Manufacturing Day 2016: Start Planning Now!
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This year, Manufacturing Day will take place on October 7th. Even though it's several months away, there is no better time than the present to start planning your Manufacturing Day events. If you start now, you won't find yourself scrambling to put something together in September.
What is Manufacturing Day?
Manufacturing was once the engine of the American economy. But over the last few decades, manufacturing jobs have gone overseas and the industry has contracted. To make matters worse, US-based manufacturers often struggle to recruit young talent, because too many people view manufacturing as dirty, undesirable work. To combat these misconceptions and help manufacturing regain the power it once had, manufacturers all over the country came together and created Manufacturing Day.
The point of Manufacturing Day, according to mfgday.com, is to "[address] common misperceptions about manufacturing by giving manufacturers an opportunity to open their doors and show, in a coordinated effort, what manufacturing is — and what it isn’t. By working together during and after MFG DAY, manufacturers will begin to address the skilled labor shortage they face, connect with future generations, take charge of the public image of manufacturing, and ensure the ongoing prosperity of the whole industry." Manufacturing Day is the perfect opportunity for you to show off your state-of-the-art facility, top-of-the-line equipment and super-smart employees. However, it is really important to plan ahead. If you invite people to your facility and then seem unprepared, they won't leave with a good impression and you won't have achieved the goal of Manufacturing Day.
How to Prepare for Manufacturing Day
First, decide what how you want to honor the day. If you're going to do a facility tour, you should determine which parts of the facility people will be allowed to see and who will lead the tour. You should also consider putting together a script so that the person who leads the tour doesn't have to ad lib. If you want to do a virtual tour, get working on it now. To do a virtual tour well, you'll have to invest a lot of time and effort. You may also need to bring on a freelancer for the project, which means you'll need to find that person. Secondly, get started on putting together any materials you plan on handing out at your event. For instance, if you plan on handing out a brochure that explains the types of careers young people can have working for you, you'll want to write, design, edit and produce those well in advance. Lastly, work on your promotional materials. To get people to come to your event, you'll need:- A press release
- Promotional posters
- A landing page for your website
- Promotional emails
- Flyers
- Social media posts