Ep. 203 - What’s Your Customer Journey? (And Why You Should Care) with Brett Nelle

Kris welcomes Brett Neller, CEO of LineLeader by ChildcareCRM, to explore the real meaning of the customer journey in child care, and why it’s critical for sustainable growth. Brett shares insights from his professional evolution, including how dropping his kids off at care centers helped him deeply understand the needs of operators. He and Kris talk about enrollment challenges, operational bottlenecks, mapping a full customer journey, and how automation can power human connection, not replace it.

 

They also discuss fear-based leadership, what small businesses often get wrong in scaling, and why “state-of-the-art” doesn’t have to mean complicated. From CRM misconceptions to the power of unified data, Brett drops insight after insight on how to grow with intentionality, and why understanding your brand touchpoints matters now more than ever.

 

Key Takeaways:

[6:49] Brett shares how he got started at LineLeader in 2018 and how the mission of the early childhood industry drew him in.
[9:30] Brett explains how their offering goes beyond a CRM.
[10:20] What is the customer journey really, and how does understanding it boost your enrollment?
[12:18] Many small businesses are still using whiteboards and sticky notes to manage leads, and why that doesn’t scale.
[13:02] Brett breaks down what most get wrong in enrollment.
[15:08] How automation can be a gift for parent experience, and why tech doesn’t have to feel robotic.

[16:07] Brett shares more about his family life, and how he and his wife rely on child care as well.

[18:28] Fun fact — Brett grew up in a military family and moved many times throughout his childhood.
[19:30] The biggest mindset shift for owners: from reactive to data-driven.
[22:04] How to spot where you’re losing families in your funnel.
[25:55] The real ROI of mapping your journey: improved staff morale, better conversion, and clarity.

[27:03] The “wow” experience.
[30:31] Brett and Kris talk about the danger of fear-based leadership and the difference between helpful automation and shiny object syndrome.
[34:17] Practical tips on how to start your journey mapping even with a small team.
[39:45] What it really means to lead with empathy and insight.

 

Quotes:

• “I love the mission behind the space. I love having kids and then dropping my kids off every day at childcare centers. So every day I see operators. And it’s been fun to live the professional journey in parallel with, you know, the personal journey of raising kids.” — Brett [6:46]

• “Our thesis is to provide the best unified platform experience for staff and parents from a digital experience perspective.” — Brett [10:12]

• “That’s the most important aspect of the family journey when they’re seeking care, is that you need to execute a great tour. If you don’t, that’s the make or break point, where a family is either like, I’m in or I’m out.” — Brett [23:02]

• “Yeah, you have to get your teams excited about engaging and selling your school. It shouldn’t be a dirty word. We have the opportunity to serve this family. Sales is service, and so let’s just use that service mindset and get our teams excited about being able to win that family over so that we can actually make a difference in the life of that child.” — Kris [28:19]

• “The first thing we generally ask is what’s your customer journey, and have you mapped it out?” — Brett [33:09]

 

Sponsored By:

ChildCare Education Institute (CCEI)

Use code CCSC5 to claim a free course!

 

Mentioned in This Episode:

Kris Murray

@iamkrismurray

The Child Care Success Company

The Child Care Success Academy

The Child Care Success Summit

Grow Your Center

Childcare Education Institute: use code CDARenewal22 to get $100 off your renewal

LineLeader