I only do 'initial' interviews AFTER hours - and I explain to clients that I do not want to invite a stranger I have NEVER MET into the program - it is just not safe practice in today's day in age and I am sure that as a CLIENT they would appreciate their children not being exposed unnecessarily to strangers either! First interviews occur AFTER hours when I can give prospective clients my undivided attention and when my spouse is home to meet them as well (aka home for MY 'protection and support' from strangers in our home If we are a MATCH and I am sure I would want them to be a part of the program and they are 99% sure they want to sign on than we do the 'during the day play date' ... this ensures that the only people coming into the program are LIMITED cause honestly some providers might interview 20 people before narrowing it down to the 1st and 2nd choice to offer a space too - no need to expose the children to ALL those people!

For the interview I basically walk them through my home from 'start to finish' discussing a typical day so we start in in the cubbie area we talk about arrival procedures and expectations, we view the livingroom/family room where we spend drop off and pick up and quiet time, we go through the kitchen meals, snacks, allergies and so forth, upstairs show them the sleeping areas and talk about quiet time expectations, show them the yard on the way down to the playroom and discuss outside time, field trips and so forth and we finish in the playroom where we go over everything else about the program and so forth and their child can play while we 'talk' business of the handbook and contract that might not have been covered during the tour.

The way I begin with the explanation of FEES is starting with the RULES so that they know I follow them and explain that basically the government taps our income at 5 clients as this is the ratio rule set out in the DNA ... this means that in order to ensure my business is VIABLE one I need to determine the predicted expenses to offer my program and the after expenses income needed make this a viable business option for me and from that I determined the revenue needed to ensure I can offer a program I am proud of while having an income that allows my spouse to support me being home offering this service! Than I can divide that required revenue 1 of 2 ways - either consistently between 5 clients and the 52 weeks of the year and clients pay for the 'space' regardless of attendance OR divided by 5 clients and the number of weeks care would be 'guesstimated' to be provided - so 52 minus my closures for 10 stat days, 10 days of vacation, 1o personal days and if they wanted minus allowed 10 days vacation or 10 sick days for their child to take and so forth which would result in a higher weekly fee because that leaves only 42 weeks for the revenue to be divided by ... but either way at the end of the day I need my income to be VIABLE and I feel it is just easier to keep it consistent each week and therefore you pay for the SPOT regardless of your attendance in it cause then we do not have to do so much 'calculations' during billing and receiving each week which means that I can spend more time focused on valuable things like PROGRAM FOR THEIR CHILD and the easier payment is for THEM to provide post dated cheques and not have to worry about forgetting, being late and getting late payment charges and so forth

I agree that interviewing, the time it takes and the emotional toll of 'not being chosen' can sometimes be overwhelming and draining ... I also try to weed out as many of the 'looky loo' type before they even get to my house so that I can limit the amount of 'in person interviews' to as few as possible .... so my website has just about everything on it about the program, virtual tour of the playroom and program, fees, contract expectations and so forth for them to look and read over, when they contact me for an interview I go over their needs on the phone and some of what I considered 'peoples deal breakers' about the program ... aka some people do not like programs to take field trips off site, have pets, go outside when it is cold or whatever. If after we are done the phone interview and we are still 'interested' in each other THAN I would book an interview. So i might do 15-20 phone interview but only tour 3 people through my program ... cause either their child was not the age I was looking for, they needed hours of care I was not interested in, they wanted 'school transport' and I could not accommodate their school or they waffled on fee policies, amount of vacation I took, that I am active in my community and can not work past 5 or whatever reason you'd not be a match.


When people contact you to tell you they've gone another route have you tried asking for 'constructive feedback' .... aka "Oh I am sorry to hear that - in the interest of professional growth for myself can you let me know what I might have done or offered differently?' and see what people are saying ... if it is something like FEE POLICIES well than they are not the client anyway cause you want to be VALUED for what you do and they obviously do not value you - but it will give you insight to make sure in your tours to really point out the VALUE in your program over others ... how often you might do creative art, field trips, sensory or other 'cost effective items' that promote quality early learning experiences for children but drive up expenses and therefore fees for us OR the level of nutritional and quality in your menu and so forth so that when they are comparing a $25 a day provider to a $35 a day provider they can reflect on WHY the price might be different and what they are 'giving up' to choose the cheaper one?

Sending you filler up vibes - the clients you need are out there