What Makes a Great Preschool Brand with Isobel Wheatcroft

Child Care Rockstar Radio

Isobel Wheatcroft, Creative Director of Grow Your Center, joins us from snowy Ottawa to talk about GYC, embracing your marketing message, creativity in all its forms, and the elements of great design. Isobel shares how she melded her background in business as a former yoga studio owner and entrepreneur with being a mom and understanding preschool-aged children and infants. Kris and Isobel cover the important topics of branding, identifying your marketing message, what small businesses are missing, and how good marketing and branding is like going on a date. Isobel shares her passion behind taking branding off the page and into the heart of the essence of the client. Finally, Kris and Isobel talk about the services at GYC that schools and partners can take advantage of.

Key Takeaways:

[10:05] Isobel is the Creative Director for Grow Your Center (GYC), the top digital marketing agency and creative firm 100% dedicated to the child care industry that was created and founded by Kris and Bruce Spurr. She refers to her role as the behind-the-scenes extension of their clients’ brands.

[11:43] Whether it’s selling strawberries at 11 years old or reselling luxury jewelry and shoes, sales and connecting with others is second nature to Isobel.

[18:32] Isobel shares the number one thing schools to know and focus on when trying to reach and get across to parents.

[20:34] Isobel shares how at GYC the team helps people identify and streamline their main marketing message, highlighting the key selling points and key differentiators. Isobel talks more about their process of finding what matters to their preschool clients, and their local parents, and how they tie that into their specifically crafted branding for them.

[26:01] Isobel and Kris talk about the importance of communicating your values not only to your local parents, but also to potential team members so you can find teachers that bring the same type of energy and expertise to you that you are looking for.

[28:04] Isobel shares a few examples of good before and after rebrands.

[31:18] Isobel and Kris discuss what is cognitive ease vs. cognitive strain, and some examples of brands that provide cognitive ease in their logo?

[33:31] Kris talks about the concept of a message-to-market match.

[37:36] A now-not-so-secret best-kept secret about Grow Your Center is that they do offer branding support and help. They can help provide you with simple ways to bring your brand into your environment.

[40:21] Kris asks Isobel what her superpower is that makes her a rockstar.

[43:41] Isobel shares what she has learned as a female in leadership and offers some advice for other women entrepreneurs?[44:10] Kris and Isobel talk about whether the or not if the client is always right.

https://growyourcenter.com/

Quotes:

• “I’m an extension of your primary aim, which is really for folks to support parents and elevate children.” — Isobel
• “I bring the intuition, the creativity, and the feeling-based aspect of the work.” — Isobel
• “My creativity is my superpower.” — Isobel
• “We go through the process of interviewing you to find out what matters to you, and most important, does that matter to the parents in your area?” — Isobel

Mentioned in This Episode:

Kris Murray

The Child Care Success Company

The Child Care Success Academy

The Child Care Success Summit

The Ultimate Childcare Marketing Guide: Tactics, Tools, and Strategies for Success, by Kris MurrayGrow Your Center

Nike

The 5 Second Rule: Transform your Life, Work, and Confidence with Everyday Courage, by Mel Robbins

The Life You Were Born To Live: A Guide to Finding Your Life Purpose, by Dan Millman