How Do You Handle Situations Like This?

[DayCareDiva30]

Today I had someone who claimed to be new to the area call inquiring about my child care program: how many stars I had, and if I was a center or home day care. Then she asked what my address what. Before answering I asked what age her child was and what kind of arrangement she was looking for? She said she was looking for something in the future. I told her that I didn’t have any opening and probably wouldn’t have any until the summer. (Which is the truth)

My question is how to you response to inquiries like this? I normally don’t give out my address when Im not interviewing for openings, due to not wanting strangers popping up on my doorstep unannounced. Do you give out your information about you’re program to anyone who calls asking?

[Lucy]

Pretty much how you did. I vet them first. Make sure their needs can be filled by me. I ask several questions till I'm sure I feel comfortable with them, and that they sound genuinely serious about coming for an interview. If I invite them for an interview and they agree to come, then, and only then, I will give them my address.

If it matters where you're located, as far as whether they even want to consider you, then you can just give them a general location... "North of Hwy 9 on the west side of town"... something like that. Then you can continue with questioning them.

If they kind of hesitate and stutter for their answers, it kind of tips me off that they could be other providers just calling around to compare their prices to yours. If they keep coming back to "what do you charge?", I'm always leary.

[WoodOx]

I only give out info if I have openings AND after I ask them a few questions to see if they seem like a good fit or not.
usually they ask where I am located by, instead of my home address.

[blandino]

I usually give out the closest intersection, and only give out my address when scheduling an interview.

If someone does happen to knock on my door, I politely explain that I don't allow unscheduled strangers in my home while the children are in care, and I hope they would feel the same way if their child was in care. And then encourage them to schedule an interview.

I had a problem like this the first time I posted on these forums. A grandmother of a child who hadn't started with me yet (but was due to the following week) stopped by at nap time unannounced. I didn't let her in and she became a little aggressive with questions.

Also, a few years ago I interviewed with someone who told me they stopped by another daycare unannounced and the provider wouldn't let them in, so he reported her to DHS. Just because she wouldn't let a stranger in the house unannounced. How would he have liked it if his daughter was in care and she let a unknown man in the daycare ?!?! Guess who miraculously didn't have a spot when they called back.

[DayCareDiva30]

I usually give out the closest intersection, and only give out my address when scheduling an interview.

If someone does happen to knock on my door, I politely explain that I don't allow unscheduled strangers in my home while the children are in care, and I hope they would feel the same way if their child was in care. And then encourage them to schedule an interview.

I had a problem like this the first time I posted on these forums. A grandmother of a child who hadn't started with me yet (but was due to the following week) stopped by at nap time unannounced. I didn't let her in and she became a little aggressive with questions.

Also, a few years ago I interviewed with someone who told me they stopped by another daycare unannounced and the provider wouldn't let them in, so he reported her to DHS. :eek: Just because she wouldn't let a stranger in the house unannounced. How would he have liked it if his daughter was in care and she let a unknown man in the daycare ?!?! Guess who miraculously didn't have a spot when they called back.

That's why I took down the sign I had made for my day care out of the yard. I was tired of having people see the sign in the yard and stop by to see if we had any openings!

[sammehra172]

Licensing Issue

Hi yall!

So Ive just recently bought my first daycare, everything has gone smoothly except one main issue Im having ....

The daycare ive bought is currently operating and has 45 children enrolled.I have to get licensing under my name and when i called the licensing office they told me that it could go two ways:

1) i could be shut down and re open once licensed ( which would turn to me loosing all the kids )

2)The licensing agent could license me while the place is operating with the previous owners child care license


The people at the licensing office told me its basically up to the licensing agent whether I can receive the license or not.

DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY EXPERIENCE IN TAKING OVER A DAYCARE

PS if #1 is the case then what is the use of buying a already running daycare....

[Starburst]

I would only give out the detailed infromation if they were coming for an interview and I had an opening for what they need. I thought about having a sign in my yard but one that looked like those real eastate posts (like this http://www.displays2go.com/Product.a...3ZQgodClkA1wts) because alot of small businesses around here have that and I think it looks cool. But I am afraid of people trying to stop buy and expect to come in during hours, so if I did have it have one of those cards above it that says 'by appointment only'.

My Child Development teachers said that for some reason people are just drawn to areas where they now kids are and think its a cool play to just 'hang out' and 'play with kids'. They said that lots of people on campus (who are not even CD students) go to the colleges Child Development center/ preschool because they think they can hang out or if they have a kid they can just bring them there to play. All CD students who take day classes at the preschool building must wear an authorized badge at all times (licensing requirement)- they will even send employees and student teachers home if they don't bring their approved badge. I even told my fiance once when he was visiting (he's from another county) they wont let him in the building during the day and he went in to wait for me to finish class and the lady at the front desk told him he couldn't be in there. I warned him but I think he got confused because one of my night teachers said it was okay for him to sit in during class because that was a later class starting after the preschool closed.

One of my CD teachers is also the director of the preschool and says that she used to get alot of new moms who would go there because they thought they could go there to just hang out and nurse their babies- she later learned that she could just refer them to the health building/ nurses office. Another one of my CD teachers said she got complaints from one local FCC provider because a lot of CD students (sometimes even non CD students) who would show up at her home unannounced during hours trying to look for a job- somehow I doubt any of them got hired .

[Blackcat31]

I usually refer people to my web-site but I also have no issues telling someone my location as where a child care is located is often a deciding factor for some families seeking care. Why find a provider in the west end of town when you work and live on the east side....kwim?

[jessrlee]

I just give them the info or send them to the website. I figure if I'm cool enough to copy, I rock! happyface

[ABCDaycareMN]

I give prospective clients a close intersection to we're I live, not my actual address. I don't give out my address until we have set up an interview.

[cheerfuldom]

I would never tell anyone any information if they were not willing/able to answer basic questions like how old their child was and when they would need care to begin. i dont waste my time with people fishing for info about vague future needs. it might have been another provider fishing for info as well, in which case, i dont waste my time on people that pretend to be parents looking for care.

[EntropyControlSpecialist]

I give prospective clients a close intersection to we're I live, not my actual address. I don't give out my address until we have set up an interview.

Me, too.