Family and Friends Days are sometimes offered by institutions and organizations primarily as a venue for attracting new patrons. Churches often host Family and Friends Days. Schools and other organizations sometimes offer these events as well. Since the purpose of the event is to attract new members or impress current members’ loved ones, the day should include interesting and informative events and activities.
Starting Family and Friends Day with a welcome address is a common approach. A welcome address can highlight the important facts and missions of the organization hosting the event. Family and friends in attendance can get a feel for what the day will be like for them. A welcome address is typically brief, but includes introductions of important people, such as organization officers and tour leaders. Providing an outline of the events in store for the day is also part of a good welcome address.
If hosting this event to recruit new members to a church, you may want to offer a tour of facilities. Explain where important events occur, and where people should go if they decide to attend the next sermon. If you’re hosting Family and Friends Day for a school, give an abbreviated tour of campus. Show your group the most important places on campus and give them some facts about education at your school.
Toward the end of the day, offer an informational seminar to attendees. In this seminar, you can provide them with in-depth information about your organization. Give facts, statistics and examples of everything you discuss. This is the final chance to convince the attendees that they want to be part of your church, or that they want to attend your school, or that they made the right choice in enrolling their child in your daycare facility.
Providing opportunities for individuals to ask questions is a very important component of this event. To ensure that attendees have ample opportunity to get their questions answered satisfactorily, you can schedule a block of time specifically for question-and-answer discussion. You can also build in some time for questions at the end of other events — for example, while wrapping up the informational seminar or during tours.
