Logo, business cards, letterhead etc.

So, I've decided on a name for my Daycare...now what? Should I register it? Want to be cost effective as I'm not currently seeking new clients (am lucky to actually have a wait list), but I do want to take my business a step forward in terms of professionalism. Does anyone recommend a good site to create a logo, get business cards etc.? Is there something that you've ordered that has been a total waste (ie., pens)? I'm interested in the idea of a web page but it seems expensive right now...I have formed a Facebook group for all of my DCP's & I to share pics etc.

www.vistaprint.ca

I do EVERYTHING there.....from birth announcements, birthday cards, business cards, return address labels and rubber personal stamps & a business lawn sign for my DH. I love it!

Make sure to look under the Free products that unless you want to change a lot, all you have to pay is for shipping. Never had an issue with them in over 4yrs of discovering it.

I second using Vistaprint. So easy, cheap (when you use their free items or even their sales) and the stuff is good quality.

Yup - I designed my own logo and uploaded it to Vistaprint - you can often get FREE just pay shipping and handling so awesome!

If you are in Ontario and calling your business anything other than your full legal name technically you have to register your business 'name' under the Business Name Act ... lots of people do not and nothing happens to them but if you are wanting to be professional and follow the rules for business this is one of them.

Bonus to registering your name is you get the BIN as well ... it costs $60 and is good for five years and you can put your BIN on your tax receipts and than no one can demand your SIN from you as CRA says we have to provide that - so it helps protect your identity as well ;)

You register here

please not this is a one stop shop for ALL business services registration - so make sure to check NO to all the other crap as you go through the process like GST/HST, WSIB, Employer Health tax and so forth we are exempt from all that.

It only takes 10 minutes and they mail you a PDF of your Business Identification Number to print out for your records ... I liked having to show this as well in my portfolio to clients specially when I was starting out cause IMO it shows I am 'committed' to my business as well as the 'rules'.

Your business logo is symbol of your business it is good if you are thinking about your business logo i can give you path for business cards not for logo.

You all are so right about Vistaprint; I ordered business cards, 2 signs (1 for my door & 1 for my wagon), labels, a stamp, address labels....all in one logo...wow...so cheap and my business jumped so much in professionalism! It's so nice to simply pull out a business card.

For your website, create it on www.wix.com . . . it's FREE

It's super simle to create as you can use a template and simply plug in the holes.

Your website won't be super long its just www.wix.com/complany name/company name. so you can put it on your business cards too

I also use vista print. I also made my own logo

you can do it all yourself. no need to hire people needlessly

I would make your own flyers too.

order business cards only from vista print, the rest is such a waste.

Ooooh thanks! I've been debating a website...bummed that already have business cards. Tacky to put little stickers on my business cards with the webpage address?

On the website issue - I was playing around with it the other day and I have google set as my homepage and down at the bottom right hand side was a listing for business services. Clicked on it and it took me to a place for making a website and you can do a free one or upgrade. http://www.yola.com

In the space of a naptime I got started - just overtype in the boxes of layout you choose. It comes with a homepage and contact page and then you can add in from there. This is what I have so far:http://sharonshomedaycare.yolasite.com

I use Wix.com too for my website and it was easy to create and free. For business cards, I just made them myself on my computer and printed them in colour on cardstock paper. They are not as glossy as professional cards, but I think they look pretty good and they get the info out there as intended :) In Microsoft Office there is a business card template you can use...it's really simple.

My dauaghter bought some for her to pass out to clients (musisc therapy) and she got them done at Staples. Every so often they have a printing special for a box of 500 I think it was. She uploaded the info online and sent it and then picked them up at the store a few days later. Forget now what the price was but at the time it seemed reasonable - 2 years ago so not sure what the price is now.

Have you made a website yet? I use www.freewebs.com and I'm really happy with it. A website is the best selling tool you will ever have. People read your ad then click on your website link and read more info and see all the pictures and fall in love with you before they even meet you.

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Originally Posted by Momof4

Have you made a website yet? I use www.freewebs.com and I'm really happy with it. A website is the best selling tool you will ever have. People read your ad then click on your website link and read more info and see all the pictures and fall in love with you before they even meet you.

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I use webs too and I am really pleased with it. I love that you can track the traffic coming through your site to see how effective your advertising is. I do however really like playfelt's website that she created on yola. It looks very professional and I like the gallery pictures.

I spent a bit of money, not much only $100, on taking an idea of mine to a graphic designer. I basically drew what I wanted and she made it into a digital crayoned picture which is exactly what I wanted. Se made posters with rip off sections and business cards so I got a bunch of those in the price too. Then she put the file on a disc so I can use it on my computer also. Really wirth the money but I will be looking in to uploading it onto vistaprint myself for free business cards in the future. Thanks

I've used Business card template.He is the best for every kind of business card printing.

Thanks Jose and welcome to the forum ... just so you know in general most forum members are very reluctant to click on links such as this, specially when the members is NEW and their very first post they share is designed to take them away from the forum to some other unknown site - this is what seasoned forum users assume is a TROLL looking to spam forum members unsuspectingly ... cause for all we know that is some sort of spamming link that will take you to a site that will phish your contact list in order to spam them or install a Trojan virus on your computer or is a PORN site wanting to drum up traffic and so forth for some malicious intent.

If you are truly aiming to HELP childcare providers we invite you to follow the rules for the forum and post in the 'Welcome I am new' section and tell us a little bit about yourself, perhaps posts some useful support in various threads not directed at getting members to go to some third party site - because without a frame of trust people will not take your advice anyway and even than instead of hiding the URL within a short cut - just put the whole URL so that people know where they are going when they click on it ;)

I am fortunate that I am a trained graphic designer and so is HB so I can do all my own logo setups, cards, advertising etc. I tend to stay away from places like vistaprint and shutterfly since those companies are taking jobs away from trained professionals in my field by offering .14 cents a Christmas Card etc.

I also am setting up my own website using wix.com

I used www.fiverr.com for a logo and it hit and miss, but eventually one of the designers got it right, I think I spent $20 or $25 and I'm pretty happy with it. I then hired the same designer to do some "signs" and business cards for me, although fiverr doesn't allow exchanging contact info for offsite contact, it worked out well for me.

You can have your own website from Yola or wix they will give you a good opportunity to have your own website without cost and it is very easy to make an website.

If you want your logo, business card etc. Just visit www.hamiltoncopycopy .com. You will surely have your things printed at your location by simply order them online.

In case this thread is still relevant for people looking for a website, I recommend the hPage Website Builder- https://www.hpage.com for your creating a website since it's affordable and you don't have to hire a web designer or web developer to code stuff for you. You can basically do everything yourself. Makes for really effective advertising too. Go brand yourself with hPage!

Greetings to all. For those interested, I created*a system allowing Childcare Providers to build quick,*simple and free to use websites called circletime.ca* . It's currently in a beta state as*there are still a few minor adjustments to be made, but it is accessible right now to anyone wanting to create a website of their own. It is designed very specifically for Childcare Providers, meaning there are predetermined fields in a predetermined layout. The goal was to make it simple and practical for busy people to quickly get a website up and running. I based the available fields on my own research of day care websites, trying to offer as many of the most popular pieces of information available.

Just so there are no misunderstandings, this is not designed to compete with sites such as*wordpress, wix or the like. It is also not designed to compete with Daycare Bear;*it is not a listing service or information service (past whatever information you provide on your own Page of course).*

Currently it*offers 10 different themes to choose from, which will increase if the site proves useful and popular. All pages are responsive, and should work on any device big or small, in any browser!

Check it out - I welcome all suggestions and comments!