As a Meetup Organizer, ever thought to yourself, “I wish more people knew that I have this super-fantastic Meetup group”? Never fear - even if you’re not able to grab a spot on a popular late night talk show to shamelessly plug your Meetup group, there are a lot of great tools in the Promote section of your Meetup group. You can get there by clicking “Promote!” on the left side of your Meetup group's Our Home page.
This guide is here to tell you how you can:
• Promote Your Meetup Group Online
• Take The Promotions Offline Using the Meetup Shop
Promote Your Meetup Group Online!
Waiting Lists
Waiting Lists show anyone in your area waiting for a Meetup group to
start! 72 hours after you start a Meetup group, all of these interested
people are sent an email inviting them to join it. While this automatic
invitation is great to spread the word about a new Meetup group,
nothing beats a personal invitation! You can send an email to all
Waiting List members by clicking “Invite Meetup members” in the Promote
section. If they’ve mentioned something specific in their profile, why
not get them involved?
Want to know more? Check out this article:
Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about Waiting Lists
Invite Friends
If you or your members know someone who would enjoy being a part of
your Meetup group, you can send an official invitation email from
Meetup using the "Invite Friends" tool. Just click “Invite friends to
your Meetup group” in the Promote section. You can enter up to 10 of
your friends' email addresses and a write personalized message inviting
them to join your Meetup group.
Craigslist Invitation Tool
The Craigslist tool lets you post your next Meetup to the free
community website, Craigslist. This helps you get the word out to
people who haven't yet discovered Meetup! Just click “Post Meetups on
Craigslist” and you’ll be given the steps you need to post your Meetups!
Need step by step instructions? Check out Promote Your Next Meetup on Craigslist
Online Badges
There are a number of Meetup badges that can be posted on your blog,
MySpace or website to recruit members to your Meetup group or to Meetup
in general. You can add a badge that links to your Meetup groups or
that lets people see what Meetup groups are in their town! Just click
“Meetup badge” to add one.
Great Meetups Create Word of Mouth Promotion
Nestor, the
Organizer of 3 successful NYC Meetups, says that best way to recruit
new members is "to have great meetings. If someone has a great
experience at one of your meetings, they’ll tell their friends all
about what a great time they had!"
Take Advantage of Public Venues
One of the best places to recruit new members is at your next Meetup.
Public venues are full of people who might be looking for a Meetup
group like yours. If you’re hosting a snowboarding Meetup at a ski
slope, for instance, there are probably tons of snowboarders who’d want
to be in your Meetup group if they only knew it existed and how to
join! Make sure that any onlookers know that your Meetup group is
there. Wear your Meetup group’s t-shirt, have a sign-in table, make a
sign, or provide name badges to all your members so that any passersby
will be compelled to stop and say, “Tell me about what you guys are
doing!”
Take it offline using the Meetup Shop!
Print Your Own Promotional Materials
You can print your own business cards, table-tents, take-ones, posters,
etc. at home using Meetup.com templates. These are great handouts for
members who attend the Meetups, venues that you might be interested in
using for upcoming Meetups, and generally spreading the word.
Want to see other ideas? Check out Make Your Own Customized Signs, Flyers, and Business Cards and Group Promotional Materials
Customize and Purchase Premium Promotional Materials
You can get cool business cards, table tents, letterhead, and
invitations using Meetup templates on VistaPrint. It doesn’t take much
time to fill out the simple forms to add text to your print materials
and order up a bunch for your Meetup group. Check out this great
business card that Medina, of the Miami Bellydance Meetup, created:
Once you’ve created your business cards, t-shirts, flyers, and other marketing materials, you can use them to create awareness about your Meetup group and attract new members. Post flyers at the local coffee shop. Hand out business cards to people who might be interested in your Meetup group. Leave some of those cards with a local shopkeeper or restaurant. Keep some invitations on you, and hand them out to prospective members to invite them to your next Meetup.
RoninCSprings of the Myrtle Beach Friends Meetup used Meetup materials to recruit in fantastic ways:
I got one of those free apartment rent books you see at a restaurants and grocery stores and hit about a total of 31 apartments (not including the ones I hit twice) including 2 coffee shops along the way in the last month or so. I believe I increased membership in my singles group up from 30-40 members. I also carry around some business cards and hand them out when I go to bars and class. We're now the largest singles Meetup group in my state! We're also the largest Meetup group in my city! Now that we hit triple digits, folks from other meet-up sites in our city/state have taken noticed and are starting to flock to us.
You can also check out the Organizers’ Forum for more ideas:
Customize Your Own Items
You can create personalized t-shirts, buttons, signs, hats, etc. using
Meetup templates on Zazzle.com by clicking “Your Meetup Shop” in your
Promote section. You can customize your Meetup group’s gear any way you
like. Change the logo, pick colors and sizes, and even offer your
masterpiece to other members in your Meetup group.
You can also create items using the Meetup logos 
Want to use a different site or create items yourself? Then the logos are the way to go. Just look at what you can do. Anita from the Seattle Weblogger Meetup shared this inspired creation:
All of these great tools are located in the Promote! section of your Meetup group.
