This is a sponsored post for Snapfish and Digital Parents Collective
Regular readers of this blog will already know how much I love photos, I love the stories they tell, the memories they evoke and the timeless beauty of them. I love to share them with others (I know…perhaps a little too much!) but they really are such a wonderful medium.
I also use photos a lot in my family day care business…I display them in various ways for both children and adults to look at and discover. They are a fantastic prompt for communication between educator, parents and children and can be used as an important link between the home and child care environment.
I have been in the midst of an advertising drive recently as I wanted to fill my last remaining vacancies before the end of January. As I was printing and laminating yet another photo collage to put up on the wall in the sign in area I thought about how the photos would actually make a really nice book for the children to explore and read through and perhaps share with their parents.
It was at this exact moment (well, after I stopped and got lunch for the twins, then changed wet pants, then put on the fairy dress, then went and found the box of hospital props because the fairies had sore wands and wings apparently…) well ok then, maybe not that EXACT moment but you get my drift. It occurred to me as I fixed fairy wings with a stethoscope that I could use my old Snapfish account to make up a promotional photo book to help with the advertising drive.
Obviously I would still need to get potential parents and children through the door but having a book available that highlighted some of our activities and play experiences as well as different environment set ups could be a lovely way to show parents the quality of my service in a few minutes rather than trying to explain all that we do during that initial visit.
As always with my brilliant ideas I get a little carried away and wanted it all to happen NOW 😉 . So I logged into my Snapfish account after the girls were in bed and crossed my fingers that it wasn't going to be an involved process because after an hour of programming and setting up invoices I was not shall we say at my ‘best‘ emotionally. I have previously found photo book software and the experience of putting them together a laborious task but I can see the software has been updated and there is no need to download anything. It's all saved as you go so I actually came back to it a few times before completing the project…as Mum's so often do!
I chose to create the 20×28 hardcover book which is apparently their most popular item and was pleasantly surprised to realise how quick and easy it was to create a promotional masterpiece that was also full of memories!
I was so pleased I chose the hardcover when it arrived as it really looked quite impressive and would definitely be up to the handling of sticky little fingers! It was glossy and bright and the pages were obviously a high standard of paper. All of the photos turned out beautifully and I was really surprised at how professional it looked for such a budget price. I have only ever ordered softcover books before and this was a whole new level!
It was actually really fun to create, the hard part was deciding which photos to include and which to leave out as I do tend to take a lot of activity photos (I know you are probably surprised by that piece of information….)
After uploading my photos it was time to choose a theme…and I do admit to getting a little distracted at this step as there are so many to choose from. I picked the Blossom Spring theme with its lovely bright colours to highlight our play. There are also designs for special occasions which I hadn't seen previously and I think they would make a lovely memento for family.
After choosing my theme with a simple click of the mouse it was time to add my photos and personalise my book to suit my vision.
You simply choose a layout design you like for the whole album or you can mix it up on each page like I did. I wanted the book to convey an aura of fun so I used a lot of pictures on angles and also different sizes to highlight certain activities.
The brightly coloured pages really helped the photos to stand out and I think it looked really professional if I do say so myself!
The variety in the layouts is amazing but if you don't like any of the styles listed you can just drag and drop to make your own vision come to life!
If you don't have the patience or time to fiddle around with the photos you can ask Snapfish to do it for you on auto and then keep shuffling the pages until you have the style you want.
Then it is time to add text if you want to. I didn't use text on every page but I probably would if making a photo book to display special family moments or as a keepsake book just for the kids. For promotional purposes I just added a few descriptive lines here and there…
It was a good way to group some of the popular areas of the environment and activities together and communicate some important themes offered in my service.
You can be creative with the text choosing from numerous fonts and colours. I just stuck with bold and simple as you can see!
The text really seemed to add a story like quality to the photobook which is exactly what I had hoped for.
I created mine as a compilation and reflection of Jode's Family Day Care in 2013 and both children and parents have enjoyed flicking through it together. It has proven extremely useful on new enquiry and enrolment visits.
And the hard cover is keeping it safe so we don't need to be too precious about who holds it.
The creative process really was surprisingly smooth, when you have all of your photos placed just where you want them, all you need to do is review your book and then checkout and wait for delivery!
You can have your photo book delivered to your local Kmart store for pick up or straight to your mailbox.
Mine now sits on the sign in table for parents to flick through or on a low table for children to read and look at throughout the day.
I think the photo book makes a quality looking promotional tool and a source of reflection for the children and myself as an educator. I'm planning on creating one every 6 months so I can get a nice little hardcover collection of family day care moments, environment changes and children's progress. I'm also thinking ahead to Christmas gifts for my family!
Why not think outside the box a little and try a photo book to complement your current advertising and promotional ideas…I bet a few would also look great on a market stall as you hand out flyers!
What would you put in your Snapfish Photo Book?
Special Offer for all Mummy Musings and Mayhem Friends!
Snapfish have created 4 discount coupon offers just for you guys….
FUN20X28: 40% off 20x28cm Custom Hardcover Photo Book – 20 pages
FUN28X20LF: 40% off 28x20cm, Portrait (A4 size) Lay-flat Photo Books – 20 pages
FUN30X30: 40% off 30x30cm Square Canvas Prints
FUN30X45: 40% off 30x45cm Rectangle Canvas Print
Valid only until 31st January 2014 so be quick!
Can be used up to 10 times on Snapfish.com.au or Snapfish.co.nz sites only.
*note, Lay-flat Photo Book not available for sale in NZ.
Take advantage of these discounts and get those photos out of hiding!
A fantastic gift or promotional book for your business at very little cost!
Still wondering how it all comes together? I've got you covered:
What an awesome idea to have a book like this – I’ve visited many childcare centers/family daycares and would love to see a personalized record of what the carer/group does every day!
I would love to create a book to tell my boys about where their names came from – as they were named after qualities we love and people we respect. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks