*A recently open house brings hundreds of customers, potential customers and community to Hochstetler Metals in Bonduel, Wisconsin.*

Dynamic Designs recently had the privilege of helping Hochstetler Metals plan an open house event to showcase their new showroom. The showroom was designed to make it easier for builders and homeowners to understand the different types of steel profiles, colors, and packages available from Hochstetler Metals. The purpose of the event was to create awareness of the expansion to the public, customers, and potential customers. Through our collaboration with Hochstetler Metals, we developed a comprehensive checklist for planning a successful open house.

Here are the key checkpoints to consider when planning an open house or launching a new product or service:

Determine the purpose and goals of the event: Having a clear understanding of the purpose and goals of your event is essential. It helps you focus your efforts and resources in the right direction. Hochstetler Metals wanted to create awareness around the new structure which housed a showroom for their products.
Set a date and time for the event: Setting a date creates a sense of urgency and gives you a goal to work towards. It also helps you plan other aspects of the event, such as guest lists, venue, and equipment.
Choose a suitable venue: The venue should be able to accommodate your attendees comfortably. If you need additional equipment or furniture, make sure to arrange for them ahead of time. Hochstetler Metals, just building a new structure created a spacious area for attendees. Added tables and chairs allowed an area for individuals to sit down and eat as well.
Create a budget for the event: A budget helps you prioritize your expenses and keep your spending in check. It also helps you prioritize how you will reach your clients.
Determine a guest list: Knowing who your target audience is will help you plan the event accordingly. Hochstetler Metals invited current contractors, potential contractors, homeowners and even the community to their open house.
Arrange for necessary permits: Make sure to follow your community guidelines and obtain any necessary permits or licenses. As an example, if your venue includes alcohol, check into the requirements to ensure you are following ordinances.
Plan the layout of the venue: Mapping out where everything will be located, such as tables, food, tours, vendors, and showroom area, will ensure a smooth flow of traffic. We were excited to be one of the vendors at this event and made some great connections.
Arrange for necessary equipment and furniture: Dynamic Designs provided logo’d bar stools and silver aluminum tubs for keeping refreshments cool. Make sure to arrange for any necessary equipment or furniture ahead of time. Hochstetler Metals even had a dunk tank, adding a little entertainment.
Prepare promotional materials and giveaways: Dynamic Designs created promotional materials such as signage, banners, tablecloths, business cards, sticky notepads, ceramic coffee mugs, and apparel (hats, sweatshirts, jackets) for the event. Creating a consistent brand throughout the environment is important. Additionally by allowing customers to leave with a promo item elevates that brand awareness even after the event.
Determine how you will reach your customers: Before determining this, think about where your potential customers and customers are. Will you use social media (linked-in, facebook, instagram), radio, tv, emails, every door direct mailers, newspaper? Hochstetler Metals used a combination of these to bring awareness. We recommend utilizing several channels for the simple reason not everyone reads the newspaper, not everyone is on social media, and not everyone listens to the radio.
Develop a news release for potential publicity and additional coverage through the media: Dynamic Designs created content and sent it to media list, and a few local media outlets provided publicity, one in particular, The Business News. Hochstetler Metals even hand a few local newspapers and media attend the event as well.
Create email blasts to increase awareness: First, remember emailing is not dead. Second, your best list is your own. Being a Constant Contact provider, and specializing in content writing for our clients we were able to provide several targeted email blasts before the event. Constant Contact also provides analytics of which emails were opened. The success rate on one email was 65% open rate! When you compare that to the industry average at 34%, those statistics are staggering.

Update the Website: Dynamic Designs helped Hochstetler Metals' to design a website through a platform called Squarespace that allows them to easily update, and add content with ease. Squarespace is a platform that gives customers access to analytics, which is a plus not having to log into other dashboards, or wait for their website company to send reports to them. Side note: updating the website after an event is also important. We updated the website after the event to show images from the open house.
Create a schedule of activities or presentations for the open house: An important part of this event at Hochstetler Metals was to provide demos of new design software, feature their new showroom and show how the metal profiles were constructed in the shop. They added some fun activities as well, like the dunk tank, a nail driving contest and a balloon popping activity. It’s a great opportunity to educate your customers about your products and services, and even have a little fun too.
Train staff members on their roles and responsibilities during the event: Make sure all staff members are aware of their roles and responsibilities during the event. Whether someone is monitoring the registration table, providing tours, sitting in the dunk tank, knowing who needs to be somewhere, and at what time is important to the success of any event. Hats off to Hochstetler Metals for having enough people on hand to provide attendees with ample food, fun, educational opportunities and a great representation of their business. P.S. Make sure your team is wearing branded apparel to set them apart from attendees.
Set up a registration or check-in process for attendees: Having a registration or check-in process ensures that attendees are accounted for and helps with follow-up after the event.
Food and refreshments are a requirement to any event: A quote by James Beard “Food is our common ground, a universal experience.” Food always seems to bring people together. If you are hosting an event, one requirement in our eyes is food. Did I mention the delicious, home-made donuts that were made on site and served warm?
Follow up with attendees after the open house: Following up with attendees after the event helps to build relationships with potential customers and obtain feedback on how to improve future events.

Nail driving contest at the Hochstetler Open House in September.

At Dynamic Designs, we understand that planning an open house or launching a new product or service can be overwhelming. That's why we offer marketing services tailored to our clients' needs and budgets. We can guide you through the entire process, and make event marketing easy, and stress free. Aligning your business with other great businesses are also key to success. It was and is an honor to be able to work with Brad, Kermit, Rebecca and the entire Hochstetler Team. Remember, having the a business To learn more about our services, visit our website at www.dynamicdesignspulaski.com. For more information on Hochstetler Metals, and to view photos of the event go to www.hochstetlermetals.com.