Taking Your Nanny Support Group to the Next Level - part 6

by Kellie Geres, Regarding Nannies Development Team
President, ADCAN ~ Association of DC Area Nannies

 

Promoting Your Group

 

There are many effective ways to promote your group. My favorite by far is VistaPrint. By using their designs or uploading your own you can create an endless array of exposure for your group.

Design postcards to mail out announcing special events and meetings.

Design postcards to give to members to have handy with your group information while at the park as they may run into other nannies on outings.

Design tote bags with your logo or group name.

Put your name on pens

Design business cards to hand out to anyone and everyone – get your name out there.

Design a banner to hang at meetings and events. Get noticed!

Design key chains for members to have as a thank you!

Design mugs, mouse pads, hats, t-shirts, and more and have handy as a giveaway during special events, meetings or as a thank you.

  

Another venue to check out for promotional items is CafePress. Offering many of the above and more options not on VistaPrint, let your creative juices flow.

  

Always be looking for ways to cut costs. Here are some of my tips:

 

Email your newsletter vs. printing it. Offer printing to those who don’t have email, but consider adding an additional fee if you feel extra costs will be involved not covered by membership fee.

 

Email renewal notices.

 

Utilize VistaPrint for business cards, postcards, etc.

 

Use Evite for events

 

Consider business membership, outside advertising.

 

By cutting costs you are able to put more money back into the organization and meet the needs of your membership.

  

Finally, I’ve mentioned many resources throughout these six parts. Here is a handy listing for you to refer to as you take your group to the next level.

 

If you have any questions on any of these parts or would like to discuss ways to improve your group, feel free to contact me at allthingsnanny (at) gmail (dot) com.

 

 

 

VistaPrint

 

PDF995

 

Constant Contact

 

Google

 

Yahoo!

 

Amazon Associate Program

 

EFundraising

 

CafePress

 

Survey Monkey

 

Best Nanny Newsletter

 

Crayola Affiliate Program

 

GoDaddy

 

Website By You

 

Craigslist

 

MeetUps

 

Facebook

 

Nanny Island

 

Evite

 

Blogger

 

WordPress

 

I See Me

 

Taking Your Nanny Support Group to the Next Level - Part 5

by Kellie Geres, Regarding Nannies Development Team
President, ADCAN ~ Association of DC Area Nannies

Two questions I hear often from nanny group leaders are … One, should we charge membership dues and Two, should nanny agencies be permitted to be supporting members?

Charging membership dues will provide you with an income to help cover some of your costs – printing, postage, special events. However, they do not cover all your costs, depending on the size and scope of your group. Ranges of amounts charged by groups across the country are $15-$35 annually. You will need a checking account for your group and you can accept checks, cash and PayPal.

So what does membership include?

• Newsletter

• Membership directory

• Access to members only events/services

• Member discounts

• Voting on membership issues

• Area benefits – discounts at area stores

Dues can be determined January – December and pro-rated for new members, but I recommend starting in the month they join and ending one year later.

You also need to determine levels of membership for nannies. I will use ADCAN as example here.

Active (Yearly Dues $35)

Requirements:

1. Currently employed as a professional nanny.

2. Currently employed as an au pair, in-home child care provider and/or mother's helper.

Associate (Yearly Dues of $35)

Requirements:

1. Professional nanny not currently employed as such, or who may be living outside the DC Metro area.

Agency * (Yearly Dues based upon ads submitted to Newsletter. Available at levels of $75 and $125)

Requirements:

1. Any agency or industry related businesses that are involved with nannies in the DC metro area.

Spousal *(Yearly Dues of $15)

Requirements:

1. Any spouse of any current member.

Temporary * (Dues of $15)

Requirements:

1. A nanny/child care provider in the DC area for four (4) months or less.

Newsletter Only * (Yearly Dues of $15)

Requirements:

1. Any person wishing to receive only the bi-monthly newsletter.

Business Memberships / Sponsorships

Reaching out to the agencies in your area and the industry services will help you reach a broader audience of nannies and interest in your group.

By offering businesses an opportunity to support your organization you are generating additional funds for operating your group, and in return you can offer the following to businesses:

• Advertising in newsletter

• Listing on your website and/or blog

• Participation in area events – for example, ADCAN will be taking part in a local child care vendor fair, and we will offer to display our business members’ material on our table, as part of their membership with us.

• Display of their material at meetings on a resource table

ADCAN also offers to agencies that if they pay for their nannies to be members of the organization, we reduce the annual fee for the nanny membership.

Businesses are non-voting memberships, are invited to our meetings and ADCAN offers additional sponsorship opportunities such as NNRW brunch and Holiday Party.

One final consideration, offer advertising to area businesses that caters to children and families.



The final installation in this series will focus on promotional items, ways to cut costs and a listing of resources to keep you going as you take your group to the next level.

Taking Your Nanny Support Group to the Next Level - part 3

by Kellie Geres

Regarding Nannies Development Team
President, ADCAN ~ Association of DC Area Nannies

Newsletters!

A great tool for any group or business to serve its members or customers. It can consist of a simple one page, double sided mailed out version to multiple pages sent online via PDF. You might even consider an electronic version using a service like Constant Contact.

Keep in mind …
If doing a print version, you will have printing, postage, envelope, label costs.

An email version can be done using a free PDF converter which you can Google and find online, or you can purchase one. You can use a word document format or publisher format and these programs have easy templates for you to choose from.

Constant Contact offers numerous templates, minimal costs but is limited to those with email. Sending to a list of 500 emails can cost $15 a month.

A successful newsletter should include:
President / Vice President / Owner message. Greet your members or clients. Keep them up to date on what you are doing, something meaningful going on in your group and plans for the coming months.

Main Article(s) – something timely or professionally related. There are many resources available out there on the internet, find them and make sure to get permission to reprint anything you copy from another source. Have members write articles, guest contributors, industry professional and more. Connect with other nanny groups, newsletters, and bloggers and ask them for permission to reprint. I’ve yet to have someone say no to a request. Always provide a link to their site and give full credit to the author and website.

A Calendar of Events can include birthdays, groups events, holidays, meeting reminders. Calendar formats can be found online as well.

Featured Nanny is very popular amongst nanny groups. Pick a nanny in your group that you’d like others to know. Don’t let it be just a few sentences of who this person is – this is your opportunity to really get to know this person and introduce her to your group. Ask in depth questions, candid and thought provoking questions to get your subject talking.

Include photos from events. Let your members know that photos are taken at events and will be used in publications. If anyone does not want to be included, they can opt out of photo opportunities. Be respectful of members’ wishes on this matter.

What is your group up to? Include committee updates. Have events in the planning? Need help planning a party or event? Get your members involved and publish details in the newsletter.

Ask Nanny? Offer a question and answer section that members / readers can write in and ask a question and have it answered. You can set up a simple Gmail account so that people can anonymously send in questions and have answered in future issues.

Don’t forget a disclaimer. You can search Google for simple newsletter disclaimers for the wording, but the will protect you should any matter arise.

You may also want to consider advertising. I will go into further detail on this in part 5, but advertising will help defer your costs, offer added benefits to businesses and resources to your members and clients.

Here is a complimentary look at the newsletter of ADCAN ~ Association of DC Area Nannies.

A newsletter is a great communication tool, and communication is key in a successful group. Some other forms of communication you might consider for your group are:

Members Only Yahoo Group – this allows for membership only communications and can help with planning, organizing and implementing events.

Have dedicated emails for your group. Gmail is a great tool for this. Free and as many as you like. Offer one for newsletter, one for membership, one for events. This way you keep everything organized and only those persons who need access to certain information have access to those emails, and not the entire groups email.
Phone trees are a great tool as well. We all get caught up in emails and facebook and twitter. A phone call does wonder when reaching out to your membership. New members should receive a welcome call.

Something special going on in the group? Call and let everyone know. Is there a member who isn’t coming to meetings? Call and touch base and see if everything is OK. That personal touch goes a long way in creating relationships with your members and potential members.

Evite is an awesome tool for groups. Manage your events by creating, inviting, RSVP, directions and even refreshments. Simple and free.

Postcards are one of my favorite tools in communicating with groups. For this, I LOVE VistaPrint. 100 FREE postcards and all you pay is shipping. How can you go wrong? Do Save the Dates; group information to pass out at parks, playgrounds, businesses; membership receipts for payment, National Nanny Recognition Week reminders, and much, much more!

If you don’t have a blog, consider doing one in conjunction with your website. A blog is a great communication tool. You can post articles and findings from other sites (make sure to give credit), post articles that appear in your newsletter, and much more.

Have a group page on Facebook. Make it public so that people in the industry and the public can learn about you. Post when you have a meeting, area events and attractions, industry news, national news and points of interest for your members and readers.

So many opportunities, so many choices. Do your research and see what you are comfortable doing. Two pages or 20, it’s all up to you and what you want to provide.

Next up … Fundraising!

Taking Your Nanny Support Group to the Next Level - part 2

by Kellie Geres, Regarding Nannies Development Team
President, ADCAN ~ Association of DC Area Nannies

Websites!

If your group does not have a website, you are at a disadvantage. People turn to the internet to find everything. I can’t remember the last time I let my fingers do the walking in the yellow pages. Having a website will make your group more visible and allow for more opportunities to reach nannies and make your group succeed. An alternative to a website is a blog, which can serve the same purpose.

So what should you include on your website?
As I work with ADCAN – Association of DC Area Nannies, I am going to use their site for reference, but in no way do you have to do ALL that I discuss, for your site.
• A history of your group to give visitors an idea of who, what, why your group exists. Who are your key players, what some of your initial events were and what is the goal of your group is good to include introducing them to your site.
• How to become a member and what, if any, levels of membership you have and what they include.
• Do you offer a newsletter? Offer a sample and an email they can request a complimentary copy of your next issue.
• A Calendar of Events gives readers an opportunity to see what events you do, but where and details. Include address if you can, costs, special instructions, and how to RSVP.
• Include a message board that nannies and visitors can participate in and send out requests for play dates, seeking information, ask questions. I would discourage placing job postings on the message boards.
• Links are a great way to provide resources to your members and readers, and draw a larger audience to your site. If you find a site that offers great content and serves your community – contact them about doing a reciprocal link. You place their link on your site, they place your link on their site. It’s a win-win for all.
• Paid supporters are industry related business and outside advertisers. We will go in-depth on these in part 5.
• Contact info should include at minimum an email but can also include a phone and/or mailing address.
• If you offer products, memberships, etc., you need to have payment options. PayPal is a great source for this, free to sign up and low cost – they take a small percentage of each purchase price.
• Job postings can attract readers to your site as well. You can offer them to your paid business supporters as a benefit of membership, and to families in hopes they refer a nanny to you, once they find a caregiver.
• Make sure original content stays original. Consider Copywrite protection at http://creativecommons.org/

A blog offers some of the above options so do your homework to see what works best for you.

Whether website or blog, keep in mind the following …
• Keep it simple. Less is more. Don’t get too wordy, too much information so that visitors get lost or lose interest in your site.
• Use graphics, photos, clip art to make it appealing.
• Keep it user friendly. Make links accessible, make sure links work.
• Keep content current so that members and readers keep coming back for more.
• Offer a Members Only area. This can include a membership directory accessible online.
• Always be looking for new links, resources and fundraising opportunities. I’ll discuss Fundraising in-depth in part 4.


A word of caution … Private does not always mean PRIVATE. When working with ADCAN we had a member only – password protected page of our membership directory. This included names, addresses, phone, etc. Doing a routine Google search, our entire directory showed up online. We promptly deleted all identifying information of our members, alerted them to this and changed how we publish our information.

Here are some of my favorite resources for websites/blogs:
GoDaddy.com
http://www.website-by-you.com/
http://www.vistaprint.com/
http://www.blogger.com/
http://www.wordpress.com/
http://www.homestead.com/
http://www.weebly.com/

Coming up next in part 3 will be newsletters and communications.

Taking Your Nanny Support Group to the Next Level

This is the first in a six part series dedicated to Nanny Groups and leadership.

by Kellie Geres, Regarding Nannies Development Team

President, ADCAN ~ Association of DC Area Nannies

As Nanny Support Group leaders, you struggle with the day to day challenges of making your group succeed in today’s industry. Whether you have an online group or meet in person, you want to reach as many nannies as possible in your area. What do you offer, what resources are available, how can you increase membership, operating funds, participation? I’ve worked with nanny groups for most of my 21 years as a nanny, and am the current president of ADCAN – Association of DC Area Nannies. ADCAN is the longest running nanny support group in the country and many of the examples I’ll use in this series, I use directly with ADCAN.

First, what type of group best fits you and your area?
If you already have a group or looking to start one, you need to determine what type of group best fits you and your area best.
• Online groups such as yahoo or Ning are great for keeping in touch, sharing ideas and events, and coordinating outings.
• In Person groups meet on a regular basis either as a playgroup, monthly meeting, and discussion groups.
• Social groups meet for dinner, activities, movies, playgroups
• Educational groups provide speakers, workshops and discussion on matters of personal and professional development.
• Or combine a bit of all types into your area group.

Now, how do you target the nannies in your area?
• The internet is your best friend. There are so many low cost / no cost resources out there you can take advantage of.
• Word of mouth – tell everyone you know about your group and to pass that information along to any nannies they know.
• Create a postcard, flier, brochure and /or business card with your group information. For these types of products, I LOVE VistaPrint. Most products are FREE; you just pay shipping and handling. More on VistaPrint will be in parts 3, 4 and 6.
• Buy a domain name of your group name. For this, I recommend GoDaddy.com.
• Create a website. There are free website services out there, low cost services and one that I have noticed many nanny groups doing, which are FREE is blogs. Blogger and WordPress are the two most popular. It can be as simple as who, what, where, when, and why, or include links, resources, calendar of events, members only, marketplace, etc. We’ll get into these items in more detail in part two of this series. I’ll go more in-depth on websites in part 2.
• Contact Nanny Agencies in your area and let them know about your group. Invite them to a meeting, include them in mailings, and ask them to share your information with their nannies. Get them involved! Invite them to sponsor a nanny night out, put out information at your meetings, and ask them to write an article for your newsletter (if you have one). Build relationships with the agencies so you stay on their radar and they continue to share your info with the nannies they place.
• Get noticed! Don’t have a logo? Create one. There are logo services out there or you can utilize online photo shops or clip art to create a look for your group. Even better if you know someone who can create a logo for you, take advantage of networking. Your logo should draw people to you, stand out, and when people see it, they associate it with your group. Once you have your logo, put it on your business card, postcard, flier, website/blog, etc. Go a step further and create some merchandise – journal, t-shirt, tote bag, etc., that you can wear or carry with you and get you noticed.
• Social Networking! Get your group out there on Facebook. Post events, industry news, area happenings, etc., and draw people to you. Again, tell all your friends, and have them tell their friends, and so on and so on. Before you know, you’ll have a loyal following that will help in getting your information to your community. More on social networking will be covered in part 3.

Other ways you can reach out to your nanny community:
• Post messages on local parent message boards and Nanny Group listings and Craigslist.
• Try Meetups.com. Connect with other nannies and area events and get your name out there as a contact for other nannies.
• If there are agencies in your area doing trainings, ask to come to the event and introduce your group. Bring information to pass share with others.
• Always have business cards, postcards or membership material handy to give out to nannies or parents you meet. You never know when you’ll run into potential members.
• Host an event in your area. It can be a play date at the park, brunch, cookie exchange during the holidays, meet and greet at a local restaurant.

So, much to think about, start planning and implementing. Over the course of the next few weeks we’ll continue to discuss Websites, Newsletters & Communication, Fundraising Options, Membership and Membership Options, Promotional Items and Ways to Cut Costs.

Find Nanny Groups in Your Area.

Staying Connected

By Kellie Geres, Regarding Nannies Development Team

In the nanny industry, one of the most important things to do for ourselves is stay connected with other nannies. For some, this is easy – there is a nanny group in their area, they live in a neighborhood full of nannies, or belong to a nanny/child playgroup. However, for others its not so easy. They may be isolated in their neighborhood, not live in an urban area where there is an abundance of nannies or a nanny group, or they may have older children, while most of the nannies have younger charges.

Staying connected with our peers is an essential ingredient to maintaining a healthy balance for nannies and their jobs. Being able to connect with other nannies that have the experiences, knowledge, and understanding for what we do is critical for our industry.

The internet has opened up a huge market for nannies to stay connected. From message boards to social networking, staying connected is as easy as having an email address.

Some of the most popular avenues for nannies to connect are …

· Facebook. A number of nanny groups and organizations have a presence on Facebook. Regarding Nannies, Nanny Island, APN, INA, NANC, Nanny’s Helping Hand – all have pages on Facebook.

· Nanny Island. The place for nannies to come, relax, network, share stories and photos, join groups, and not worry about agencies or changing diapers. With over 700 members, Nanny Island is a popular place to connect with new friends and read about what is going on in the nanny industry.

· Nanny Network. A bustling message board full of topics and forums. From East Coast to West Coast and in between, Nanny Network offers an array of discussions for all levels of nannies.

· Yahoo Groups! Ah, Yahoo. Grab a Yahoo ID and get started. Do a search of Nanny and you’ll discover a world of online groups for numerous metropolitan areas, interests and more. Get a Daily Digest of messages from your group and keep up with what’s going on in their corner of the world.

· Twitter. Do you tweet? Get a status update from your favorite people, group or business. What are they doing? You’ll only know if you tweet.

· Meetup. Meetup is the world's largest network of local groups. Meetup makes it easy for anyone to organize a local group or find one of the thousands already meeting up face-to-face. More than 2,000 groups get together in local communities each day, each one with the goal of improving themselves or their communities.

What are other ways you can stay connected?
· Attend local story times and connect with nannies in your area.
· Join a local nanny group.
· Contact a local agency and ask them for nannies in your area.
· Host a nanny get-together and post on message boards and get the word out.
· No nanny group in your area? Consider starting one. Read how-to on the Nanny Groups blog.
· Volunteer in your community. You’ll meet other individuals with similar interests and possibly some nannies.
· Ask permission to hand out fliers at schools and carpools. Nanny Get-Together. Have coffee, meet for dinner, form a playgroup.
· Make yourself visible to others, letting them know you’re a nanny and interested in meeting others. Ask employers if they have co-workers with nannies that may be interested in getting together.

What ways do you stay connected?

Week End Round Up

Please patronize the wonderful vendors who are offering special shopping deals for September.

On Monday Moxie we spotlighted the Nanny Alliance of NY NJ

On Tuesday Tips we shared some great tips for starting your own Nanny Support Group

On Creative Nanny Wednesday we went back to our childhood for a simple Fall Art Activity : Crayon Rubbings

On Table Talk Thursday we interviewed 3 professional nannies who are also mommies.

On Financial Friday we found out about the importance of the pending legislation on increasing the tax credit for child care.

Coming up this week on Regarding Nannies:
Join with us as we honor Penny Andrews who is a working nanny celebrating her 50th year as a professional nanny.

Spotlight on Starting a Nanny Support Group

Today we bring you an extensive feature from Nanny Groups on Starting A Nanny Support Group. Nanny Groups are an essential part of the nanny community, providing, friendship, education, networking, mentoring, socializing and so much more.

We encourage you to get involved with your local group on any level or if there is not one available in your area, consider starting one! The information provided here will provide you with what you need to know to get started or give your current group a few new ideas.

Compiled by Joyce Farmer with help from nanny support groups from across the country.

Each Nanny Support Group must vote their preferences and build the group that their members want and need. The suggestions in this guide are merely ideas of things from existing support groups across the USA.This guide was prepared BY nannies FOR nannies that want to start a Nanny Support Group or who are currently running a support group for nannies.

No part of it should be reproduced without the permission of the National Association of Nannies.

Group Types: Social, Educational, or Playgroup

A nanny support group's main purpose is to provide whatever support nannies need. It is implied that each group would provide peer support for their members, and provide a place where a nanny can vent about common problems, or discuss and get advice about specific problems. This is a very important service of a nanny support group: see section on Guidelines.

There are three basic types of nanny support groups, and infinitesimal versions and blends of each, according to the needs of the members. Questionnaires can be used to determine what individual members are expecting, or what they would like to see. The members of a group should vote in the beginning, and periodically, to make sure that the group is currently meeting the needs of its members, and make changes if necessary.

Read the entire Starting A Nanny Support Group Guide on the Nanny Groups Blog.