Guide to Online Childcare Enrolment Forms

How to Use Online Childcare Enrolment Forms Effectively

Millennials are Your #1 Parent Demographic

The parent experience defines the journey a parent takes from initial enquiry to retention, including key conversion points along the way. Today, parents go through a series of starts and stops that often take several months. It’s time-consuming and full of obstacles that cause families to choose another childcare centre. Plus, information is often incorrect or gets lost.

Millennials make up 80% of today’s parents to children under the age of 12 – and overall, they want speed and convenience. Millennials are one of the first generations to grow up in the digital age. They use social media, texting, and their mobile devices more than any other parent demographic has in the past. In fact, Millennial parents want streamlined, digital experiences for everything from shopping and banking to childcare services.

The Challenges with Today's Childcare Enrolment Experience

Enrolment is a pain. Staff spend time they don’t have sending reminders to complete paperwork, chasing down missing papers, and manually entering information from each form. Plus, up to 40% of manual data entry is filled with errors.

It's inconvenient for parents to print forms, fax, or drop them off. Enrolling for care becomes a major burden for staff and parents.

Common Obstacles with Childcare Enrolment

• ​Wasted time with back-and-forth trips to pick up and drop off forms at the centre.
• ​No follow-up after completing tours to initiate enrolment or answer questions.
• ​Limited ongoing communication to encourage form completion.

Digital, Self-Service Options

Allow parents to complete tasks, fill out enrolment packets, and pay enrolment fees online.

Examples:

• ​Let parents self-schedule tours directly from your website.
• ​Provide online enrolment forms.

Quick, Immediate Responses

When parents have a question, effortlessly automate your text messages and emails to solve their problem fast.

Texts and Updates

Let parents know about any changes to their enrolment status. Plus, send gentle reminders to increase the likelihood of families finishing their enrolment forms.

Examples:

• ​"Only a few spots left for the winter toddler program!"
• ​"Hi [Parent Name], don't forget these with your enrolment forms?"
• ​"Don't forget - a nurturing environment for your child, filled with creativity and education, is just a click away."

How the Enrolment Experience Affects Occupancy and Retention

Each step in the parent journey represents a conversion point where parents can choose another centre. Missing a few leads or losing parents because they never received reminders about completing paperwork seems small, but it adds up.

For example, if you’re charging $300/week for care, that’s $15,600/year for each family. If you lose just 10 families from your pipeline, it costs you $156,000 per year in revenue. With an optimised parent experience, more families enrol, and revenue increases. In addition, you'll retain parents that feel like you value their time. Guide parents through the enrolment to drive occupancy.

Avoid These Enrolment Mistakes to Maximise Enrolment Conversions

Often, enrolment is where families drop out of the parent journey because the process is too difficult. Common mistakes during manual childcare enrolment include:

• ​Parents must request your forms via phone, email, mail, or in-person.
• ​Parents have to fill out the same information several times. On average, parents write their own name 9 times on a single enrolment packet.
• ​Forms are submitted back by mail, email, fax, or in-person.
• ​Parents pay pre-enrolment fees by making another trip to your centre or by mail (which is risky).

It’s exhausting and often where parents lose interest.

Inconvenient Processes: The Parents

1. 1.

   Incomplete & Illegible Data

   • ​Manual data entry is error-prone and time-consuming. Staff must decipher handwriting and manually enter large amounts of information, leading to mistakes and wasted resources.
2. 2.

   Insecure & Vulnerable Data

   • ​Paper forms are easily accessed, stolen, misplaced, or destroyed. In cases of fire or flood, family data can be lost. Parents trust you to keep this information secure.
3. 3.

   Lack of Follow Up

   • ​Parents enquire at multiple centres and tour several facilities. Without follow-up, you risk losing them to competitors. Automated enrolment follow-up and reminders help keep your centre top of mind.

   For example, automated messages can be scheduled to reach families at convenient times, reducing staff workload and improving the enrolment experience.

Inconvenient Processes: The Staff

• ​Staff spend time emailing, mailing, or faxing documents to parents.
• ​Increased foot-traffic and interruptions as parents drop off forms.
• ​Staff must chase down incomplete or illegible forms and manually enter data from each line on every enrolment packet.

60% of childcare workers say they could save 6 or more hours a week with automation. Minimise repetitive tasks with digital solutions.

Wasted Time on Data Entry

Businesses that use software integrations for automating data entry save 3.8 hours a day—over 8 weeks a year. Digitising and automating your enrolment process increases productivity and accuracy.

3 Tips to Build the Ultimate Childcare Enrolment Packet

1. Include the Essentials in Your Enrolment Packet

Collect identifying information about parents and children to know who your prospective families are and how to contact them.

Additional Elements to Include:

• ​Emergency Contacts/Release Authorisation
• ​Medical Information
• ​About the Family
• ​Government Required Forms (e.g., immunisation records, childcare subsidy paperwork)
• ​Consents and Agreements

2. Streamline the Enrolment Process

Increase the number of families completing enrolment forms and submitting fee payments by offering online options.

Additional Ways to Streamline Enrolment:

• ​Collect e-signatures and provide easy access to your parent handbook.
• ​Reduce security risks with encrypted form data.
• ​Save staff time with automation.

3. Differentiate Your Organisation

Use multi-language enrolment forms to cater to the needs of all families.

Additional Facts About Multi-Language Enrolment:

• ​Filling out enrolment paperwork is cumbersome, especially for parents who may have difficulty reading in English.
• ​Providing forms in multiple languages (English, Spanish, French, German, Japanese, and Chinese) ensures all families are fully informed.

The Future of Enrolment in Childcare

Digitise Enrolment So Parents Can Complete Paperwork Online

With online enrolment forms, childcare providers can easily collect family information, emergency contacts, consents, medical information, and government required forms. Staff can access completed enrolment packets as a PDF or run reports to view all completed packets.

Benefits:

• ​Enrol families online.
• ​Ensure forms are complete every time with automated reminders.
• ​Review packets anywhere, anytime.

See the Benefits of Digital Enrolment

1. 1.

   Ease of Use: Parents

   • ​Pre-filled form fields reduce time required to complete forms.
   • ​Families can create logins to easily submit information changes.
   • ​Real-time notifications and self-service options allow parents to complete forms at their convenience.
2. 2.

   Data Synchronisation in Real-Time

   • ​Real-time integration streamlines the process and enables automatic notifications when a parent enrols.
3. 3.

   Ability to Access Anywhere, Anytime

   • ​Parents can complete forms anywhere with an internet connection on any device.
4. 4.

   Safety: Prioritise Information Security

   • ​Encrypted security ensures information is secure and eliminates the need for additional visits to the centre.

Key Takeaways

1. 1.Make enrolment more convenient.
2. 2.Offer enrolment in multiple languages.
3. 3.Prioritise information security for personal and financial data.
4. 4.Automate email and text confirmations and reminders.
5. 5.Implement an online system to collect and drive occupancy once paperwork is complete.