How To Start A Meetup Group For Entrepreneurs

For nearly two years I’ve helped organize an Internet marketing group called Internet Masterminds Group in Vancouver BC with my friends Franco Peta and Bernie Glemas. The group meets every Monday night at 7pm to discuss Internet marketing related topics. We’re now the largest Internet marketing group in the city and I believe we’re the most active Meetup in Vancouver. I’m proud to say that at each meeting we’re getting about 10% of the members to turn out (of course not always the same people but we have many regulars). A few months ago we started charging $5 at the door to use those funds to help grow the group. Since we implemented the fee we’re getting higher turn-outs then ever before (which may or may not relate to the $5 fee). So far we’ve used the funds to buy more chairs, throw a free BBQ for our members, get a logo for the group designed and we have a few more ideas in the works ;)

Starting your own Meetup Group? Here are some lessons learned:

  1. Have consistent meetings, for example, every Monday. Or the Last Tuesday of every month ect. This way if someone misses a meeting or wants to tell a friend about it they already know when the next meeting is and can prepare to be there well in advance. 
     
  2. Try to use the same location every time. If you can’t secure a consistent location at least find a location where you have a controlled environment, eg, not a noisy bar or restaurant. A good place to look is a local shared office space or a company that services the entrepreneurial market and has a large meeting room they could donate. ING Direct in Vancouver is one example of a company that has been offering its room for the Vancouver Meetup community. 
     
  3. Choose a topic of the month. I find this gets more return visitors and a true “mastermind” of people interested in sharing/learning about the topic. Examples of some of our monthly topics for Internet Masterminds have been Video Marketing, Daily Deals, SEO/PPC, Social Media, Outsourcing, Affiliate Marketing and Information Marketing. 
     
  4. Allow everyone to introduce themselves for 1 or 2 minutes. Here is the format I ask everyone to use “what’s your name, how do you help people, and how can others help you.” If there are more than 40 people in the room we’ll give everyone only 30 seconds and use a timer. Although I’ve had MANY people suggest this was a waste of time, I believe it’s the reason so many connections are made in our group. It lets members hear what everyone in the room does so you know who to approach at the end of the meeting. 
     
  5. Don’t let guest presenters hard-sell their products or services. I used to be very strict about pitches, and set a “no pitching law” for all presenters. However, I found it a bit tougher to get presenters for the group. I also found attendees rushing presenters at the end of the presentations asking where they could get more info. Now I suggest a soft pitch (and recommend it) but make sure the presenter doesn’t think it’s a seminar and prepare forms and sales agents to “sign you up at the back of the room”. On a personal note, I look for speakers with long-term business concepts and valuable business products and services for the group.
     
  6. Make sure every Meetup has a good description. The format I’ve been using is 1) a catchy headline which includes the presenters name 2) one paragraph about the talk 3) five specific bullet points that attendees will learn, 4) one paragraph about the speaker. I strongly suggest this formula exactly, I’ve tested other concepts and this is by far the best, no more and no less.

Here are 3 description examples of Meetups that filled up very quickly:

“How To Make A Fortune With Information Products, with Frederic Patenaude”

http://www.meetup.com/Internet-Masterminds/events/25137801/

“How to Build a PR Plan for Your Business & Why You Need One, with Monica Morong”

http://www.meetup.com/Internet-Masterminds/events/22668642/

“How To Multiply Your Social Media Buzz with Matt Astifan, Web Friendly”

http://www.meetup.com/Internet-Masterminds/events/16949186/ 

Meetup headlines are important: I once scheduled a high profile speaker for Internet Masterminds and noticed the meetup wasn’t getting many RSVP’s. I got a little nervous that we would have a small audience for the speaker so I asked if I could change the title of the presentation. As soon as I did the RSVP’s skyrocketed and we had a full house! Lesson learned, get good at naming your Meetups and don’t be afraid of re-naming the presentation as long as it doesn’t change the context of the presentation (however, ask your presenter first)

  7. Prepare an introduction for your guest speakers. Unfortunately I fail at this all the time… I usually say a few nice words about the speaker and then ask if they could introduce themselves. Of course this isn’t the best way of doing it. It’s always better to have someone else introduce you. It’s an area I’m working on and I highly recommend you prepare an introduction for your speakers.

So why take the time to organize a Meetup Group? I’ve had a lot of people think I make a lot of money from Internet Masterminds. I’ve even had some people think Internet Masterminds was my business. Although my company offers education on Internet marketing the Internet Masterminds Group and my company Web Friendly are two separate projects. At Web Friendly I organize paid workshops that range from 4 week programs to one day or one weekend seminars. At Internet Masterminds Group we invite entrepreneurs and companies to share 60 minutes about a specific topic related to Internet Marketing they are passionate about. These speakers are not paid, but they understand the value of giving back to the community and sharing their lessons learned.

Here is why I love organizing Internet Masterminds:

1) Friends, almost ALL the friends I hang out with regularly these days I met at Internet Masterminds. These are people that I hang out with even when we’re not talking business or marketing. I believe many of the Internet Mastermind members would say the same.

2) Referrals, I have a spreadsheet where I track all my clients and where they came from. If they’re a referral I track where the referral came from. When I look at it I realize more than half my referrals come from someone I met from the Internet Masterminds Meetup. 

Internet Masterminds Group meets every Monday night at 7pm at 1633 West 2nd. Meetups are $5 and donations are always reinvested back into the group. You don’t have to be an Internet marketing expert to attend, but you do have to be willing to learn ;) 

If you’re interested, here is a link to join the group www.internetmasterminds.ca

Got other tips for starting a Meetup? I’d love to hear them, leave one in the comments below.

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