After a decade of organizing PostgreSQL events & taking part in advocacy activities for the same, I now get asked quite frequently what some tips & tricks are when running a technology meetup, event, or conference. So, this particular article is written as a quick-reference that will focus on ways that you can encourage attendance whether you’re looking to boost it locally or across the globe.

Promoting technological awareness

To start with, take some time to think about your intended target audience and where they might be found.

Are you looking to only target existing users of that particular technology?

Is your goal to also expand the existing user base for that particular technology?
(Pro-tip: it probably should be.)

Social media

Don’t underestimate the power of social media. There’s many channels that you can leverage for promotion - take some time to research and determine which channel might be best for your particular intended audience. Here’s a checklist for quick reference - sometimes, a list like this is helpful for evaluating as many platforms as possible to not miss a particular opportunity. (Note: these are listed in no particular order!)

• Instagram
• Threads
• Tik Tok
• LinkedIn
• Facebook
• Reddit
• Lemmy
• Hacker News
• Mastodon
• Bluesky
• YouTube

And as a quick tip, if you’re sharing the same message across multiple platforms, consider a free tier of a management platform such as Buffer.com or CoSchedule.

Targeting users already interested or involved

Are there any specific advocacy websites for the technology or industry that you’re organizing the meetup for?

For example, with PostgreSQL, you can announce your meetup in a few different ways:

• PostgreSQL mailing lists
• postgresql-contrib.org
• Submit to “Upcoming Events” on postgresql.org
• Post on https://reddit.org/r/postgresql
• Announce on PostgreSQL Telegram or IRC channels
• Publish on PostgreSQL-related groups on Facebook
• Publish on PostgreSQL-related groups on LinkedIn
• Blog about the event and post it to Planet PostgreSQL (or region-specific Planet publications, like Planéte PostgreSQL)

Heck, if there are other events in the area you could always attend and connect with others to spread awareness of your specific technology meetup. Here’s a couple ideas:

• Present on a related subject at a technology conference, and at the beginning during your introduction or at the end mention that you run a technology conference on that subject. Include information on the next scheduled event (date, location, presenter, subject).
• Companies who have local employees may benefit from attending the event if they’re developing with that particular technology. Stop by some vendor booths and start some conversations.
• Participate in alternative sessions such as panels, the hallway track, friends of a feather, or lightning talks to spread the word or start a discussion.

Expanding your reach past the technology itself

Besides posting in the specific channels that pertain to that software, you can also target the software, roles or industries that may apply. For example, for a PostgreSQL meetup you could find channels that pertain to:

Software

• Open source
• Databases
• Programming languages or frameworks (C, C++, R, Rust, Python, Django, Ruby, Elixir, Erlang…)

Roles

• Students
• Application developers
• Data scientists
• Researchers
• Remote workers
• Database administrators

Industries

• Geospatial data, cartography & mapping
• Cryptography
• Finance
• Health
• Government

Putting these categories to good use

Across all of these categories, look for places to engage these users like:

• Community forums (Slack, Discord, IRC, Telegram, etc…)
• Mailing lists
• Newsletters
• Website homepages (is there a community page for events?)
• Groups (on LinkedIn, Facebook)
• Hashtags (especially on Mastodon)
• Reddit

Promoting geographical awareness

Depending on where your event is, you may want to largely encourage local attendance, or your focus could be a little more broadly spread. Here’s some general advice that should help you with ideas.

• Post on the subreddit that’s aligned with where your meetup will be
• Get on meetup.org, eventbrite.com, or other sites that are relevant for your area
• Submit to dev.events, PVS-studio, or other technology event aggregation websites
• Find GitHub repositories or newsletters that list relevant meetups. For example, Tech Talks Weekly is a great newsletter on Substack that lists developer events.
• Look for local tech event aggregation websites, newsletters, etc. For example, in Toronto, you could leverage a site like https://www.techinto.ca/
• Connect with influencers who can promote your event through social media posts or videos
• Reach out to local companies, individuals, career service centers, schools, or universities in the area

To virtualize, or not to virtualize

Have you thought about making it a virtual event to encourage accessibility for others? If not, you can always look for a sponsor to cover a recording of the event. This has several advantages:

• It gives you promotional opportunities. You can cross-post across the speaker(s) profile as well as your own after the event has ended, and encourage users to attend the next one at the same time.
• You’re spreading knowledge for others to benefit from, encouraging more active, engaged, or motivated users of that particular technology. This drives up the potential audience for your event or ensures the longevity of the software you’re invested in.
• Others that could not attend due to scheduling conflicts with work or family, or could not attend due to disability or health-related concerns might be able attend virtually.

But what if this discourages users from attending the event itself?

Make it more rewarding to attend in person.

• Ensure there’s swag (promote actually useful and ideally sustainable options, please) offered from companies that are sponsoring or hosting the event.
• Encourage networking while there.
• Host Q&As, hackathons, or other interactive activities as part of the overall event.
• Offer in-person giveaways for educational resources like books, courses, hardware, or software licenses.
• Make some of the content exclusive to the face-to-face event. For example, invite a keynote speaker and make this opportunity only available for those who come in-person.

But above all else, remember why you’re running the event. More than likely, you’re putting it on because you care about that technology and want to foster some great discussions, opportunities for development, or otherwise make connections. This can be achieved whether the event is:

1. online,
2. put on in person & streamed,
3. put on in person then recorded & posted online, or
4. 100% in person.

Ideally, you want to maximize reach for this kind of end goal - so your best bet is thereby to encourage attendance by as many people as possible. Because of this, my suggestion is always to aim for one of the first 3 options.

Other considerations

It’s always helpful to have the date & location set for your next event (and ideally, the speaker & subject) by the time you are putting on the current event. That way, you can announce at the end to all attendees (and post on social media) this information so plans can be made as soon as possible for those currently interested & invested.

Good luck

Running a technology meetup, event, or conference is often a volunteer-based position. Thank you for what you do! If you have any questions or could use some (free!) advice to help with running, organizing, or promoting your event, reach out anytime on my LinkedIn or contact us here at Talk to Me About Tech.

Are you a technology event organizer with advice, suggestions, or best practices to share that aren’t listed here? Please get in touch at either of the above channels and let me know - I’ll update this article with your advice. Let’s make this guide a great starting resource for anyone looking to host an event of their own.