracts for creating a sample policy handbook. Also includes a handy CD-ROM.

How to Open and Operate a Financially Successful Child Care Service by Tina Musial [Atlantic Publishing Company, 2007]. Musial provides a great manual to help daycare providers become successful in the highly profitable business of child care. The guide explains start up costs and financing, federal and state requirements, how to promote and market your daycare business, how to set goals and objectives, how to create policies, how to manage financial operations, food management, and health and safety issues. This book also contains a business plan and a business forms on CD ROM.

The Business of Child Care: Management and Financial Strategies by Gail Jack, Mary Arnold and Karen Levine [Delmar Cengage Learning, 2004]. This excellent guide covers effective management skills, dealing with enrollment and staffing, establishing tuition fees, budgeting and financial record keeping, and evaluating staff performance. The included CD ROM includes financial spreadsheets and fully customizable templates.

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