Next Meetup Live event: Join Carrie Melissa Jones for a discussion on Cultivating an offline community online on Tuesday, April 28.
Meetup CEO David Siegel gives an in-depth overview of the current state of Meetup and the future of online events. Plus, a live Q&A session with Meetup organizers.
Main takeaways
- Meetup was founded after 9/11 when Scott Heiferman wanted to capture the spirit of togetherness that arose in communities across New York City. We’re circling back now to ask again, how can we show up for each other online?
- Organizers and members are finding ways to keep their communities connected during this challenging time. You don’t need to run a tech group to host online events. We’re seeing groups of every kind hosting more online events every week.
- Meetup is listening to the needs of the community and we’re adding more tools to help support online events. Some recent additions include:
- Creating repeating online events
- Designating the event’s timezone
- Raising online events to the top of the Meetup app’s search
- Making “Online” the default event setting
- Adding compatibility with more video conferencing services
Top Q&A questions
What is the future of online events at Meetup?
- Our mission is not changing. Our mission is to empower personal growth through real human connections. And as we know the human connections that we have right now are online and the human connections we’re going to have in the future are going to be both online and in person. Read more here.
Will there be an option to search worldwide to participate in online groups and events?
- We’re working on the website and app to give people the ability to search for online events. We’re going to be expanding the visibility of online events so that people can discover these amazing events that are happening all over the world.
Can you provide a roadmap of future changes?
- Yes! Our VP of Product Dan Pardes is hosting a webinar on that subject. Subscribe to the blog for updates.
Will there be a possibility to meet with other organizers to make our groups better?
- Yes, we want to find and create the mechanism to connect organizers to other organizers. Specifically around topics that are similar to each other.
When our city gives the okay for in-person events again, can we start scheduling in-person events?
- Safety first. Every organizer will need to make that decision at their discretion. The world is going to go through a recovery and some individuals need to be the people who lead that recovery. Why can’t it be you? It will be incredibly motivational, building human connection and combating the loneliness crisis people are going through.
Last modified on June 23, 2021
