Building a communityGill Cleeren@gillcleeren

Hi, I’m Gill!Gill CleerenMVP and Regional Director.NET Architect @ OrdinaTrainer & speaker

@gillcleeren

gill@snowball.be

Watch my Pluralsight courses!

• Windows 8• MVVM• Social & community

• Available via www.pluralsight.com/author/gill-cleeren

Agenda

• What’s a user group and why would I want one?• Creating your user group• Organizing events for your user group• Building your community

What’s a user group and why would I want one?

“”

A users' group (also user's group or user group) is a type of club focused on the use of a particular technology, usually (but not always) computer-related.

Wikipedia

What’s a User Group?

• Group of people• Shared interests or concerns• Gather for meetings • Knowledge sharing• Often in same location (city/country)• Often technology driven, linked to a vendor• First known user groups date back to mainframe period (1955)• Evolved strongly in 70s and 80s

• Can be a career boost!

What’s a Good User Group?

Put the community first

Clear and unique goal

Be consistent and informative

Treat your volunteers well

Be a source for education

Go for returning attendees

Open for suggestions

Why Do I Want a User Group?

• Community. Community. Community.• Don’t put yourself in the first place• It probably won’t get you a higher salary• Create a circle of friends in technology

• “I have things to share”• “I’m a great speaker”• “I know everything about XYZ”• A sense of initiative and persistence can get you a long way

Will People Join My User Group?

Fun?

Need?Goal?

Interesting topics?

Schedule?

Sharing experiences? Offer benefits?

Location?

Social aspect?

Job options?

Offer people a chance to connect with companies?

Free?

Free goodies?

Meeting experts?

Allow attendees to speak up?

YES

Oh and pizza?

Types of User Groups

• Offline (aka in the real world)• Online (aka in the virtual world)

I’m ready. I want one of those user group things!

“OK, here’s my checklist I suggest you follow!”

Step 1: What will be your focus?

• Best to focus on a technology or product• .NET• Java• Visual Studio

• Narrow down to avoid overlap• Visual Studio• Silverlight• Windows 8• Eclipse

• Check out other user groups (description and agenda) in the area

Step 2: Finding a Name for Your Group• Link to your technology/location

• Belgium .NET user group • New York Java user group

• Use an abbreviation• Alternative: use a name generator

• Check if you name isn’t registered • At least locally

• Create the domain• Website• Mailing• Use a cheap but reliable registrar

Step 3: Creating Your Visuals

• Choose a theme• Colours• Logo

• This theme can be used• On your site• In a PowerPoint template• In business cards• In your mail footer

Step 4: Creating a Website

• Your website is the entry portal to your user group• Events• Members• Board• Sponsors• Forum

• Don’t waste resources• Use an existing platform

• WordPress is a great place to start• Sponsored alternatives

• Alternative: Meetup.com• Ready-made• Targeted at communities

DEMOUsing Meetup.com

Step 5: Creating a Board

• Don’t run your user group all by yourself!• Use volunteers

• Finding volunteers• People you know and trust• Explain what the user group goal is• Send out a mailing• Give your volunteers credit for their work

Step 5: Creating a Board

• You’ll end up with a fixed set of people• Create a number of functions• Don’t create a large board• Listen to your board!

Step 6: Money, Money, Money…

• You will probably need money along the way• Depends on the model you want to achieve

• Money will be necessary for• Food and drinks• Venue rent• Beamer/screen rent/purchase• Camera/screen recording software• Travel costs and hotel for the speaker• Prizes• Paid speakers (not recommended)

• Sponsorship is key here

Sponsorship

• Talk with companies – large and small• Attendees• Speakers• Your own network

• Perhaps Microsoft, Adobe, Apple (local subs) can help out as well• Venue, food, drinks…

• Sponsorship might not be needed immediately

Possible Types of SponsorsSoftware companies

Consultancy companies

Hosting companies

Training companies

Hardware vendors

Publishers

Non-technical

Why Would a Company Sponsor You?• A possible sponsor will need all the information about your group• Create an elevator pitch and a “What’s in it for you”document

• Put in extra benefits for the company• Be careful for recruiting actions!

• Feedback is important for sponsors• Metrics, not personal data

• A yearly meeting with all your sponsors is often appreciated

The always-difficult question: member fees• Some user groups have a member fee• Often annual• Free trial (free-to-attend events for new members)• Per-session fee

• Try keeping it free• Different expectations

Organizing events for your user group

Event Types

• “Regular” talks• 2 Sessions in a row• Panel discussion• Study groups• Hackathon• Code camp• Social events• Conference

Regular Talks

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Regular Talks

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Speakers

• Speakers don’t have to be the top-level• Local speakers are perfect for user groups• Your user group is a platform for aspiring speakers

• Can be a trigger to dive into a topic• Speakers don’t have to know everything about the subject

• Organize dry-runs or even a speaker academy• “Speaker Idol”

• Gather feedback and pass this to the speaker

Where Do I Find Speakers?

• Locally• Attendees in your user group events• In your own company• In the companies that sponsor you• The local “hub” for your technology• “Influencers”• Conferences• User group associations• Other user groups• Training companies• Book authors / Pluralsight authors

Where Do I Find Speakers?

• Global• Conferences• Just contact the speaker• Local hub can help to get bigger names• International companies can sponsor

• Remote• Virtual sessions

• Lync• Skype• Cheaper but less interactive

Regular Talks

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Requirements of the Location

• Initially: free• Offices and company meeting rooms• Schools and universities• Bars with small backroom• Community buildings

• Easy to reach• Power and internet• Technical requirements

• Video: screen, beamer, connections such as VGA or HDMI• Audio: microphone (depending on number of attendees and room)

• Good visibility of the presentation

Regular Talks

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Before the Event

• Match the speaker agenda with the location schedule• Obtain clear session abstract and speaker bio

• Optionally, learning goals, intended audience, session level

• Announce the event on your site• At least 3 weeks in advance• Location: provide clear instructions and a map

• Send out newsletter• Ask your hub to promote your event in their newsletters• Connect with other user groups for promotion purposes• Find a small speaker gift• Order the pizza!

At the Event

• Don’t forget the speaker!• Be there in time• Test the setup

• Beamer• Microphone• Font

• Introduce the talk• Emergency exits• Other practical information

• Provide an overview of upcoming sessions• Introduce the session and the speaker

PrizesPeople love free stuff!

Many companies have great things to share

Things to give away

Licenses and software

Hardware

Other: lanyards, stress balls, shirts

After the Event

• Send out post-event summary to all that registered• Repeat your upcoming sessions

• Upload slides and demos on your site• Upload video

• Send feedback to speaker• Important for improving the speaker skills and your organizational talent

Building your community

Increasing Your Reach

• A user group == a community• A good user group involves its members and sponsors• Involved members will feel more welcome• Bring in new members• Grow the community

• Events are only part of the job• You’ll need to reach your users on other days as well!

• Creating a (online) community around the user group is vital

Creating a CommunityWebsite

Registration system

Mailing list

Social media

Survey tools

Broadcasting

Apps

Creating a Site for Your User Group

• Your site should include:• Clear definition of what the user group stands for• Pitch on why people should join• Board overview• Sponsor overview• Agenda

• Description of each upcoming event with details• List of passed events and recorded sessions• Links to social media and Twitter feed• Easy registration!

Using Eventbrite for event registrations• Online ticketing service• Can be used stand-alone or integrated into your site• Allows planning of events• Additional advantages• Attendees can print their badge• Apps for scanning badges • Promotion platform is included• Easy to integrate with social media

DEMOUsing Eventbrite

Mailings

• Old-fashioned mail marketing is a great way to spread news in your community• Create regular (monthly) newsletters• Professional-looking (HTML) mails are best• Don’t use your mail client• Never use CC

MailChimp

• Mail marketing tool• Offers• Template editor

• Easy to personalize• Import and export users• Reporting and analytics included• Scheduled sending

• Free for “Entrepreneur”

DEMOUsing MailChimp

Embracing Social Media

• A site is still static• Doesn’t always encourage people to register

• Social media is the missing link• Faster to respond to questions from your community

• Requires someone who monitors the accounts

Embracing Social Media

Twitter Flickr LinkedIn

Pinterest Facebook SlideShare …

YouTube

Surveys and feedback

• You want to give your users what they like• Capturing feedback is the best way to do this

• Polls can be used to propose options• Topics• Speakers

• Feedback captures impressions about the events• Speaker• Location• Food

• Can be integrated in your site or used stand-alone• Instant.ly is often used

DEMO

Using Instant.ly

Summary

• Running a user group is hard work but also great fun• Once you get started, it’s hard to let go!