Manley's Blog

Events and Networks I’ve Found Helpful So Far

Over the last several months since we launched our beta for FYIndOut, I’ve done my best to reach out and try various groups and networking events within the Chicago community with the focus on building our network and meeting other Chicago startups. I’m willing to try anything once and I’ve found that some groups and events are better then others for our needs.

I’m not saying that any of the groups or events is bad. I actually think that all are serving a great purpose and helping to build the Chicagoland community but when we go to these events we’re specifically there to learn and/or looking for other Chicago startups or peers in the hopes of being active members of the community and helping as well as receiving help from others. We’re also looking for service providers (lawyers, accountants) that work with startups with the goal of finding the ones that we like and can add value to our business.

Here are the ones that I’ve found beneficial as an entrepreneur:

• Marci Chapman’s Entrepreneur Networking Event: This event is by invite only and strictly for entrepreneurs/founders with the goal of connecting and sharing information, lessons learned, connections with one another. I was recently invited to my first one last week and I met some great people there.
• TECH cocktail (www.techcocktail.com): Most people in the Chicago tech community know of this one. It’s usually held on a quarterly basis in Chicago. Some complain that it’s gotten pretty crowded over the last year but I think that’s a result of the hard work that Eric and Frank have put into growing it in the hopes of building the community. We’ve demo’d at the event and normally use it to catch up with others we haven’t seen in awhile as well as meet new faces.
• Illinois Technology Association CEO, Marketing, & CFO Round Tables (www.illinoistech.org): As an early startup, we find these monthly roundtables very educational most of the time. The association posts the topics of the roundtables ahead of time so you can know if it’s of interest to you or not. Some more established entrepreneurs or employees of SMBs may not find it as valuable but may have a lot to contribute. These events are free to ITA members.
• Social Media Club Chicago: While this isn’t geared towards entrepreneurs, being that our business is involved in social media, we try to attend when the topics are of interest. The team has put together a lot of great topics and speakers over the last few months.

At all of these events, our goal is to not only catch up with those we know but meet at least five or so people that we don’t know. We usually exchange cards and try to set up a lunch, coffee or beers later on so we can get to know the people in a less crowded setting. We’ve been able to meet a lot of great people and startups this way and we plan on continuing the trend. The key is to identify what events and groups add value to you and your business and make the most of them while you’re there. Not attending any events, sitting in the corner, or attending events that don’t help you out professionally in any way results in a lot of missed opportunities for you and your business.