ANYONE CAN HOST A MEETUP

Here are the steps to follow:

1. PLAN YOUR MEETUP AND GET IT APPROVED
  • Your Meetup should be something that you are passionate about.
  • Think about the “W’s” (who, what, when, where, why, and how (sorry, that’s not a W)). 
  • Fill out the Meetup host form, then you'll be contacted to confirm all the details of your Meetup.
  • You’ll fill out a simple and easy background check (Not required if you’ve filled one out as an OL volunteer).
  • Finally, check out the Host Kit for best practices to help you before, during, and after of your Meetup. 
2. INVITE PEOPLE TO JOIN YOU (THIS IS WHERE WE HELP)
  • Invite anyone you know at Open Life to be a part of your Meetup.
  • Participants will be instructed to RSVP directly with you.
  • Your Meetup will be listed publicly through links found on our website and app, and we will promote any Meetups occurring through a variety of online communication as well as general live announcements about meetups on Sunday mornings at Open Life.
3. PRE-EVENT COMMUNICATION
You’ll remind those who have RSVP’d with you for your Meetup of any pertinent details leading up to the Meetup. (costs, meeting spot, required waivers, etc.)
4. POST-EVENT FOLLOW-UP
  • You can use the email follow-up template included in your Host Kit to thank people for participating, collect any photos and video, and hear about their experience. 
  • From there, you can invite them to future Meetups, invite them to be a part of your group (if you’re a part of one), and encourage them to connect with you on Sunday at Open Life.
READY TO HOST? SUBMIT YOUR MEETUP APPLICATION
Check out the Host Kit to guide your next steps

For more info, check out the Meetup FAQ.

MeetUp Host Kit

Your Meetup is your event, but everyone here at Open Life wants to ensure that your Meetup is as successful as it can be. Here is a timeline based upon the date of your Meetup that can help you best plan and prepare and make sure that your Meetup goes off without a hitch.

ONE MONTH BEFORE YOUR MEETUP

  • Fill out the Host a Meetup form with all of the details for your event.
  • We will post your event on our Meetup page with all the information that people who are interested will need to know. 

TWO TO FOUR WEEKS BEFORE YOUR MEETUP

Start Inviting People
  • Don’t forget to personally invite people to your Meetup. 
  • Give people a call, use social media to point people to your Meetup, or shoot them a text. 
  • If you’re part of a Group, invite them to your Meetup and encourage them to invite their friends along as well. 
  • Your Meetup will also be publicly communicated on the Meetups webpage, the Open Life Church app, and in general announcements about Meetups during Sunday mornings at Open Life.
Plan out Contingencies
Does your Meetup rely on outside circumstances such as weather or minimum participation in order to be successful? If so, make an agenda for the day of and communicate any contingencies to those that have signed up for your Meetup.

Manage your RSVPs
  • Open Lifers will be instructed to RSVP, by email or text message, with you directly to participate in your Meet-up. They will not register with Open Life.
  • Be sure to personally welcome people by responding to their RSVP. 
  • If your Meetup has a maximum number of people that can’t be exceeded, be sure to notify jadonh@openlife.church, so that we can stop promoting the group publicly and avoid the situation of someone RSVPing who won’t be able to participate.

TWO DAYS BEFORE YOUR MEETUP

Check-in with those who have signed up
Send out a personal email and/or text to those who will be attending your Meetup reminding them of all the important details they need to know to participate in your Meetup. Think of things that apply to your Meetup like meeting place, cost, how long the event will take, a link to a waiver form (if required), and the agenda of the event.
Need to Cancel?
  • If the number of people who have signed up doesn’t reach the minimum needed, or if weather or plans change due to unforeseen circumstances, you have the freedom to cancel your Meetup at any point.
  • Make sure you let those who have RSVPd know ahead of time, and email jadonh@openlife.church if you need to remove your Meetup from the website/app listing.

DAY OF YOUR MEETUP

Arrive Early
Make sure you are the first one there so that you can welcome people and avoid any confusion.
Stay Safe
Encourage everyone to have a ton of fun, but to do so in a responsible manner that does not put themselves or anyone else into harm's way.
Listen for Stories
  • These aren’t just random people that have gotten together. 
  • They are your friends you invited or those you have a connection with you through Open Life. 
  • Get to know each other and hear about the things going on in their lives. 
Capture the Moments
Take pictures and/or video at your Meetup and at the very least try and get a group picture of everyone who attended your Meetup. 
Decide if you want to do this again
During your Meetup think about if you want to make it a recurring event, if it’s not already, and discuss and/or communicate any future Meetup dates.

THE WEEK AFTER YOUR MEETUP

Gather Stories
Send any photos or videos you’d like to share to jadonh@openlife.church with a couple sentences explaining how much fun you had. We’d love to share this with the rest of Open Life to encourage them to get involved in Meetups.
Send a Follow Up Email
(Email Template: this is a start, so make sure you put it in your own words):

Hello (PARTICIPANT),

I wanted to reach out and thank you for being a part of (YOUR MEETUP) this past (SATURDAY). I had a blast and hope you did as well. If you took any photos or video that you wouldn’t mind sharing with others at Open Life, please send those to jadonh@openlife.church with a sentence or two about your experience. This will help others at OL sign up and be a part of a future Meetup.

I also wanted to see how your experience was, is there anything we should try in the future? I would love to hear your thoughts. Now that you’ve been a part of this Meetup, I’d want to invite you to communicate through (YOUR COMMUNICATION METHOD OF CHOICE), this will make it easier for you to be a part of the Meetup in the future. The next time we’ll be meeting up will be on (THE DATE OF YOUR NEXT MEETUP), be looking for communication on that as we approach that date.

Finally, if you had a great time at this Meetup, then you’d probably really enjoy being a part of a group at Open Life. I want to encourage you to check out all the groups that Open Life has to offer and see if you think something might fit for you and your family. You can find them all at: https://openlife.church/groups.

Thanks so much,
(YOUR NAME)
Update your Meetup Listing
Finally, If you need to edit your Meetup’s description or picture for the future, send any updates to jadonh@openlife.church.

Meetups at Open Life

Meetup Calendar
What are meetups?
FAQ
Questions