An Open House Worth Waiting For

Lisa Vosta had been planning her in-plant’s open house for a while: 730 days, to be exact. When her in-plant at Southeast Community College in Lincoln, Neb., first moved in 2015 to make way for classrooms, the in-plant wanted to hold an open house, but the shop was so busy it was delayed. Then a year ago the in-plant was moved again, this time so the bookstore could expand. Once more the open house was delayed.

Customers stopped by to see the in-plant and collect free T-shirts, tote bags and refreshments.

In May, having adjusted to the new space, the in-plant finally held its long-awaited open house. It was a big success, drawing more than 200 staff and faculty. Mike Loyd, executive director of the In-plant Printing and Mailing Association (IPMA) even stopped by.

To maximize attendance, Vosta, supervisor of Production Printing, chose to hold the open house over two days — for two hours in the morning of the first day, and two hours in the afternoon of the second day.

“I hand delivered our flyer to each division,” she says. “I did not want to embed it in an email. I needed to make it personalized, so each flyer had the name of their division on it for that special touch.”

The in-plant put out food, gave away prizes — gift cards to the campus cafe — and received lots of positive feedback. Vosta says it was well worth the two-year wait.