12 Tips to Make Your Business Meetup Awesome

As a successful entrepreneur, I know how important it is to take charge. By organizing opportunities for fellow entrepreneurs to connect, you not only gain trust and support, but also become a key player in your local community. So how can you ensure that your business meetup events are a hit and not just another dull gathering?

To get some guidance, I spoke to members of the Young Entrepreneur Council, an exclusive organization of accomplished entrepreneurs. I asked them the following question:

What’s the best way to run a successful business meetup group for entrepreneurs?

Here’s what the YEC community had to say:

1. Plan Ahead

When running a successful business meetup group for entrepreneurs, it’s important to plan ahead. I’ve learned that it’s best to plan the event three to four weeks in advance. This gives us enough time to handle all the details, find a venue, and make sure every entrepreneur attending the meetup-style group can make arrangements for the day. – Jay Wu, A Forever Recovery

2. Arrive Early at Your Venue

Make sure to arrive early at your venue and check that everything is in order. This includes confirming there is enough seating and ensuring all audio/visual equipment is working properly. The goal of running a business meetup is to impress, and encountering any issues during the meeting will hinder that goal. – Andrew Schrage, Money Crashers Personal Finance

3. Invite Startups to Demo

Want to know the best way to get people excited about your meetup? It’s by inviting them and making it valuable for them right from the start. Trust me, it works like magic! When the audience hears about what you’re all working on, they’ll want to know more, and before you know it, you’ll have a wonderful community of people joining you every time. – Derek Flanzraich, Greatist

4. Time to Put on Your Name Tags

I absolutely love meeting new people, but I have a hard time remembering names. That’s where name tags come in handy! When everyone has a name tag, it’s so much easier to introduce yourself and start building relationships. And hey, if you want to take it to the next level, encourage everyone to include their Twitter handle, business name, or maybe even something they’re interested in! – Kelly Azevedo, She’s Got Systems

5. Let’s Set Some Clear Goals and Expectations

I joined a community after attending one of their events. It was a great experience, but I realized that the organizer plays a crucial role in keeping people connected. One way to do this is by having a clear mission statement and sticking to it. If the community’s goal is to provide educational events, it’s important to focus on that and not just have social gatherings. The reason people join is because of what the community offers from the start, so it’s important to keep that as the foundation.

6. Get Organized with Specific Discussion Topics

There’s nothing worse than attending a business meetup without any direction. Without a clear focus, groups tend to fade away quickly. To avoid this, it’s important to have structured discussions or events that give everyone something to talk about. This fosters a learning environment and encourages meaningful connections, which is ultimately the purpose of a meetup.

7. Be Secretive

When we start a business meet-up, it’s crucial to make it clear that everything we discuss should stay within the group. This confidentiality creates an environment where founders feel comfortable opening up and sharing their real problems. They can freely talk about challenges like running out of money or dealing with difficult employees. Plus, they can learn valuable lessons from entrepreneurs who have overcome similar situations in the past. It’s important to create a safe space where everyone can speak openly and trust that their information will remain confidential.

8. Set the Vibe from the Start

If you want your group to have a specific culture, it’s essential to establish that tone right from the first event. One way to do this is by inviting people who already understand your vision and values. By surrounding yourself with these like-minded individuals, word will spread about your group and its mission, allowing it to grow both locally and nationwide. I’ve personally used this approach to expand my own events, and it’s been a successful strategy in creating a community that shares the same values and goals.

I’m excited to be part of something that’s growing and becoming great. It’s important for you to join me on this journey by helping us create connections with other dreamers – people we can share ideas with, learn from, and explore new possibilities together. Instead of focusing on being cool, let’s focus on being human.

10. Create an Exclusive Experience

Let’s make our group invite-only to make it more exclusive and ensure high quality. Many of the best entrepreneurs I know in London have stopped attending general business meetups. By creating an invite-only group with a strong core, we can attract a lot of interest from those who aspire to be part of it. It’s important to know our niche in today’s crowded world.

11. Foster a Supportive Community

You know, the best thing about meetup groups is the people. I’ve seen it firsthand when I ran a group of over 500 developers called the Seattle Unity3D User Group. Building a community where people feel supported and connected is essential to bring more folks in and achieve greater things together. That’s why it’s important to organize social hangouts and create a friendly and supportive atmosphere within the group. ~ Brandon Wu, Studio Pepwuper

12. Offer Engaging Tasks

The trickiest part of any business meetup is those first 15 minutes. You want to strike a balance between structure and freedom, so people don’t flee to the bathroom to avoid any icebreakers. Instead, present a few challenges that bring personal benefits to attendees without any strict deadlines. For instance, encourage everyone to discover three useful apps or find two people in the room whom they can introduce to others. Let’s make it about helping one another. ~ Heidi Allstop, Spill