Business ideas

The question on providing quality daycare services is no longer about whether it is a reality because to be successful in the business, you HAVE to provide quality services. If you are thinking that running a daycare centre is going to be an extension of babysitting, think again.

With the affluence of today’s society, customers have become highly accustomed to quality services. For example, when we walk into a diner, we are no longer satisfied with just good food. We expect the waiters and waitresses to be polite, we expect to be served some ice water whilst we wait for our meals, etc. Anything less than a good service and we will feel shortchanged.

So what exactly is delivering quality service in daycare? It simply means either meeting or exceeding the customers’ (parents’) expectations of the daycare service provided. A good technique will be to benchmark against your competitors. Gather as much information as possible about your competitors within 500 meters from you; know what are their charges, how many children they are caring for, why the parents have chosen to deposit their children at their facilities, etc. And use it as a benchmark to set the minimum standard for quality. For example, if all the daycare facilities in your neighborhood operate from 7.30am to 5.30pm, then all the parents will expect you to operate from 7.30am to 5.30pm. However, should you decide to operate from 7am – 7pm to accommodate parents who have to work a little later, it is exceeding their expectations.

What then are examples of quality services? Well, it depends on how much the provider is willing to spend. It can stem from providing better quality meals to developing better quality curriculum or even having a low caregiver to child ratio. Naturally, there is an element of cost pegged to it. You can choose to pass this cost back to the parents or absorb it and use it as a strategy to attract more customers.

But why go through all that trouble? Simply because you have to! Whilst providing quality service does not guarantee success, delivering poor quality service will most definitely be doomed for failure. As the saying goes, if you are not going to serve the customer, someone else will. Going that extra mile for your customer and providing high quality could potentially become your competitive advantage and the key to retaining your customers.

So, do you think providing quality daycare service should be a reality?

For more essential information and resources on starting a daycare business, please visit www.setupadaycare.com.

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com - Quality Daycare Services – How Important is It?