The Internet has provided people with great access to connect with like-minded people to organize meets and local groups. However, there are numerous P2P platforms that provide you with great experience and help you fulfill all your commitments and goals in lesser time. The primary goal of all these advanced platforms is to rejuvenate the local community and help them across the globe self-organize.
The popularity of self-organizing peer-to-peer platforms like MeetUp, CitySocializer, and BigTent has created huge buzz and excitement amongst aspiring entrepreneurs these days. Meetup raised around $18.3 million over 11 years, this platform mainly concentrated on its core service and grew slowly.
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What is MeetUp Exactly?
Meetup is one of the most effective services used to organize online groups that help persons to host in-person events for people having similar interests. This advanced platform was founded by Chief Executive Officer Scott Heiferman in 2002. In 2017 the organization was acquired by WeWork and was sold to AlleyCorp in March 2020.
History of Successful Online Platform MeetUp: Have a Quick Glimpse
This online service started charging a fee to organizers in 2005. Initially, in 2009, Meetup started running hackathons, where employees introduced new features and functionalities which were supported by all their coworkers, the whole website was redesigned in 2013 by professional designers and developers. Meetup had more than 8 million users in 2010, which increased to 25.5 million by the end of 2013.
Meetup successfully acquired a struggling email collaboration company, well known as Dispatch, in 2017. The Meetup was shut down with a DDoS attack by hackers in 2014, the hacker claimed to be funded by their competitor. Later, Meetup successfully developed more than 1,000 #to resist Meetup groups to provide a quick response to the Trump travel ban in 2017, this resulted in causing some Trump supporters to leave the site.
During the same year, Meetup partnered with a labor group to successfully organize anti-Trump protests. Later in late 2017, this online platform was acquired by WeWork for about $156 million. Meetup began to test several pricing models in October 2019, in two U.S. states, which resulted in reducing the costs that must be paid by organizers. They have to pay around $23.99/month or $98.94 for leveraging the platform for six months, but they need to pay about a $2 fee in order to RSVP for particular events that leave the users angry.
Business Model and Revenue Model of MeetUp: Explore Everything About it
Meetup is a subscription business, organizers of Meetup pay a recurring fee to run the group. The pricing totally depends on the duration of the subscription term. This platform efficiently connects sponsors to groups that are new and is growing rapidly in the business market.
Users who want to arrange meets can undoubtedly make use of Meetup, it helps them to arrange interactive sessions among locales and also allows users to find and join their interest basis in no time. The business model of Meetup revolves around people and helps them to gather and share their views on a particular topic. Meetup has successfully received around $18.3 Million worth of funding during the 5 rounds from almost 7 different investors.
This effective and useful online portal follows the subscription-based model. Meetup charges nominal fees from administrators of groups, which cost around $2.99 to $4.99 per month. This cost totally depends on the package which any of the users chooses. This online portal allows organizers to generate money for group subscriptions through its members. The secondary revenue stream of Meetup is to connect the sponsors with the groups.
Meetup has around 49 million registered users, while it has more than 198,300 Meetup groups. This online portal provides its service in more than 180 countries. Numerous Meetups are organized by the organizers on a regular basis, which made the platform earn around 3.6 million monthly RSVPs.
How Meetups Can Benefit You?
Based in New York, Meetup is an online portal that connects people with each other from thousands of cities to share their points of opinion with each other. In simple terms, it can be defined as an online social networking portal that facilitates several group meetings in several localities around the world.
This online platform helps people to find creative communication that revolves around the ideas and activities that matter the most for each of them. These meet groups are usually formed due to common causes and interests like politics, health, careers, hobbies, or any other.
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Later they gather regularly during personal gatherings and discuss their point of interest with each other interestingly. Since the platform was launched, it has had great traffic, it has around 49.95% traffic in the U.S. alone while around 7.95% from the U.K. and rests from other parts of countries where it has established its roots successfully.
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However, Meetup is an advanced platform that proved to be very beneficial for a group of people in numerous ways, such as finding new friends, getting involved with local communities, finding your true love, learning and sharing, and many other formal as well as informal ways. This platform can be considered one of the vital parts of any individual’s life, both people leaving locally and globally.
Meetup Pro
The organization recently launched Meetup Pro for the users, which provides help to Community Managers in scaling up their network and Meetups, which results in improving engagement and building real relationships with numerous people at the local level. It has been developed considering the advanced features that provide commodities with improved visibility, analytics, and data, which proves to be benefiting each and every individual in some or other aspects.
How You Can Join the Meetup Group?
For any of the individuals who want to join the Meetup groups, then you need to make sure they follow some of the steps after receiving a notification for any of the particular groups. Follow the steps given below to join the group you have narrowed down:
- Visit the site www.meetup.com.
- Simply click on the Meetup group.
- Now click on “Join us” on the homepage, which you can view on the Meetup group.
- Don’t avoid answering a few of the profile questions to submit your request for membership to the organizer.
- According to the setting of a particular group, you will be added to the group immediately.
- Meetup group members can make use of messaging platforms to contact each other and can also comment on individual event listings.
- Additionally, after every event, users are notified with an email that allows them to click on “Good to see you” and establish a further connection with other group members.
- Users are allowed to leave the group at their convenience at a given point in time. No one has the authority to ask questions to particular users about why they have left the group!
Besides joining the group, users are also allowed to create their own group by following some of the simple steps. Any of the individuals who creates the group needs to make sure that they provide clear group descriptions in line with their community guidelines.
Once you create your own group, the Community Experience Team will review it to ensure it aligns with their Community Guidelines, and once your group is officially approved, they will announce it with the Meetup interested members nearby and send them an invitation to join the group at the same time. Thus it wouldn’t be wrong to conclude that Meetup is the best and most useful platform, especially for those who aim to expand their network and reach in lesser time.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Is Meetup free to use?
Meetup offers both free and premium membership options. Users can sign up for free and participate in various events and groups. However, a premium membership tier provides additional features and benefits at a subscription cost.
2. How do I create a group on Meetup?
To create a group on Meetup, you must sign up for an account first. Afterward, go to the “Create a Meetup” option on the platform and follow the instructions to set up your group. You must choose a group name, define its purpose and interests, and set the location and visibility options.
3. Can I join multiple groups on Meetup?
Yes, you can join multiple groups on Meetup based on your interests. The platform encourages users to connect with various communities that match their hobbies, skills, or preferences.
4. How are events organized on Meetup?
Group organizers on Meetup schedule events by providing details such as the event’s date, time, location, and a description of what will occur. Members of the group can RSVP to indicate their attendance for the event.
5. Is Meetup safe to use?
Meetup maintains community guidelines and implements safety measures to create a secure environment. However, users must exercise caution and report any inappropriate behavior or content they encounter.
6. What are the benefits of becoming a premium member of Meetup?
Premium members on Meetup enjoy benefits like priority access to events, advanced search filters to find more specific groups and activities, and an ad-free browsing experience on the platform.
7. How does Meetup recommend events to users?
Meetup uses algorithms that analyze a user’s interests, past activities, and group memberships to provide personalized event recommendations. These recommendations appear as notifications or suggestions when users log in to their accounts.
8. Can I create events without being a group organizer on Meetup?
No, currently, only group organizers have the privilege of creating events on Meetup. To create events, you must start your own group centered around a particular interest or activity.