Open Day Ideas for Business
You’ve planned your business carefully. You’ve secured your funding. You’ve just about finished setting up shop. All your metaphorical ducks are nicely in a row.
Now what?
Before you simply open your doors to the public, you may want to strategize.
With a plan in place for your opening day, you’ll be able to ensure that you get plenty of customers in the door and generate enough media buzz to keep bringing in business long after.
No doubt you’re probably excited (and maybe a little nervous) at the idea of finally opening your business, and a solid opening strategy is your key to making your first day unforgettable.
Here are some strategies to help ensure that your opening day is a success.
1. Get your “story” straight
What story does your business tell?
Tom Smith of Insights From Analytics recommends doing PR outreach to local media and sharing your story. “Yes, you need to create your ‘story’—and make sure everyone associated with your company knows it, ” he advises. Do this from the start, and you’ll make any media coverage of your big opening more cohesive and easy to package.
2. Start building your social media campaign in advance
If you are planning on waiting until your business is fully operational to start being more active on social media, don’t.
Get in early. Start building interest as soon as you can.
“For one of our restaurant clients, we planned an online social campaign, teasing the opening and showcasing the unique atmosphere and food, ” says Amy Wise, VP of Marketing and Client Relations for Appleton Creative, Inc. They then shared press coverage of the restaurant’s grand opening on their social sites, creating a kind of social media feedback loop.
“The organic coverage was then shared and utilized in our social campaign, ” she explains. “The resulting buzz helped us gain features in newsletters, blogs, social media posts, radio shows, magazines, and newspapers.”
Katherine Faubion, General Manager of CycleBar, shares her experience on beginning social engagement early: “We researched and connected local social media groups that were a fit with our target customer base, including mom groups, wellness groups, and nonprofits.”
By targeting local social media groups and influencers that align with your business and by creating buzz early, you can build a social media campaign that will have people excited about your business before the doors even open.
3. Alert the press
With your social media campaign planned and in progress, it’s time to ensure that you get media coverage of your big opening day.
“We utilize as many organic opportunities as possible, maximizing our public relations efforts by sending out and publishing press releases and media advisories, as well as reaching out to our local network of media, ” says Amy.
