Tip of the Month 2025 - May - All About Enquiries
Summer is well and truly on it's way, and with that comes new enquiries at your setting! In this months tip, we will be looking at all things enquiries! Adding new ones, converting them to your registered or waiting lists, looking at reports that show you what enquiry methods are most effective and more! So let's get started!
Adding Enquiries
To add a new enquiry in Abacus, head to Families > Enquiries and click on the plus button in the top right-hand corner.
You will then need to enter the details that you have for the Primary Carer and the Child. Fields marked with an asterisk (*) are mandatory fields so you must make sure that this information has been entered before you can continue. Not many of the fields are mandatory but enter as much information as you have to save you time later!
In the Enquiry Details, enter the information that you have such as Enquiry source and contact method. You can also schedule the Show Round in this page. Once you have scheduled the Show Round, this will be added to the Diary so that you can keep track of it!
By logging the enquiry "Source", you will be collecting data that will help you understand how parents are finding your setting. You can then use this information to show what kind of advertising is worth your investment. Look at the Enquiry Source Report in Reports > Room. If nobody found your via the advert that you placed in the local newspaper, then you know that this might not be worth it! This information is also handily displayed for you on the Dashboard.
Online Enquiries
Your customers can fill in an Online Enquiry from on your website that will enter their details automatically into the Live Enquiries in Abacus! You can find this form in Families > Enquiries > Online Enquiry Forms.
From this page, you will be able to access an Online Enquiry form. You can choose between a form that just has carer contact details or a more detailed form with carer and child details.
Click the icon to open the form or the </> icon to get the embed code which you can use to display the form right on your website!
Something that is really cool about this is that you're able to completely customise these forms! You can change the colours, fonts and sizes so that they match the theme and aesthetic of your website! This would have to be completed by someone who has an understanding of website design or if you have a Parenta Website, we can do this for you!
If you're interested in a Parenta Website, and would like a cheeky discount - Click here to find out more!
Already have a website with Parenta? Pop an email to websites@parenta.com to enquire about customizing your Online Enquiry Form!
When a parent submits a form via your website, this new enquiry will go into your Live Enquiries list and you will be notified via email. From there, you can enter the rest of the information as normal!
Converting Enquiries
When the customer has decided that they would like to join your setting (yay!) or go elsewhere (boo!) we can convert the enquiry. Click on the piece of paper with the green arrow icon to complete the Enquiry 
.
If they're joining you, you can choose for the child to go straight into your registered list or onto your waiting list.
Once they have been converted, you would just need to enter any information that you did not fill in at the point of the enquiry (like their invoice type) and you will be ready to schedule sessions for them!
Converted or lost enquiries also have their own report. Select the reason for the success (or loss) when completing this enquiry and you can use the Booking Source report to see what made people choose your setting and Lost Enquiries to show you why potential customers might have chosen somewhere else. Both of these reports can be found in Reports > Enquiry.
Waiting List
You might decide to place a child on the Waiting List. The Waiting List can be accessed on the Children's Page. Just drop down the box at the top of your list of Children and select "Waiting List".
In your Occupancy Reports, you have the option to "Include Waiting List" children. This would include children that are on the waiting list so you can see if you have the space to accommodate that child.
Remember: Children on the waiting list cannot have sessions booked, so you would need to set them as "Registered" and then change their status to "Waiting List" in order to use this feature.
Data Lists
Your Enquiry details are totally customisable! Head to Settings > Data Lists where you can add and remove options from your Sources, Contact Method, Status, Enquiry Converted/Lost, Enquiry Stage and Place Required.
If you don't have an advert in the Newspaper but do have adverts running on Social Media, add this as an option so that you can effectively track this data! Just click on the plus button 
to add a new option.
You can click on the "Is Archived" tick box to remove anything that you no longer want to appear as an option too. This can be really helpful in streamlining your onboarding process for new customers!
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