Business open houses provide more than just food and advertising: they’re an opportunity to highlight your talents, engage with customers, and generate leads.
If you sell physical products or services, adding entertainment and giveaways at your open house will make it stand out. Here are some business open-house ideas to get you going:
1. Give out promotional items
An open house event can be an effective way for businesses to generate new sales and customers, but planning is necessary for success. To make sure their open house stands out from competitors’ events and more people attend their open house event. Promotional items can help draw in visitors.
One common oversight businesses make during an open house is insufficient staff members to answer attendees’ questions or assist with tours of the premises. To prevent this from happening, plan the event for a weekday evening or off-hour when your typical customers can visit and make sure no other prominent events like concerts or festivals conflict with it and reduce attendance.
Companies should ensure enough staff is available but also provide attendees with snacks and drinks at open houses – this could range from simple offerings like hot dogs, hamburgers, and soft drinks to lavish catered events. Food and beverages can help attendees feel welcomed, which increases attendance at events.
One of the best ways to attract attention for an open house event is using high-quality promotional materials, like invitations and flyers, that showcase it. Customize these invites and flyers according to your brand by including features like Photo Gallery Blocks featuring photos of your property or Video Blocks for customized video walkthroughs, as well as Custom Text Blocks that feature your message or call-to-action.
One way to draw guests in is through giveaway items like branded tote bags or pens. Not only will these giveaways leave guests with fond memories of your open house event, but they will also help build brand recognition among family and friends who didn’t attend the open house.
Real estate agents who use promotional items at open houses are an effective way of generating leads and building trust with potential homebuyers. For example, they might place out tote bags branded with their contact info as a way of encouraging prospective homebuyers to leave their business card behind in exchange for the chance at winning something exciting – then follow up on these leads with them later as part of their marketing process.
2. Serve food
No matter if it is for business or real estate purposes, food plays an essential role in making or breaking an event’s success. When selecting snacks and beverages to serve at an open house or real estate event, keep your target market in mind, and don’t just grab store-bought chips and cookies because you lack time for more specialized preparation.
Serve portable snacks while guests peruse your marketing materials or meet with other real estate agents, encouraging them to stay longer so you have more opportunities to discuss and answer any queries about the property in question.
Finger sandwiches are an easy yet delectable snack option. Customize them to suit the audience by filling them with ingredients such as cheese and spinach or Nutella and strawberries; alternatively, you can purchase premade finger sandwiches from grocery stores if time or energy is an issue.
Puff pastries are another delicious option that can be customized with either sweet or savory fillings and served alongside dipping sauce to bring an additional level of entertainment and satisfaction for guests. Soft pretzels also work wonderfully when served alongside dipping sauces ranging from mustard to cinnamon sugar for other tasteful variations.
Skewers make for an engaging snack at any event, especially an open house. You can prepare an array of skewers that cater to different tastes – everything from meat-and-vegetable kebabs to caprese skewers!
Beverages should also be available to your guests during the party, such as water, coffee, tea, soda, and iced tea. Consider offering your guests something unique by including signature drinks or mocktails in your options list to enhance the experience and create something truly memorable for them.
3. Have a raffle
People love winning things, so holding a raffle at your business open house can be an effective way to entice visitors. Use Power Sports Store software to manage customer lists to send personalized email invitations directly or post notices on social media accounts about this upcoming event – both methods should ensure people mark it on their calendars so they won’t miss it!
Ensure visitors can sign in, leaving their names, phone numbers, and emails. Canva or similar graphic design tools can help create custom sign-in sheets; alternatively, print out a simple form for guests to fill out before placing it on tables or counters at events – giving you the chance to follow up afterward with leads!
Supplying food and drinks is another effective way to draw visitors to your business open house. This could range from offering elaborate catered banquets to free hot dogs, hamburgers, and soft drinks or setting up demo stations where visitors can see and learn more about your products or services. These activities make the open house more engaging than simply using PowerPoint slides to present information or exchange business cards with attendees – adding fun, entertainment value that sets it apart from competitors who opt for boring PowerPoint presentations and card-swapping-only events.
Consider soliciting local businesses as sponsors for your event by asking them to contribute prizes for your raffle. For instance, an auto dealership might donate a car while theaters could contribute gift cards as date night goodies – all giving the impression that your company values local businesses and their customer input.
If possible, plan to hold your open house during a weekday evening to minimize competition with other events, like concerts and graduations, while permitting people to attend without missing work for your event. Also, try not holding it on weekends when most people may already have family commitments that prevent them from making time for it.
4. Have a giveaway
An open house provides the ideal opportunity to gather valuable prospecting data from prospective customers. Your goal should be for each attendee to provide their name, email address, and phone number so you can follow up in the future with them – giving company swag or discount coupons may help motivate this effort!
Attracting and engaging prospective customers through open houses requires having an engaging speaker present. Select someone with an exciting story about their experience using your product or service – be it someone from within their small business explaining how your software has helped them gain more clients or having one of your top clients talk about their success at a trade show or similar event where they utilized your services.
Food is always the star attraction at an open house event, but not only the usual fare like hot dogs and hamburgers are served. Consider hiring local vendors specializing in unique treats – perhaps an established bakery could provide treats with your guests queuing out the door, or maybe you want a food truck selling specialty beverages such as kiwi mojito mocktails, which can add even more fun!
At your business open house, entertainment should also play a vital role – live music or an interactive photo booth can break the ice and put guests at ease in an unfamiliar setting. Seasonal decorations may help visitors imagine working at your business during holidays or cooler weather.
Are you searching for an easy way to upgrade your open house signage? Consider digital open house sign-in sheets as an efficient solution that will save both time and money while still giving visitors an exceptional experience. Several companies provide branded sign-in sheets, which include features such as agent contact information, map directions to the property, and custom color schemes – providing your visitors with a quality experience at open houses!
