Richard Lucas
July 2023

Introduction

This blog post complements this onboarding video for Open Coffee, providing insights and additional information for existing leaders, volunteers, and hosts of Open Coffee Meetups. It is intended for individuals interested in improving their event organizing and hosting skills, as well as those looking to establish their own events and seeking guidance on the process. Whether you prefer video or text, I recommend exploring both resources for a comprehensive understanding. This content is part of a series created for community builders, so be sure to sign up for my Community Builders Newsletter to stay updated on new content.

What Makes Open Coffee Meetups Special?

• Open Coffee meetups conducted in the "Krakow" way have several distinctive features that set them apart and make them highly engaging:

  1. Process and structure: We employ an "Everyone to everyone" session followed by "one on one" follow-ups. This approach ensures that before engaging in a conversation, you have an understanding of what everyone in the room is working on. It helps you avoid getting stuck with someone who may not be the most relevant connection for you.

  2. Screen and Digital Noticeboard: We utilize a screen and digital noticeboard, allowing participants to see the projects, ideas, or businesses each person is discussing. This visual aid eliminates potential communication barriers and ensures that even the most compelling projects, which may not have the slickest presentations, receive attention.

  3. Informal, friendly, supportive, inclusive, and helpful culture: Our meetup fosters an environment where everyone feels welcome. Our hosting approach emphasizes not only expressing personal needs but also how individuals can contribute to the community. This norm encourages pro-community behavior and normalizes a positive and supportive atmosphere.

  4. Efficiency: Participants appreciate the productivity achieved within a relatively short timeframe. We prioritize punctuality and efficient time management.

  5. Diversity: Open Coffee meetups attract a diverse range of attendees, including potential co-founders, team members, clients, vendors, job seekers, investors, and sources of inspiration. While you may not know who will be present, our experience demonstrates that experienced entrepreneurs and leaders prefer our meetups over other events.

  6. Participant focus: Our emphasis is not on highlighting "important" individuals but rather on valuing every participant and ensuring everyone has an opportunity to contribute and connect.

  The primary objective of this blog post is to explain how to effectively host Open Coffee Meetups.

Hosting Guidelines

This section covers the necessary tasks for hosts before, during, and after the meetup. Pre-event promotion is addressed in in a separate post. For a deeper exploration of the role and skills of hosting, I recommend reviewing Mark McKergow's excellent TEDx talk and reading his books on Host Leadership.

Before the Event:

1. Venue preparation: Visit the venue in advance to familiarize yourself with access points, key holders (if hosting early in the morning), and communication methods to reach them. Consider the flow of guests through the building, especially if some may be unfamiliar with the location.
   Signage Display simple "Welcome" posters using PowerPoint and have sticky tape or blue tack on hand. Demonstrating thoughtfulness in this manner conveys care for the participants.

Before the Event:

1. Venue preparation: Visit the venue in advance to familiarize yourself with access points, key holders (if hosting early in the morning), and communication methods to reach them. Consider the flow of guests through the building, especially if some may be unfamiliar with the location. Display simple "Welcome" posters using PowerPoint and have sticky tape or blue tack on hand. Demonstrating thoughtfulness in this manner conveys care for the participants.

2. Signage: Make it easy for guests to find the designated room by providing clear signage.

3. Badges: Prepare inexpensive and simple badges to facilitate connections among attendees who may not know each other. Pre-printing blank badges is recommended to avoid wastage when there are no-shows. Handwriting names on badges can contribute to a low-cost and informal culture. A box of A4 labels (50-100 sheets) costs around 8-15 Euros. Putting a logo and a QR codes is easy as well if you have them and want to go a step further.  
   

4. Seating, wifi, screen, projector, registration table for badges. Have a table for badging in a place that people will find easy to see and get to once the event starts. (and have clipboards so that if a queue develops it is possible to process new arrivals in the queue). Once the event starts, you can let people write their own badges. Check the Wi-Fi, projector and screen and think about how you can prepare the room in a way that suits the informal atmosphere. Typically concentric rings of seats in a circle is good, With space at the back for people to leave their coats and bags.

Hosting on the Big Day Itself

Hosting an event requires careful preparation and attention to detail. On the day of the event, follow these guidelines to ensure a smooth and enjoyable experience for your guests:

1. Be Early: Arrive at least 30 minutes before the event starts, along with your team, to set up everything in advance. Some guests may arrive early, and it's important to be prepared. Remember, your event starts the moment the first guest arrives.

2. Badges: Make sure you and your team wear badges right away. Even if guests initially show no interest in badges, seeing others wearing them will likely encourage them to want one too.

3. Music: Have some light and informal music playing to create a welcoming atmosphere and help early arrivers find the room. Once people start engaging in conversations, lower the volume. The purpose of the music is to attract people at the beginning, but it shouldn't be the main focus of the event.

4. Get the Staff Onside: Establish a friendly relationship with the venue staff, including the doorman and receptionist. Introduce yourself, learn their names, and explain the purpose of the event. They can become part of the welcoming crew, contributing to a warm and inviting environment.

5. Welcoming Process: The welcoming process is crucial as guests arrive. The first few seconds shape their expectations for the entire event. Designate volunteers from your team as "welcomers" whose role is to greet guests and make them feel comfortable. Prioritize individuals who don't know anyone and may be unsure about attending. Use positive lines such as "Hi, welcome! Where are you from? What's your name? Come and get registered, and I'll introduce you to some people. Do you know many people here?" Introduce new guests to other participants while you or your volunteers continue welcoming. If some guests arrive early, you can ask them to join as welcomers, ensuring they meet new people and feel included. To learn more review a 20 minute training video about welcoming processes I made for TEDx volunteers here.

6. Start on Time: Regardless of cultural norms, it's important to start the event on time. Avoid delaying for latecomers, as it sets a precedent and regular attendees may lose interest. You can have a soft start by encouraging attendees to introduce themselves to someone they don't know while waiting for the last few people. Clap your hands or use a signal to signify the formal start of the event.
   
   To effectively host the main session of your meetup, follow these steps:

   1. Signal the Start: Get everyone's attention and ask them to take their seats. If some attendees are engaged in conversations, ask others to assist you by encouraging them to join the seating area. This method usually works well to gather everyone together.

   2. Commend Punctuality: Begin by asking everyone to give themselves a round of applause for being on time. This acknowledgment sets a positive tone and reinforces the importance of timeliness.

   3. Explain Housekeeping Rules and Structure: Clearly communicate the following points to the participants:

      • Participant Focus: Emphasize that everyone is important and will have an opportunity to present. Ensure that the meetup is designed to be efficient, informal, friendly, inclusive, and open to everyone, regardless of where they are on their entrepreneurial journey.

      • Presentation Format: Inform all participants that each person will have one minute to introduce themselves, including sharing their name, occupation, skills they possess, and what they are looking for. Emphasize that timekeeping is essential to benefit the majority of attendees. In the first half of the session, follow a multi-point format where everyone presents to the group. In the second half, facilitate individual follow-ups.

      • Time Management: Clarify that if someone exceeds their allotted minute, you will lead applause to signal that it's time to wrap up. While adhering to the time limit, exercise flexibility by allowing more time for particularly engaging presentations. On the other hand, if someone becomes excessively long-winded, gently interrupt them to remind them of the time constraint. As the host, maintain discipline without being overly authoritative. Though you may state one minute as the standard, allowing up to 90 seconds can be acceptable.

      • Displaying Information: Explain that you will showcase each presenter's LinkedIn profile, project, or business on the screen while they introduce themselves. Ensure you handle this task efficiently to avoid unnecessary delays. If you can't find someone's LinkedIn profile or their web page doesn't appear, ask them to type their own names in. This approach promotes transparency, as it helps validate participants' achievements. A LinkedIn profile on the screen serves as a useful tool to detect potential exaggerations or falsehoods.

   By following these guidelines, you can effectively host the main session of your meetup, creating a structured and engaging environment for all participants.

Other Hosting Tips

Here are some additional tips to enhance your hosting skills:

1. Encourage Participation: Some individuals may feel hesitant to present at the beginning, so point at people and say, "John, please go next." After each presentation, applaud to show appreciation. Positivity is contagious, and adopting this approach helps shape the event's culture. Explain to the audience that during the first half of the session, some people may be shy, but as it progresses, more individuals will volunteer as they realize the limited slots available for presenting to the entire group.

2. Adapt for Smaller Turnouts: For meetings with a smaller number of attendees, ask everyone to introduce themselves and relax the timekeeping aspect. This allows for a more intimate and relaxed atmosphere.

3. Create a Queue: If there are many participants, like in Startup Weekends, ask those who want to present to form a line near you. This speeds up the transition between speakers and maintains a snappy and fast-paced meeting, aligning with your brand and benefiting everyone involved.

4. Provide Feedback: After each presentation, consider giving positive feedback and encourage the audience to give a round of applause. Positivity is infectious, and acknowledging someone's efforts can be motivating. If someone is a student seeking a job, highlight the value of face-to-face networking. It is rare, but if someone presents something questionable, handle it diplomatically. If a participant fails to mention how they can contribute to the gathering, politely inquire about their potential offerings. Addressing this early in the meetup helps establish the desired culture.

5. Utilize Icebreakers: If the meeting's pace feels slow and needs energizing, introduce a 3-4 minute icebreaker activity. Ask everyone to stand, find someone they don't know, introduce themselves, and engage in a conversation topic that sparks interaction for three minutes. Set a clear time limit for the icebreaker and inform participants that you will signal its end, such as by flicking the lights, prompting everyone to return to their seats.

6. Digital Notice Board: Use the Meetup event page or a Google Live Doc as a digital notice board. Inform participants that they can share links to their projects, businesses, mini-introductions, and contact details. This facilitates networking and information exchange beyond the physical event.

7. Recruit Volunteers/Team Members: Always be open to recruiting new volunteers and team members. Keep an eye out for individuals involved in community activities and express your interest in potential collaboration with Open Coffee. Community leaders often make valuable additions to your network and can provide assistance. For more insights on team recruitment and management, refer to a separate blog post or video on the topic.

8. Capture Photos: Take pictures during the event as they can be useful for promotion. Share them on the event page to generate interest and engagement.

Wrapping up the Hosted Session

As the session nears its end, draw everyone's attention to the fact that there are approximately 15 minutes left. Explain that soon, there will be an opportunity for individual follow-ups and that this is the final chance to present to the entire group. When there are five minutes remaining, summarize the key points discussed, express gratitude to the venue, the team, and any sponsors who deserve acknowledgment.
Encourage attendees to spread the word about the event, share positive comments on their social media platforms, and invite others to join the next meetup. Specify the date and time of the upcoming event. Then, announce that the hosted portion of the meeting has concluded and inform everyone that they are welcome to stay until the agreed-upon time with the venue. Emphasize that they are free to engage in conversations with whomever they choose. As a final touch, consider organizing an icebreaker activity. For example, suggest that attendees find someone they don't know, introduce themselves, and discuss the project or person that left the best impression on them. Ending the session with an icebreaker helps retain participants who might otherwise leave immediately.

Post-Event

Once the session concludes, pack up your belongings and adhere to any agreements made with the venue regarding departure time. If there are individuals whom you need to thank in writing, make sure to do so promptly. Create the next event on your event platform, and send out a post event communication to the people who came, thanking them, reminding them with any action items you want them follow.

You can find the accompanying video for this blog post here.