Here is a four-part article which will help you understand the importance of marketing your preschool, how to spread the word, the resources needed and the expenses involved.
As your pre-school is a stand-alone venture you will have to remember that it is not an existing brand. It is not a franchise that already has a name in the market and so, you will have to go out there and create some brand awareness.
Well, this is not as hard as it sounds. It is actually a great network building opportunity and a fun-filled journey.
And yes remember, here are just four ideas to go about and start the marketing process. You can try one or as many as you wish to according to your requirement and ability.
These are actual hands-on events for you to organize. You will have to team this up with a lot of social media marketing and traditional marketing to spread the word. More about such marketing at the end of this article. Read on!

Idea #1 – Story Telling

Children’s story telling sessions are not only a way to spread some cheer, it is also a great way to encourage participation and in turn market your preschool.
Who doesn’t love a good story? Especially, when there are children involved in that equation. There are a few points to remember before organizing a story-telling event. 

Pick a theme

Always organize a planned event with a simple theme like animals or festivals. If you want the kids or parents to come prepared, then you will have to inform them regarding this theme as and when you do the marketing for the event.

Setting up the venue

 In this case, the venue will be your preschool space. You will have to do some pre-work and set up the place with appropriate photographs, posters, toys and keep a little stationery for the kids and parents to use, during the event.

Conduct an interesting ice-breaker

This could be a hook to your story too. (maybe a song or a poem) You could set the stage and help the audience feel comfortable.
But you will have to be ready in advance. Pick up a book relevant to the theme. Fill the story’s narration with a lot of drama to engage every individual in the room and constantly engage the children.
Also, try to find a story that is a folk-tale or a not-so-popular kind of story. You do not wish to tell them a story they already know.
Check out this list for some interesting stories

• The very hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle
• What did you see? By Nandini Nayar
• Guess how much I love you by Sam McBratney
• Where’s that Cat? By Manjula Padmanabhan
• Dear Zoo by Rod Campbell
• Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do you see? By Bill Martin, Jr.
• What is Amma? By Nandini Nayar
• Up Down by Vinayak Varma
• Mouse Paint by Ellen Walsh
• I like stars by Margaret Wise Brown

Engage children

It is fun if you can get some children from your preschool to participate in the narration of your story. You can give them a role to play, a small poem to recite or to hold up some props.
Either way, this will be engaging and will keep the audience involved.

Themed activities and craft-work

Based on your theme, you could have a quick colouring contest or a bookmark-making contest. A basic template may be provided but ensure that you are letting the children think and innovate.

Thank you gift

A cost-effective thank you gift is a good idea and it could even be a small book but, ensure that this is relevant to the theme.

Idea #2 – Art & Craft

The idea of organizing a hands-on, art and craft day at your preschool sounds exciting, doesn’t it? But, it involves a lot of planning and you need to stock up on resources.
Do not overfill the day with craft activities. Children take more time to figure their way around a new place.
So when you are inviting new parents and children to such an event, ensure that the activities are simple, well-explained and not very time-consuming.

Here are a few points to remember

• • Plan ahead – Make a list of activities that you want the kids to try and buy all the resources well in advance. Ensure that these resources are non-toxic and kid-friendly. Have a rough timeline, with fewer activities and a lot of interaction.
  • Involve the parent – Instead of getting many volunteers to be a part of the event, you can simply make each parent responsible for his/her child by giving them a small role to play in each activity. Just write out the set of instructions accordingly.
  • Do your research – Art & Craft activities can be intricate and more focused if selected wisely after keeping the child’s age in mind. Pick activities that are not too difficult and yet push the child to innovate.
  • Benefit of art & craft – Such activities help improve a child’s motor skills and coordination. It gives them a lot of confidence too. They learn to share, concentrate and innovate. They can also learn new topics like shapes, colours, patterns to name a few. And most importantly, children enjoy hands-on projects and have a lot of fun while learning!
  • I do, we do, you do – Always follow this simple 3-step approach while teaching anything new, especially an activity. First you do it and show them how it’s done. Then with a little hand-holding, get the children and parents to try it out. You can walk around and monitor at this stage. As a final step, let them try it on their own. This will help them confidently experiment. You can walk up to individual children and suggest changes, if necessary.
  • Positive reinforcement – Always appreciate. The new parents there need to feel welcomed. Remember, this event is also a way of marketing your preschool and a great chance to show how amazing you can be with children. So constantly appreciate and encourage children to try. When they fail or find it tough to complete a task go talk to the child and help him/her. This hand-holding is mandatory in a craft/art session.

Here is a small list of resources that you can keep ready before the art & craft event

1. Colour paper
2. Scissors (blunt edges)
3. Craft scissors 
4. Glitter – many colours (check for non-toxic glitters)
5. Glue (again, non-toxic) –  preferably a gluestick
6. Craft paper
7. Stencils
8. Regular pencils
9. Colour pencils, crayons or paints – depending on the activity
10. Instruction sheets

Idea #3 –  Puppet Show

A wonderful tool to attract people of all ages is and will always be a Puppet. The actual puppet can be a simple cut out, a stick or finger puppet even.
The resources needed for a puppet show are – a puppet or a few puppets depending on the storyline, music, a dramatic narration and a bit of humour!
If you wish to put up a puppet show for prospective parents and children, and in turn market your preschool, then you need to prepare well in advance.
And here’s how –

• Get the props ready – The puppets, the backdrop and the lights are some of the important props. So, get them all ready and practice many times before the actual event
• Manage the time – Keep the show short and engaging. Try to open up the event for a short discussion after you perform or invite some kids to enact a few scenes out once you are done.
• Find an age-appropriate story –  Do not pick a long or tough story as it will not only take a lot of time to enact, but also first time viewers might not understand the concept easily and might get distracted.
• Throw in some music – Children love to sing along with a puppet. Have a catchy theme song or a chorus that you can easily teach the children. You can give them small puppets to hold up and sing along every time you sing it on stage. This will ensure that they are involved in the show.
• Leadership, confidence & performance – Puppets teach us all this and more. You can involve the children from your preschool to be a part of the show. This will also give the new parents a flavor of your school and diverse activities that you conduct.
• Using Puppets – It is easier to recreate some stories into as a puppet show with simple, hand-made puppets. Pick a story with very few characters as it allows for puppets to be used easily. You can purchase a DIY puppet kit to create characters for your story.

 
PRO TIP: You can also take a look at FlintoClass which is a complete preschool system. FlintoClass provides everything to help you run a successful preschool – from everyday materials for every child in the class and teacher training to marketing templates and collateral to promote your preschool! To find out more about FlintoClass, visit this link >

Idea #4 –  Organizing a Carnival

This is a mega event and so all the above-mentioned events can be a part of this carnival.
You could plan a three-hour carnival with a lot of interesting activities like an activity corner, a storytelling event, a mini puppet show, a bookmark making time, a group game like paper & feet i.e. twister or a parent-child treasure hunt.

• Determine the theme – Consider setting a theme before starting your plan, setting a budget and printing the pamphlets.
• Set the budget – Remember this is a marketing event and its objective is to attract new parents and children but, you need to set a budget and work accordingly. Plan to buy enough resources, decoration material, thank you gifts and snacks and also, set aside a small amount for stationery like posters and flyers.
• Kind of Carnival –  You can call it an open house or a gala, according to the theme of the carnival. There must be one mega event that is the central part of this carnival like a magic show or a skit.
• Time it right – Plan it on a nice day (weather-wise) and preferably a weekend so that the parents can plan ahead. For maximum impact it need to be at-least a 2 hour event, but not more than 3 hours as the children will get tired.
• Fun corner – Make the event snappy and have a fun corner. This could be a vegetable art or a memory game zone. Set up the whole preschool space accordingly with a lot of theme-relevant decoration. Use non-toxic and preferably organic materials.
• Get volunteers – This event cannot be pulled off alone. Try to spread the word and get two or three volunteers to help on this day. They should be good with children and comfortable managing the fun corner, decoration and engaging with the parents. Please give them a t-shirt with your preschool’s logo on it so that they can be easily identified.
• A quick check – Power backup, wall decoration like balloons and ribbons, housekeeping staff/volunteers, a light snack or drink as soon as the guests arrive, dustbins, tissues, an event schedule with timings, enquiry desk with your brochures and name cards, a small first-aid kid, a merchandize corner with your pre-school logo on various stuff like paper hats, t shirts or a photo booth depending on your budget.

A few common things to remember

• Publicizing your event – is a vital step. You could be putting together a great event but if enough people do not hear about it or turn up then it is a complete waste of your efforts and it beats the purpose of trying to use this event as a marketing tool. Here are a few ways of spreading the word in a low-cost way – put up posters in nearby schools, cafes and apartments, give out pamphlets to your neighbours and acquaintances, send out a Whatsapp message that can be shared in various groups, create a poster with all the information and the theme (physical as well as online poster).
• Cost effective advertising – Post in the local magazine, newspaper and social media. You will have to create a buzz about your event on Facebook, Twitter and Whatsapp. Share the poster, a short video of a child from your playschool inviting others, a story narrated by a child or the theme you have planned for the event. You could put up the poster on Facebook groups in your city. Word of mouth is the most effective way of communicating and it also gives new/ prospective clients a feeling of trust.  Ensure you inform a lot of people about the Story Telling Event.
• Finally, ask the parents to log onto your site and book their seats well in advance. Once they are done a pop-up could request them to share it on social media. It could be a free event but blocking the seat will help you buy enough resources. Their booking of seats in advance can also be shared on your FB/Twitter pages, encouraging and pushing more parents to check out the event and attend it.
• After your event don’t forget to share the photos, videos and testimonials on your social media pages to engage more parents. Send a survey form to all the parents who attended the event asking for their thoughts and feedback. Use this information wisely.

Organizing a marketing-related event for your preschool is a fun process. Plan well, budget it right and spread the word.
Engage the parents and children at every stage and record all the happenings. Have a great time putting together a fun and engaging event!