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Discussion on: Hello! I've been running developer events and building communities since 2012. Bring it on and #AMA !! <3

 
tessamero profile image
Tessa Mero

Hi Maniflames,

One of my communities of many was a very small one, like 3-5 people, sometimes up to 15. When I wanted more people to show up, I'd try to keep the meetups as consistent as possible, example: 3rd Tuesday of each month at the same library at the same exact time, so that way they always know when the event is. When event date/time/place changes frequently, people tend to schedule their work/personal lives over your meetup and it is easily often missed.

What you can do is send out a survey to your group asking what they'd like to see or have. Also throw out some ideas and see what their thoughts are. If your community is on a chat tool, such as Slack, Discord, or Gitter, then it would be easier to reach out to them.

You can also throw contests or have prizes during the event. $5 starbucks gift cards to giveaway or something. Incentives are always fun.

For a book club, this is a bit out of my knowledge area, but if i was in a book club, and they... once in awhile threw a book gaming event, i'd be really excited to join.

An example: "Bring your own Book" game. bringyourownbook.com/

I recently bought that so i can talk/share about books in a fun way. I am just lacking any friends, let alone friends who read books. LOL :) just a fun thought! Throwing a twist can always gain your momentum back!

Let me know if you have any other questions. :) I can go on forever.

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maniflames profile image
Maniflames

Thanks this advice is really helpful! Some consistency will help a ton and a poll around topics would actually be great too. I'll check out the example too, I think shaking things up would make things a lot more interesting. 😄

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tessamero profile image
Tessa Mero

You are very welcome. You can always follow up here and let me know how things went! I am happy to continue to mentor as I find it will help many others if this information is public. :)