Each year, we hear stories about Manufacturing Day events that never make it on the map. While we’re glad that these “under the radar” events happen and fully appreciate how they underscore that MFG DAY truly is a grassroots movement, we’re also a bit disappointed that they don’t become part of the annual celebration’s public record.
More importantly, though, holding an MFG DAY event without officially registering is a missed opportunity for the Host that made the effort to hold the event in the first place. Below we explain why and explore some of the common objections we’ve heard when we’ve asked “secret” MFG DAY event Hosts why they didn’t add their event to
the mfgday.com map.
WHAT YOU GET WHEN YOU REGISTER
So, what do you get when you officially register your MFG DAY event through mfgday.com? Practical resources to help with your event planning and promotion, the ability to publish information about your organization to mfgday.com, and the ability to point to your role in the MFG DAY story.
ACCESS TO EVENT RESOURCES
Registering as an official MFG DAY event Host gives you access to a number of exclusive event resources via a Host Dashboard.
While it’s true that the key ones — such as the
Host Toolkit, the
Host Media Guide, and the
Event Promotion Kit — are available publicly on mfgday.com, only officially registered Hosts also get access to useful items such as: • Printable banner and poster templates • A feather flag order form • Deloitte event survey tools
VISIBILITY FOR YOUR COMPANY
When you register your MFG DAY event, you not only add it to the overview map, you also create a web page dedicated to your event on mfgday.com — a site that receives hundreds of thousands of visits per year. On that page, you can post a profile statement about your institution and can add other content that will help your organization achieve greater online visibility, including links to your website and social media profiles.
An official event profile also opens up the possibility of more publishing options on mfgday.com. As an official event Host, you can add a gallery of photos from your event, along with a description including links to content on your website or social media profiles. In addition, galleries are often shared by MFG DAY on its popular
Facebook,
LinkedIn,
Twitter, and
YouTube profiles.
BECOMING PART OF THE MFG DAY STORY
If you don’t register your event, you can still speak about your role in MFG DAY — you did the work.
But not adding your event to the official roster makes it all but invisible to MFG DAY the organization, which generates thousands of new stories each year with tens of millions of readers and viewers. If you don’t officially list your event on mfgday.com, we won’t be able to include you in our collective story — either in the narrative we’re creating about changing the public perception of manufacturing or by profiling your event and organization on
our blog or pointing to your contribution through our social media channels.
We’re always thrilled to hear about how different organizations celebrate MFG DAY — everyone does it a little differently — and want to be able accurately capture the collective power and true diversity of today’s manufacturing.
COMMON OBJECTIONS
If you’re resistant to officially registering your MFG DAY event, you’re not alone. Here are the most common objections to official registration we’ve heard throughout the years as we’ve attempted to understand why some Hosts resist publicly declaring their participation on mfgday.com.
“IT’S TOO HARD TO REGISTER.”
We’ve often heard complaints that the event registration process isn’t intuitive or is too time consuming.
We’ve tried to listen as best we can to these comments and have
streamlined the event registration process so that it doesn’t take more than a few minutes — and can be returned to if you need more time to gather the requisite information.
“I HAVE TOO MANY EVENTS.”
Some users — such as corporate coordinators responsible for events at multiple facilities — have refrained from officially registering MFG DAY events because they simply had too many to add to the site.
To address this, we’ve created a bulk uploading system for Hosts who find themselves in this sort of situation. A template and instructions for using it can be accessed from your Host Dashboard once you
create an account.
“MY EVENT IS NOT OPEN TO THE PUBLIC.”
The desire to hold a private event — by invitation only — is probably the most common reason Hosts choose not to register their MFG DAY event.
It’s understandable. If your intention is to host an event just for employees or a set list of invitees, you don’t want uninvited guests arriving at your door with the expectation of being treated to some sort of public presentation.
That’s why we’ve added a feature that lets Hosts designate their event as “Private” on mfgday.com, barring any potential attendees from RSVP’ing through the site.
“MY EVENT WON’T OCCUR ON THE FIRST FRIDAY IN OCTOBER.”
While the official date for MFG DAY is the first Friday in October, any day can theoretically be a Manufacturing Day.
While there’s definitely value in the critical mass created when thousands of manufacturers hold events on the same day, we encourage Hosts to schedule their events on whatever day of the year best suits them.
Choosing a day other than the first Friday of October for your event should therefore be no barrier against official registration. In fact, if you view the
current and past lists of MFG DAY events, you’ll see hundreds that happen on days other than the official date — many of them not even in the month of October!
STILL NOT CONVINCED OR HAVE QUESTIONS?
If you’re planning an MFG DAY event but still on the fence about officially registering it on mfgday.com, let’s talk. We readily admit that there are circumstances that we haven’t covered here but that we’re open to helping your resolve. We want you to make MFG DAY work for you, so please contact us!
MFG Day,
The Fastener Museum
