Written on April 4, 2018. Posted in Blog.

How to Plan a Memorable Grand Opening Event

Marketing and growing your business today means working in a whole new landscape. Over 90% of consumers find ads more intrusive now than a few years ago.

There’s no longer any room for lackluster marketing plans. You need the smartest tactics to grab the attention of consumers. A grand opening done right can achieve wonders.

Social media, smartphones and other revolutionary advancements changed how consumers react to businesses. But a grand opening event executed with a pro’s touch will be sure to get you the desired attention.

Discover these effective ways to put together an opening event to remember.

Know Your Goals

Like any marketing plan, determine specific goals before doing any other planning work.

Why are you holding a grand opening event?

It could be as simple as getting more people to buy from you. There’s nothing wrong with that.

But money isn’t always the end goal. A grand opening isn’t just effective for profit. You might have a message you want to convey.

Do you want people to know about a product that’s unavailable anywhere else in the area? Do you have a specific message you want people to tie to your brand? Do you want to reach out to the community and get to know people?

Your grand opening only happens once. Be as specific as possible and know your purpose. Make sure the whole team knows what the brand message is all about.

When you’ve determined your message, it’s time for the next steps.

Specify Your Budget

The budget for your grand opening will depend on your own marketing budget. There’s no fixed amount but there is a recommended minimum.

We suggest dedicating 20% of your business’ marketing budget for the first year. A minimum of $6,000 is ideal.

You might be thinking, “20% of my marketing budget for the first year sounds a lot for one event!”

It’s not. And we’ll explain why.

First off, your grand opening event is a one-shot deal. There’s no such thing as a “Second Grand Opening.”

You want your target market to walk away from your event with great stories to tell. Fill their bellies and give them entertainment. The money will be well spent.

Second, you need to spend money to get people to know about your grand opening event.

In the realm of branding and marketing, repetition is key. You need a decent amount to reach target customers more than once.

Most people will discard an ad when seen for the first time. Remember how we began by talking about technology and smartphones? Media, personal messages, and other sources bombard consumers today.

In a nutshell, you’re competing for attention. And there are plenty of hungry sharks competing against you.

People have to see your ad more than once. Put yourself in their shoes.

While you’re scrolling Facebook or driving around, ads greet you from all corners. If you’re like most people, you’ll soon notice the ads that pop up repeatedly.

Work with Other Businesses

For your grand opening event to be successful, you can’t (and shouldn’t!) do everything yourself. This goes for you and your team.

Your whole team can’t do everything well. And that’s fine. We all specialize in different things.

This is where working with other businesses and people comes in.

One advantage of working with other people is placing different tasks in the hands of professionals.

For example, if you’re not in the food business, have the food catered. Hire a caterer or food truck.

Not in the entertainment business? Hire a band, a singer, magician, or whoever fits your target audience and message. Hire professionals that give life to a corporate party.

Your grand opening event deserves the best within your budget. People will expect yummy treats and fun entertainment.

Another advantage of delegating tasks of the event-planning is time.

Hiring other businesses will free up your time, allowing you to focus on what you’re good at. After all, everyone specializes in very different things.

Market Online

Should you market the grand opening event online? The answer is a resounding “Yes!”

Everyone and their mothers are online nowadays.

The targeting allowed by online marketing is astounding. You’ll be able to reach your target audience and grab their attention this way.

For instance, if you want the attention of dog-lovers in a specific city, Facebook will do all the work. Input your budget and you’re set.

Another great thing about online marketing is you can create creatives on the cheap.

Sites like Canva and apps such as Rhonna Design churn out social media-ready photos on the cheap.

Instagram is another great place to grab people’s attention.

Have stunning photographs ready and promote your grand opening event on the platform. Thanks to phone cameras today, and apps like Snapseed, almost anyone can create beautiful photos.

Use Hashtags

Don’t ignore Twitter. Use the power of hashtags.

Let’s say you’re preparing the grand opening event for a vegetarian cafe. Log into Twitter and see what people are talking about. Use hashtags like “vegetarian” and “plant-based diets”.

Accessing Twitter from a browser will give you hashtag suggestions. Also, you can jump in any conversation on Twitter. It’s acceptable behaviour on this platform.

Once you’ve found accounts of your target audience from using hashtags, comment on their accounts. Tell them about your event. Make sure you got the right hashtags.

If you’ve targeted them right, they’d love to hear about the grand opening. And why not? With the hashtag approach done right, you’re reaching out to people whose interests share a relation to your business.

The hashtag tactic also works for Instagram.