It’s not about the party

If you think open houses are passé, think again. Well-planned, customer-focused open houses make great marketing and promotion tools.

by Rich Vurva

Before you schedule an open house to celebrate a milestone anniversary, remodeled warehouse or new location, make sure your staff gets one thing perfectly clear. It’s not about the party. Sure, open houses can and should be fun, but you must have a good business reason for investing your time, money and hard work into scheduling the event.

An open house is a major marketing tool to help promote your business, create an identity and build relationships, says Deborah Borsum, executive producer of The Meetinghouse Companies in Elmhurst, Ill., a full-service special event production company.

With that thought in mind, here’s a baker’s dozen ideas to help you make your next open house a success.

1) Develop a plan of action. At least six months before the event, pick a leader and a team of people to coordinate planning activities. Give them clearly defined tasks and deadlines. Include tasks such as designing invitations, coordinating supplier participation, assembling guest lists, door prizes, refreshments, activities, tents and decorations.

2) Offer door prizes. Everyone likes receiving gifts. Make sure every guest leaves with something to remember you by, even if it’s just a pen with your company name and logo. Ask suppliers to donate prizes to raffle off to customers. That’s what Kelly Supply Company did this summer to celebrate its 100th anniversary at its corporate headquarters and 13 branches in four states. Prizes ranged from Kelly Supply T-shirts, Weber grills, small appliances, digital cameras, lawn chairs, coolers, TVs and vendor-specific apparel.

“Many of the prizes came from vendor premiums that we earned throughout the year,” says president and CEO Jeff Kelly. “In other cases, we asked vendors to donate prizes. On average, each location had 25 or more door prizes. Guests left a business card or filled out a registration card and we held drawings for the prizes.”

3) Enlist suppliers. Many manufacturers offer co-op funds to help pay for open houses and similar events that prominently feature their products. In addition, invite their reps to give product demonstrations or offer application tips.

“Any open house we do involves our suppliers. We usually try to get them to help offset the cost. In the past, suppliers have helped offset about 50 percent of our expenses. We see our suppliers as an extension of our company and work hard to involve them in the activities,” says Jim Ruetz of All Fastener in Racine, Wis.

4) Generate publicity. Mail out invitations at least three to four weeks prior to your event. Ruetz says a series of mailings can be more effective than a single mailing. Promote the event by mentioning it on invoices, statements and other printed pieces regularly sent to customers. Order extra envelopes so you can resend invitations returned because of address changes or incorrect address. Encourage salespeople to carry a supply of invitations so they can personally invite customers.

Kelly Supply’s Nichole Stoltenberg wrote press releases that each branch customized and sent to local newspaper, radio and TV stations and business magazines. “Some news outlets gave us pre-event and post-event coverage,” she says.

5) Give guided tours. Don’t let customers wander freely through your building. Make them feel special by giving them a guided tour. That way, you can point out specific features you want them to see, such as your new product line or your new bar code system or radio frequency-enabled warehouse.

6) Celebrate employee contributions. Company anniversaries aren’t the only good reason to hold an open house. The Tool House in Lincoln, Neb., held a celebration to honor the contributions of John Olson, a 60-year employee of the company.

“The event did two things for us. It promoted us as a company that cares for its employees and promoted our longevity serving the local business community,” says company president Paul Ahrendt.

Ahrendt also invited Nebraska-based American Tool Companies to run a special promotion for its Vise-Grip brand, one of the first brands carried by the Tool House and its predecessor company, Henkle & Joyce.

“It accomplished what we wanted to do, which was pay tribute to John Olson, and show our close ties to a Nebraska manufacturer,” Ahrendt says.

7) Hold an all-night sale. You can really make your business stand out by holding an annual sale that lasts 24 hours. Promote the event to your regular customers in fliers and on your Web site. Serve wine and cheese to late night visitors and a continental breakfast to customers who stop by early in the morning.

8) Borrow ideas. Talk to other local businesspeople and read your local newspaper, trade magazines and business journals for open house ideas other businesses use and adapt them to your needs.

9) Test products. Invite customers to test new products or have manufacturers demonstrate how they work. Create a contest to see who can drive a series of nails or drill a hole the fastest. Award prizes to the winners and post their names by your walk-in counter and on your Web site.

10) Bring in leading experts. Invite industry-leading professionals to speak to your customers about topics that interest them. When All Fastener wanted to demonstrate its expertise in inventory management, it invited Deere Co.’s Craig Stainbrook to give two seminars on integrated supply.

“We rented a room at the Ramada Inn for the presentation. Across the hall, we had five or six different types of automated tool retrieval systems on display,” says Ruetz.

11) Spruce up your image. Make sure your office space and warehouse are clean, adequately lighted and in tip-top shape. Dress your employees in shirts and other clothing adorned with your company logo. The way your people and your facility look says a lot about your company’s professionalism and attention to detail.

“Our 100th anniversary open house was an opportunity for many customers to see our facilities for the first time,” says Kelly. “They had a chance to tour buildings and warehouses they don’t normally see.”

12) Display your awards. In your reception area or another prominent location where guests are sure to see them, display any awards, plaques or certificates that your company has received. Include letters from satisfied customers and articles written about your company or staff.

13) Divide and conquer. If you plan an all-day event, invite unique types of customers to attend during different times of day. If you cater to contractors, manufacturing customers, schools and utilities, divide the list into four groups and suggest certain times of the day when each group should attend. That way, your staff can focus its attention on the unique concerns of each customer type.

This article originally appeared in the November/December 2003 issue of Progressive Distributor magazine. Copyright 2003.

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