San Diego Steemit Meetup on March 4th

Lots of Pictures

We all know that pictures are worth a thousand words, right? Let's hope so because I am about to show you a whole bunch of them. We had so much fun at the first San Diego Meetup that it is hard to choose which pictures NOT to show you.

So, let's start with the sign.

_{picture by @thisgirl}

Here I am at the rock I had designated as the meeting point. The sign turned out pretty good thanks to my daughter in law's magical letter cutting machine and is now gifted to the SoCalSteemit meetup team.

Here is a fun fact about the rock.

rock flag.jpg

Can you read it? Yes, it was the place where the first US flag was raised - and now - drumroll please....

The First Steemit "Flag"

Well, a flag of sorts and maybe the first in San Diego. But I thought it was funny.

first arrival.jpg

While I was waiting at the rock for new arrivals, the table was set and people started to get to know each other.

Here is @eyedreemit with her husband @marctwang. I was especially excited to meet her since she is one of the freewriters!! Check us out someday if you have time #freewrite

mad & C.jpg

I like this picture because you can see that people were really talking to each other. Lots of hand movements!!

matt arrived.jpg

The one in the red jacket is @mattlovell. He and @creationofcare came from San Bernadino and were stuck in the same traffic jam that turned @csusgeochem's 2-hour trip into a 3-hour ordeal. But they all made it!! Yay!

old friends.jpg

While Matt was filling in the name tags and an attendance sheet, Cat (@creationofcare) and Scott (@dawg-boy) were so happy to see each other again.

Lots and lots of photos were taken, including photos of people - in this case, @dennisauburn - taking photos. The war of the cameras was on!!!

I had to include this picture for two reasons.

Reason number one is our four-legged friend who entertained us by running off, hiding under the table or under the blankets and we played the game: Find the wiener dog. It was fun and he is such a cutie.

The second reason is this. Look at the footwear of Scott. It was a cold day and most of us were freezing. But here he is, barefoot with sandals - and a sweater. That is so typical for California!!

Here is what the rest of us looked like

@thisgirl took the blanket we had brought to sit on and Jill-Joy was smart and brought a warm jacket. She just got her Steemit account approved that day and couldn't remember her Steemit name.

best 2 sign.jpg

Her, @gvkanten and @jeanlucsr joined us from Suriname!!! How cool is that! All three attended a Social Media Marketing conference in San Diego and made it a point to join us before flying off to Miami and San Francisco.

group 3.jpg

Finally, a group photo of all of us!!! We got a person wandering by to take our picture. What we didn't do is pick a good spot to line up. Some faces are hidden in the shade. Sorry about that.

From left to right: group to the left: @mattlovell @dawg-boy @creationofcare
back row: @citizenzero @bxlphabet @jeanlucsr @gvkanten @dennisauburn
middle row: @marctwang @eyedreemit @mariannewest @(it is Jill-joy, we don't know her steemit name yet) @madpotters @thisgirl
front: @csusbgeochem1 @nutinbutdatruth

Some Tips to Create a Successful Meetup

Planning

Make several posts about what you want to do and use your city as a tag
Check your local Meetup listings and see if there is a meetup around crypto already happening and see if you can add to it.
As you make friends on Steemit and you find out that people are from your area, ask them if they are interested in an in-person meetup.
*Create a spreadsheet and add their names to it if they are.
When you create your meetup post, tag all of them and leave a comment on one of their recent posts with the information.
Ask them to help you spread the word.
Check in your discord groups if someone is from your area.
Create a discord group with the purpose to create in person meetups.

Location and Set up

Find a public park or location that is central and can be easily reached by public transportation.
Some groups meet in restaurants. If you choose that option, make sure there are choices available for all income levels.
If you are meeting in a park - include a clear description of the meeting place.
Make a sign and post it in a visible spot.
Offer participants to DM your phone number so they can call you if they can't find the location.
Bring some food - it always helps to break the ice.
Have a sign in sheet so people can stay connected. Ask if they want to meet again.
Have nametags and ask people to put their Steemit name and their real name - if they want to.
If people don't know each other, do an introduction round. Everyone gets some time to talk about themsleves and themselves on Steemit.
Take lots of pictures

After the Meetup

Create a way for participants to stay connected:
Make a post with everyone's name and with pictures of the meetup.
If you have a discord group - upload pictures for everyone to use to make their own posts.
After a couple of days, create a post highlighting the meetup posts of the people who came.
Set a date for the next meetup as soon as possible.
Stay connected.

And it might help if you bribe participants with a gift of organic eggs from your chickens 😂