Redefining community and implementing it at meetings and events.

1. Creating Community in a Covid and
Post-Covid World
@danberger
November 18, 2020

2. @danberger
I’m a believer.
I’m an entrepreneur.
I’m a participant.
I’m a planner.
@danberger
I’m a community organizer.

3. Agenda
1. Belonging
2. Defining ‘community’
3. Measuring community
4. The value of community to business
5. Making communities better
6. Implementing better communities

4. @danberger
@danberger
Where does belonging
come from?

5. @danberger
Community

6. Defining ‘community’
A group of people living in the same place or
having a particular characteristic in common
(Oxford).
A unified body of individuals with common
interests, common characteristic(s), [similar]
professional interests, or [sharing] history or
common social, economic, and political interests
(Webster).

7. It’s a catchall for a group of people with a loose
association… like a neighborhood (“The Upper
West Side”), an affiliation (“world Jewry”), or an
industry (“#eventprofs”).
Its participants have a superficial connection that
lacks something deeper.
The problem with ‘community’

8. @danberger
@danberger
How do we measure community?

9. @danberger
Pre-Covid
Employee engagement has been
on the rise

10. @danberger
Pre-Covid
Employee engagement is the key
to positive business outcomes

11. @danberger
Mid-Covid
Employee engagement is back
to Pre-Covid levels (Gallup)
16% of employees will remain
remote post-covid (HBS)
The work day is 48 minutes
longer (NBER)

12. @danberger
Meetings industry activity 2009-2016
Pre-Covid
The meetings industry has been
growing in terms of participants

13. @danberger
Meetings direct spending over time (2009-2016)
Pre-Covid
The meetings industry has been
growing in terms of spending

14. @danberger
Mid-Covid
In-person events have come to a
halt

15. •Weddings
•Mitzvahs
•Reunions
•Birthdays
•Sports
•Military
•Educational
•Religious
•Fraternal
•Affinity
Groups
•Communities of
interest
•Meetings
•Incentives
•Corporate
•Exhibits
MICE
SocialSMERF
The Meetings/Events construct is incomplete

16. •Weddings
•Mitzvahs
•Reunions
•Birthdays
•Sports
•Military
•Educational
•Religious
•Fraternal
•Affinity
Groups
•Communities of
interest
•Meetings
•Incentives
•Corporate
•Exhibits
MICE Meetups
SocialSMERF
A new Meetings/Events construct

17. @danberger
By 2019, meetup had 3.3M RSVPs
across 250k meetups per month
Total Meetup.com Group joins per week
Pre-Covid
Community events have grown
as people seek connectedness

18. @danberger
Pre-Covid
Faux identity online
communities have been growing
Reddit had 430M MAUs – 30% YoY increase – in 2019

19. @danberger
Pre-Covid
Real identity online communities
have been growing
October, 2018
Facebook Group membership was up 40% in 2018 over
the past year with half of $FB’s user base using Groups
monthly.
14% belonged to a “meaningful Group.” (Forbes)

20. @danberger
Mid-Covid
Over 50% of FB users are
members in five or more active
Groups
77% of FB users say the most
important group they are a part
of now operates online
(Facebook)

21. @danberger
Pre- and Mid-Covid
Neighborliness engagement has
been rising
Nextdoor engagement (Feb-Apr 2020)

22. @danberger
“More Connected, Yet More Alone”
SEPTEMBER 1, 2013

23. Mid-COVID
● Employee engagement ➡
● Meetings industry ⬇ ⬇ ⬇
● Online communities ⬆ ⬆ ⬆
Pre-COVID
● Employee engagement ⬆
● Meetings industry ⬆
● Online communities ⬆
Executive Summary

24. @danberger
● Organizations and individuals have realized the
importance of face-to-face events
● Company events will be viewed as the perks that win
in the war for talent.
● Organizations are going to devote more resources for
employee engagement vis-a-vis events
● Community events will continue to be a growing
segment and new platforms for them will emerge
● There will be new ways of moving online connections
to the real world
Post-Covid
Meetings and events will come
back with a vengeance

25. @danberger
@danberger
Why do communities matter to
business?

26. Social Tables has recruited 25% of its tech
workforce off Meetup. The company has hosted
100+ meetups per year in its space, saving the
company $250k/year in recruiting, sales, and
marketing expenses.
Case Study 1: Cost savings in recruiting & brand
React DC Meetup. Cvent | Social Tables office. October 29, 2019.

27. Atlanta Tech Village hosts 40+ Meetups/year,
generating over $200k/year in sales and
marketing value.
Case Study 2: Cost savings in sales & marketing
Startup Village Meetup. Atlanta Tech Village. October 28, 2019.

28. @danberger
@danberger
How do we make communities
better?

29. @danberger
From ‘community’ to ‘Community’
5 Best Practices for Community Building
@danberger

30. @danberger
@danberger
Hospitality must be a core virtue of
Communities

31. @danberger
@danberger
Members of the Community feel a
true sense of belonging.

32. @danberger
@danberger
The Community feels exclusive to
its members.

33. @danberger
The Community has a set of rituals
everyone partakes in.

34. @danberger
Community-building efforts must
be authentic to the Community

35. @danberger
@danberger
How do we implement
Community best practices?

36. 🤗 Hospitality is a core virtue of Communities.
Everyone is warmly welcomed when they join and are treated with respect by its members.
🏠 Members of the Community feel a true sense of belonging.
There is a feeling of being “at home."
👯 The Community feels exclusive to those that are a part of it.
This does not have to come in lieu of diversity and inclusion so long as they don’t overtake it.
🥳 The Community has a set of rituals everyone partakes in.
This can be as simple as meeting regularly.
💫 Community-building efforts must be authentic to the Community.
Programs and people need to be highly curated and contextualized.
Notes on implementation

37. @danberger
We Are Community Organizers
@danberger

38. web: danjberger.com
social: @danberger
email: dan@danjberger.com
/end

39. @danberger
@danberger
Appendix