About us
👋 Welcome to The Charlotte ETA Group's Monthly Meetup! This group is specifically tailored for anyone in the Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition (ETA) space. It is hosted by The Charlotte ETA Group, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. You can learn more about our organization at our website.
Become a Charter Contributing Member. 100 spots only! Free entry to January Walker Deibel event in January, included.
Wondering if this group is for you?
➡️ Are you an entrepreneur interested in acquiring and running a profitable business?
➡️ Are you an SMB owner looking to scale or sell?
➡️ Do you have expertise on the legal, financial, operational, or transaction side?
➡️ Are you just starting your journey and looking to learn from others?
All are welcome. Join us to discuss all things ETA, share past experiences, and connect with like-minded individuals. This meetup is the perfect platform to network, gain valuable insights, and build lasting relationships in Charlotte's entrepreneurial ecosystem.
As our group has grown, we're excited to begin to host panels, speakers, and more in addition to the networking.
Our Mission: To empower, educate, and promote the entrepreneurial ecosystem for the Charlotte of tomorrow through casual networking, high-quality programming, and practical member education.
*And of course, a huge shout out / hat tip to the Meetup OGs Rand Larsen (@RandBusiness) and Adam Markley (@AdamMarkleySMB) for the inspiration and playbooks to start, nurture, and support this community. There's always a 🍺 for both of you at our meetup, gents!
Upcoming events
1
The LinkedIn Playbook for Searchers and Operators
Noble Smoke, 2216 Freedom Drive, Charlotte, NC, USThe Charlotte ETA Group is fired up to welcome Darren McKee, founder of Darren McKee Co. and 531 Social, for:
"The LinkedIn Playbook for Searchers and Operators"Most searchers send hundreds of messages to business owners.
Cold emails. Mailers. Broker lists.
Then silence.The buyers who get replies look different online. Before an owner answers you, they look you up. What they find either builds trust or kills the conversation.
Darren McKee knows both sides of this. He started out selling HR and payroll solutions to small business owners, knocking on doors and working networking events. When the pandemic shut that down, he turned to LinkedIn and started writing. He hasn't missed a day since: 2,373 straight days of posting, 150K+ followers, and over 100 million impressions. That presence changed his career, and in 2024 he pivoted to teaching it full time. He has now trained 2,500+ executives, founders, and sales teams on turning a LinkedIn presence into real opportunities.
In this session, Darren will share what actually works on LinkedIn right now. How to build a profile that makes owners, investors, and partners take you seriously. How to show up consistently without it eating your life. How trust built online turns into meetings, deal flow, and revenue.
And this part will be fun: Darren will review audience members' LinkedIn profiles live on stage. Bring your profile and some thick skin.
Whether you're a searcher trying to get owners to reply, an operator building your company's reputation, or an advisor growing your practice, you will leave with changes you can make the next morning.
📆 The Charlotte ETA Meetup is held on the first Wednesday of every month. This is suited for those new to Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition or seasoned investors.
We discuss people's past experiences in acquisitions, startups, and the corporate world across various industries.
💪 Collectively, the search community is a powerful one. Both the process of looking for a business and operating one post-acquisition can be an incredibly challenging road.
🤝 Networking, then a discussion with Darren, followed by more networking.
Small Business. Acquisitions. And Entrepreneurship.
27 attendees
Past events
19
