If you’re waiting until January to start January open enrollment conversations, you’re already late. The families who will be enrolling in January are deciding in November. The work of filling January starts now.
Here’s what to do this month.
Family budgets are part of the enrollment conversation. Child Care Aware of America childcare price data shows that care remains one of the largest expenses many families face, which is why tuition conversations need clarity, respect, and transparency.
Talk to current families about siblings. The cheapest, fastest January enrollment is a sibling of an already-enrolled child. Pull your roster. Identify families with younger siblings who would be age-eligible in January. Have a private conversation, not a mass email. ‘We have toddler room availability opening in January — would your younger one be interested?’ Most families haven’t thought about it yet.
Reach out to the waitlist. If you have a waitlist, this is the month to contact every family on it. Ask whether they’re still interested, when they’d want to start, and what age group fits. A polite, individual outreach beats a mass ‘we have spots’ email every time.
Talk to recent tours who didn’t enroll. Anyone who toured in the past six months and didn’t commit. A warm, no-pressure note: ‘We had availability open up in January. I wanted to reach out personally in case the timing is now better than it was.’ Some will say yes.
Update your website. Make sure your January availability is visible. Tour scheduling is easy. Tuition is current. Anything out of date should be fixed before the holiday season starts.
Refresh your tour process. Block specific tour slots through December. Train whoever handles tours to convert to a written next step within 24 hours.
Communicate with current families about referrals. A short newsletter line: ‘We have a few openings in our toddler room starting in January. If you know a family who’d be a good fit, send them our way.’ Not pushy. Inviting.
Plan for the December dead zone. Most families are not making childcare decisions between December 15 and January 2. They are traveling, recovering, and putting decisions off. Plan your tour and enrollment outreach for early-to-mid December and then again in early January.
Confirm enrollments in writing. As families say yes for January, send a written confirmation with start date, tuition rate, and what they need to do next. Don’t rely on verbal commitments through the holiday season.
Have a January start plan. Once you know your January cohort, plan their onboarding. Welcome packets. Room assignments. First-day-of-care logistics. The smoother the January start, the more durable the enrollment.
And take a breath. Open enrollment season is intense. Don’t let it eat your November. A focused 30 minutes a day, four days a week, will set up your January more effectively than panicked weekend marathons.
Start the conversations now. The families who will be in your rooms in January are deciding while the leaves are still falling.