Meetups have been quite a passion of mine for a while.
I don’t run Meetups anymore but I learnt a few things planning quite a popular one a few years ago.
Therefore when I was invited to answer this question on Quora:
What are some strategies, tactics, or best practices for creating well attended meetups?
I could not resist to give my answer.
Here is an excerpt:
– Hook them with a reward
My secret weapon was offering food for free at the event and sometimes also a free drink. I managed to get that without investing a single penny.
I negotiated with venues to book the place on a Tuesday or Wednesday when they were usually empty and to bring 60+ people. I contacted venues that recently opened as they were willing to get the word out.
Sometimes we had also prizes like a bottle of champagne in exchange for business cards.
You can read the full answer on Quora. If you like it, vote it!