Staff shortages continue to keep classrooms closed and slots unavailable. And childcare providers have no choice but to turn away parents or add them to a month-long, if not year-long, waitlist of families needing childcare.
While childcare providers continue to try to hire for childcare staff, keeping in touch with parent leads and keeping the communication and connection is also another important aspect of ensuring the center’s ability to thrive in the future.
Here are 5 ways childcare providers can keep on creating connections and engaging with waitlisted parent leads.
1. Send regular updates on COVID-19 rules and regulations
While they’re still not enrolled in the center, knowing that you keep yourself informed about the latest guidelines about COVID-19 will help parents know they are waitlisted at the right place.
This also lets parents know the latest best practices when it comes to protecting their child against coronavirus and its variants.
2. Share job openings
While it is the parents looking for childcare, most parents also know that staff shortage is one hindrance that prevents their children from being enrolled in your center.
Let them help you find a potential hire that could see you opening a classroom or two to cater to more children by sharing your job openings through emails.
This also lets parents know you are actively doing something to fill in the gap in your staff and finding a way to serve more children in the community.
3. Share changes in the center
If and when there is a change, share it with the waitlisted parents so that they feel part of the childcare service even before they enroll.
Whether it’s a change in hours, pickup and dropoff rules, or welcoming a new staff member, these reminders help keep them in the loop and know they haven’t been forgotten.
4. Greet their child on their birthday
As some parents start adding their child to the waitlist even before they are born, it’s a nice gesture to greet their child when their birthday comes around even if they’re yet to take a spot in the center.
This lets the parents and child know they are welcome and are never forgotten even if they’re just on the waitlist.
5. Ask them to update their childcare needs and status.
Parents are on multiple waiting lists and some may get admitted to other places before a slot opens up in yours.
To keep your waiting lists updated, sending regular emails to have parents update their childcare needs or status will give you the best waitlist to work with if and when a slot opens up.
This lessens the chances of chasing parents who no longer need care and speeds up filling the empty slot.
Good parent-provider relationships start with great communication–even if they’re still just in your waitlist. These are just 5 ways on how to keep communicating and building a relationship with waitlisted parents. Do you do any or all of these steps? Are there any other messages, updates, or communications that you do for your waitlisted parents? Let us know in the comments below.
Recent Comments