An Ultimate Guide to Starting a Child Care Email Marketing Campaign

What child care marketing email should be like

Billions of people depend on child care to work. In the U.S., more than 12 million children younger than five are in some form of child care. It is a massive industry that costs American parents $42 billion every year. For those who operate a child care facility, email marketing can be a valuable method for attracting new customers and maintaining contact with current ones.

Before you start creating your email marketing for schools or a child care business, it’s important to understand what kind of emails you should send to your audience. There are two essential aspects of a child care marketing email:

Relevant

Your marketing email should be relevant to your audience. For example, parents need to know if your center extended the hours or has slots open on high-demand dates such as holidays. To do this, conduct surveys, focus groups, or analyze the data on your audience’s behavior and preferences in other ways.

Valuable

Your marketing email should provide value to your audience. This means offering something that they will find helpful or interesting, such as tips on child care, updates on your center’s programs, or exclusive promotions. By providing value, you can establish a strong relationship with your audience and encourage them to remain engaged with your brand.

How to start a child care marketing email campaign

Now that you know what your marketing email should look like, let’s go over the steps needed to start your campaign.

Choose an email marketing software

Choosing the right email marketing software is critical for any business purpose, whether it’s for child care or back-to-school email marketing. The email marketing software like Selzy is a dedicated service to send emails in bulk to your subscribers. It allows you to create, send, and track your email communications with parents and potential clients. Here are some important factors to consider when choosing email marketing software for your child care business:

• Ease of use: Check out the user reviews of the service, look at the screenshots, etc. to understand whether the service is beginner-friendly and has helpful customer support. Additionally, see if there are tutorials for the service. You don’t want to spend hours trying to figure out how to create and send emails, especially when you have other important tasks to handle.
• Pricing: Email marketing software can range from free to $20+ a month for 1,000 subscribers, depending on the features and services offered. Automation, A/B testing, and integrations can rank up the price for the service. So it’s important to determine what features you need and choose the pricing plan accordingly.
• Automation: This means you can schedule emails at specific times, such as during enrollment periods, birthdays, and holidays, without having to manually send them.
• Analytics: Tracking open rates, click-through rates, and bounce rates shows the success of your email campaigns and allows you to adjust your email marketing strategy accordingly.
• Integrations: Choose software that can integrate with your existing systems, such as your customer relationship management (CRM) software or your website. 

There are many email marketing software options available, including Selzy. Take the time to research and compare different options to find the one that best fits your needs and budget. We have an article on how to find the best email marketing service for your needs and a comparison tool to compare two services back-to-back.

Build your email list

Once you’ve chosen your email marketing software, it’s time to start building your email list. You can gather email addresses from a variety of sources, including:

• Enrollment forms and paperwork
• Website sign-ups and contact forms
• Social media platforms
• Events and open houses

Make sure to comply with email regulations, such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the CAN-SPAM Act. This includes ensuring that your subscribers can unsubscribe from your email list and that your emails are not misleading or fraudulent.

Set the goal of your marketing emails

Before you start sending out emails, determine what you want to achieve with them. Some common goals for child care providers include:

• Attracting new families
• Retaining existing families
• Promoting new programs or services
• Building community involvement and engagement for charity initiatives, events, etc.

The clearer the goal — the better. Depending on your email marketing strategy, you can set different metrics: the number of new subscribers, clicks, etc. 

Once you’ve identified your goal, you can tailor your email content and strategies to achieve it. For example, if you are looking to build connections and engage with the members of your email list, then emails with useful information such as guidance, tips, or news related to the industry will likely make a bigger impact.

Segment your audience

One of the most effective ways to create relevant and valuable emails is to segment your audience. This means dividing your email list into smaller categories based on specific characteristics or interests. 

Here’s an example of how you might segment an email list for a child care email marketing campaign:

• Age of the child: If your child care center offers services for children of different ages, it makes sense to segment your email list based on kids’ age. For example, you might have one segment for infants’ parents, one for toddlers’, and one for preschoolers’.
• Enrollment status: You could segment your list based on whether the recipient has already enrolled their child in your center or not. For those who haven’t enrolled yet, you could send emails highlighting the benefits of your center and encouraging them to schedule a tour. For those who have enrolled, you could send emails with updates on what their child is learning and upcoming events.
• Location: If you have multiple locations or serve different neighborhoods, consider geographic segmentation. This allows you to send targeted messages to parents who live near a specific center and promote events or specials that are happening at that location.
• Interests: You could segment your list based on the interests of the parents or the child. For example, if you offer extracurricular activities like music lessons or language classes, you could send targeted emails to parents who have expressed interest in those programs.

These are just a few examples of how you might segment an email list. The key is to think about what information you have about your recipients and how you can use that information to create more targeted and relevant messaging.

Craft a catchy subject line

Your email subject line is one of the most important parts of your message, as it’s the first thing your recipients will see. A catchy subject line can entice your recipients to open your email and read your content.

Consider using personalization (include the subscriber’s name or their child’s name), asking a question, or using action-oriented language in your subject line. And be sure to keep it short and sweet — most email clients only display the first few words of the subject line (generally, up to 60 characters).

Here are some examples of catchy subject lines for your email campaign:

• Your child’s future starts here: register for the fall semester today
• Limited spaces available: Secure your child’s spot now
• Summer fun awaits: Sign up for our summer program today
• Don’t let your child miss out: Join our music lessons now
• Your child deserves the best: Enroll in our accredited center now
• Give your child a gift: Sign up for our sports camp today
• [Child’s name] can learn more about science in our new summer camp
• We can help: Learn more about our special education services

Prepare the content and proofread it

Here are some tips for preparing and proofreading your child care marketing email content:

1. Define your message: Before you start writing, clearly define the main message you want to convey in your email. Ideally, you should only have one message. Whether it’s promoting a new program, sharing valuable tips for parents, or announcing an upcoming event, a clear message will help you stay focused and deliver a compelling email.
2. Write engaging content: Write your email content as if you’re having a friendly conversation with the recipient. Use personal pronouns, keep sentences and paragraphs concise, and use an active voice to make your content more engaging and relatable. Remember to keep your language simple and jargon-free, ensuring that your message is easily understood.
3. Structure your content: Organize your content into sections with headings and subheadings. This makes your email visually appealing and helps readers navigate through the information easily. Also, follow the email design best practices. 
4. Add visuals: Including relevant visuals in your email can make it more appealing and help convey your message effectively. Use high-quality images that relate to your content, such as photos of happy children engaged in activities at your child care center. Ensure that the visuals are properly formatted and optimized for email.
5. Proofread and edit: After writing your email content, take the time to proofread and edit it carefully. Look for spelling and grammar errors, punctuation mistakes, and any inconsistencies in your messaging. Read your content aloud or ask a team member to review it to catch any overlooked errors or areas that could be improved.

Include a CTA

Your email should include a clear call-to-action (CTA) that encourages your recipients to take action. Here are some CTA examples for your campaigns:

• Sign up (for a program or service)
• Call this number
• Download the guide
• Schedule tour

Be sure to make your CTA prominent and easy to find within your email content. Plus, consider making it a button, and not just a simple link.

Set up tracking and analytics

Most email marketing software includes tracking and analytics features to measure the success of the email campaign. You can analyze your email campaigns’ open rates, click-through rates, and conversion rates.

Use this data to refine your email content and strategies over time, and to continually improve the effectiveness of your email campaigns. Experiment with different subject lines, content types, and CTAs to see what resonates best with your audience.

Child care marketing email topics to cover in your campaigns

Now that you know how to start your email marketing campaign, let’s explore some topics that you can cover in your marketing emails.

Enrolment information

One of the most important topics to cover in your email marketing campaign is the availability of enrolment slots for your child care services. Parents are constantly looking for quality care for their children, and if you have openings, let them know. Make sure to include details about the ages of the children you accept, the hours of operation, and any other relevant information about your program.

Your message may look like this:

In the following example, the center invited parents to download a PDF file containing all the relevant information.

Another example of an email about enrollment:

Community involvement and charity

Another effective email marketing topic for child care providers is community involvement and charity. The public image of your center would be better if you are actively involved in the community and giving back. This can also be important to some of the parents. Share any volunteer work or donations you have made, and encourage parents to do the same.

The content of your email copy can be as follows:

If you regularly support charitable initiatives, check out our guide on nonprofit email marketing.

Promotions and discounts

Promotions and discounts are popular topics in email marketing campaigns, and child care providers are no exception. Consider offering a discount for first-time enrolments or a promotion for referring a friend to your program. Make sure to communicate the terms and conditions for these promotions clearly.

Here’s an example of what your email could resemble:

And this is a real example of an email with a discount on child care services:

Expansion and improvements

If you have recently expanded your program or made improvements, such as adding new activities or upgrading your facilities, this is another great topic to cover in your email marketing campaign. Parents want to know that you are constantly striving to improve your program and provide the best care possible for their children.

To give you an idea, this is how your message could look:

Positive feedback

Sharing positive feedback from current or past clients is an effective way to build trust and credibility with potential customers. Include testimonials or reviews from satisfied parents in your email marketing campaign to show the quality of care you provide.

Consider this as a template for how your message could be composed:

New programs and services

If you are introducing new programs or services, such as after-school care or summer camps, this is a great topic to include in your email marketing campaign. Make sure to provide detailed information about the new program or service and how it can benefit parents and their children.

This is an illustration of how your email may take shape:

Below are great examples of real emails announcing new programs and the start of the summer camp:

Special events and open houses

Special events or open houses are an excellent way to showcase your center and attract new customers. These events can include activities for children, tours of your facilities, and meetings with staff members. They provide an opportunity for parents to see your center in action and ask questions in person.

If you need some inspiration, here are the templates:

Final thoughts

Although child care providers typically have a lot on their plate, it’s essential not to forget about the benefits of email marketing. You can leverage email marketing as a valuable and efficient marketing strategy by following these email marketing tips:

1. Choose an email marketing software that fits your needs and budget.
2. Build your email list by collecting contact information from interested parents and caregivers.
3. Set clear goals for your marketing emails, such as increasing enrollment or promoting special events.
4. Segment your audience based on age, location, and interests.
5. Craft a catchy subject line that grabs the reader’s attention and entices them to open the email.
6. Prepare the content of the email, proofreading it for errors and ensuring it is visually appealing.
7. Include a clear call-to-action (CTA) that prompts the reader to take a specific action, such as visiting your website or scheduling a tour.
8. Set up tracking and analytics to monitor the performance of your emails, and test and refine your strategy based on the results.