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19.1 Open days and exhibitions
can be relatively informal occasions when users (and potential users) can find out what
you do, meet staff, ask questions and so on. Or they can be more structured, with formal
presentations and discussions. Roadshows are similar, except that you go to communities
rather than expecting them to come to you.
19.2 Such events are not suitable for all services and are probably most useful
if you want to get across the message that you are approachable and want users to be
involved in what you're doing. They can also be a way of talking to people who don't
currently use your services but might in the future.
19.3 Messages can be got across in many different ways. You could use simple
information stands or displays, or try something technical like a video or slide show.
Points to think about:
 | Venue: if it's an open day you will probably want to hold it at your own location
so that users can see your services for themselves. If your own venue is unsuitable or you
are taking a roadshow around your area, make sure that the location you use is suitable
for the purpose, and that there is good access for your users and potential users. |
| Timing: this is important. Is a weekday, evening or weekend going to be most
convenient for those you want to reach? Do you need to consider school holidays? Can you
offer more than one option? |
| Publicity: you will need to publicise the event well to get good attendance. Use
a variety of methods to let people know what is happening (eg notices in local newspapers,
posters, leaflets, invitations, informing local groups). If you want to attract particular
groups of people, think about ways of targeting them specifically. |
| Material: the information you have on display or present is important. The people
who come may have varying degrees of knowledge about your service, so you need to ensure
that the information you provide appeals to a general audience. Make it as visual and
interesting as you can, try to stimulate questions and make sure that you have staff
around who can answer queries. A charter or similar document containing key information
about your services, standards, contact points etc can be a useful document for your users
and potential users to take away with them. But be careful not to rely too much on giving
information to people to take away and read people may be very willing to take material,
but will they really read a mountain of paper when they get home? |
| Practicalities: plan the practical aspects of the event carefully. You will
probably need to make arrangements for setting up stands/equipment etc, and think about
things such as refreshments, places for people to sit and rest, and so on. Try to get some
indication of likely attendance if possible. |
| Feedback: try to get as much feedback as possible from those who attend. As well
as the specific comments of those who do come, it can be very useful to collect
demographic information to show you who hasn't come. Comments can be collected in a
variety of ways, from staff recording relevant points, to the public posting comment cards
into a box. |
| Representativeness: as with other techniques like this, where those commenting
are largely self-selecting, don't use an open day or roadshow as your only means of
consulting. The views you will get are unlikely to be representative. |
Pros
| Gives the public flexibility of when to attend. |
| Arouses interest by giving the public something to see or do. |
| Provides ad-hoc feedback on services and ideas for change. |
| Can be a source of suggestions and comments. |
| Gives users a chance to become familiar with your premises and meet staff, so promoting
good relations. |
| Gives you an easy way to publicise your services and provide information to users. |
| Can help you contact potential and non-users. |
| Gives you quick feedback. |
Cons
| People who attend may not be particularly representative of users and non-users. |
| Won¹t provide statistical information (other than on numbers who attend etc). |
| Feedback may be limited to responses to the information presented/on display. |
Costs: vary according to what you do an open day could be very cheap, but a
roadshow or exhibition can be very expensive.
Use to: inform audiences who are relatively unfamiliar with your service.
| London Borough of Camden Camden Transport Services Camden
Transport Services provide passenger transport each week for 630 elderly people and pupils
with special needs. They also manage and maintain the council's 200-vehicle fleet.
The service first held an open day in 1995 to help raise awareness of its services and
to receive comments from users to help improve the quality of the transport and care it
provides. The day was attended by almost 100 people mostly service users with carers and
parents. The service spent some £3,000 to £5,000 and feel that perhaps some of this
could have been spent more wisely. For instance, a marketing professional might have been
worthwhile. They also feel that they might have had a higher turnout if the day had been
arranged outside school term.
A questionnaire was used to collect feedback from the users, and oral feedback was
recorded as well. These comments heavily influenced the service's vehicle specification
for the future. To help them with future consultation, the service wrote a review of the
open day and identified the following:
Things that worked well
| good venue, fully accessible to everyone including people with disabilities; |
| excellent catering; |
| all demonstration vehicles attended, as did the exhibitors. There were just about the
right number of vehicles for the size and layout of venue; |
| parking meters suspended and yellow line restrictions waived for the day; |
| exhibition lay-out and seating arrangements; |
| good feedback from users that did attend; and |
| ushers to and from display vehicles |
Things that didn't work well
| low turn-out by Camden Officers; |
| not all display boards for transport were completed on time; and |
| poor response to the questionnaire |
Things to think about for the future
| allow enough time for designing material and thinking about the type and format of the
material that will be displayed; |
| staff participating in the event should be clearly identified with badges; |
| have a system of greeting people and showing them around and answering questions; |
| better publicity in terms of:
 | attaching an RSVP slip to invitations to enable better planning |
| ensuring that any questionnaire is well distributed, providing assistance to complete
it, allowing adequate resources to collect information, and feeding back that information
to users |
|
| make sure that what is on display accurately reflects the services you can provide so
that users do not get the wrong impression of what they can expect. |
Contact: Malcolm Norton tel: 020 7 413 6727 fax: 020 7 413
6732 |
A charter or similar document containing key
information about your services, standards, contact points etc can be a useful
document for your users and potential users to take away with them.
Make sure that what is on display accurately reflects the services you can provide
so that users do not get the wrong impression of what they can expect.
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