Organising an open day is always a great opportunity to present the overall operations of your company to employees. They can find out about issues in departments which they don’t normally see during the course of their work, employee families can see the environment where the employee spends much of his or her time, and last but not least open days represent a unique opportunity to recruit new workers.
Choose an appropriate date, taking account of public holidays, and in particular other similar programmes nearby. It’s important not to underestimate the importance of this point, since you don’t want to “compete” for guests with other organisers. Decide on the layout of the space for your Open Day. Where will you find the registration stand, catering, guest seating, cultural programme – stage, accompanying programmes, toilets, and where will guests be parking? The implementation team should be clearly identifiable (e.g. the same t-shirt with company logo and hat) and assist those arriving.
Before it takes place, you need to decide which spaces and what part of production you want to present. Mark out where guests can and can’t go using security tape. Signage must be clear, and it’s worth going through the route a number of times.
On Open Day itself, those who want to take a tour should register at the stand upon arrival, where they will be divided into groups. A tour time will be assigned, and safety instructions will be given, including protective clothing if necessary. Workers need to be clearly identified within the premises, and they will showcase production processes to the guests and answer their questions.
Obviously whole families will come to open day, and so accompanying programmes need to be diverse and attractive to everyone. Just organising a bouncy castle isn’t enough. We recommend a stand with a make-up artist and cosmetics for the ladies, and a veteran driving simulator for the guys, including VR. For older kids there should be games and competitions with each other, while young kids will appreciate a creative workshop, and in particular you need something for everyone. This might be a mobile escape room, from boxes to rooms with an air of mystery.
An open day also needs to incorporate gastronomic experiences. Don’t be afraid to offer kids what they like, whether that’s the obligatory hamburger, fries with ketchup or hot dogs. Adults will certainly appreciate barbecued food and a selection of meals.
Don’t forget about vegetarians, and include a salad bar and a main meal without meat in your range.
Don’t just have draught beer in your range of drinks, but also offer non-alcoholic beer and lemonade. You don’t need to include wine or spirits. To make clearing up easier, ensure there is a sufficient number of recycling waste bins around.
One of the aspects by which guests choose whether to come to your open day or not is its cultural programme. The whole day should be hosted by a moderator, and you need a diverse cultural programme. Don’t be afraid to incorporate the element of surprise, e.g. with a commentated historical fashion show, or a dance performance by professionals or a local kid’s group. You should certainly include live music in a fresh style (e.g. electro swing), and a stand-up comic gig might be the highlight of the day.
Technical aspects, such as the covered stage, sound and light systems, and electrical wiring for the stage and catering should be secured for you by a professional company. Similarly, the stage should not be empty (unless your planned cultural programme requires this), with decorations elevating the entire event.
Your open day guests need to be looked after well in both your programme and range of refreshments. The Event Agency offers effective options corresponding to your budget and aims. It will supply complete services from producing the concept to its actual implementation. Your Open Day must be a memorable one.
