Events are one of the best ways to create hype for your community because they add value AND help your community members connect to each other.

This article will cover the kinds of events you can host, how to plan them, and how you can use Nas.io features to make your event a success people will be talking about for ages!

What are Events?

Online Events

In-Person Events

There are events, and then there are Events. The With An E Events are our feature on Nas.io... basically everything you'll find on your Nas.io community manager portal: creation, invites, links.

This article covers the small e events: what communities small and big use to bring people together. Figuring out how to do that is a bit of a process (we should know... every embarrassing thing that can happen did happen), so we put together our learnings so you don't have to make some of the cringey mistakes we did in our early days.

There are two main kinds of events: online and offline. One isn't better than the other... They're just used for different kinds of communities. In-person events make sense if your community members live in the same city. If you all live all over the world, online events are probably more accessible.

No matter what you go with, events provide value. And, while they're not effortless, they're definitely less work than, say, creating an online course with 30 hours of video and resources.

Events provide value in so many ways, from giving your community a human face (less creepy than it sounds) and giving your community members the opportunity to feel heard, to creating experiences and memories that will leave a mark on the culture of the community you're building.

And there are very few things that do that as well as events. So let's look at some ideas!

We recommend using Zoom for your online events while using Nas.io. Here are some ideas for online events that have worked for us.

Launch Parties

These are a ton of fun and what better way to celebrate the launch of your community than with a party 🎉 Grab some virtual snacks, create a killer playlist, and put your design skills to the test with some custom Zoom backgrounds.

Workshops

Zoom has come a long way and is capable of things that were unheard of even just 5 years ago. Virtual workshops work for groups small and large thanks to innovations in online meeting tech. Split your workshop into breakout rooms for smaller discussions, share your screen to give presentations, or collaborate in groups using apps like FigJam.

Game/Movie Nights

Bonding sessions are a great opportunity to make connections with your community and it's even easier when everyone is having fun. Schedule these at consistent time slots (such as weekly or bimonthly) to create anticipation and will help fit into your community members' calendars more easily. And, if you get stuck for ideas on what movie to stream or what games to play, set up a poll and let your community decide!

Fireside Chats

The power of sitting down for a nice chat is really underrated. Without any pressure to give valuable contribution and let the conversation wander, this might just be the perfect time to coax the lurkers and shy members of your community out of their shells. Come with a couple of topics to talk about to get the conversation started, and then see where it goes from there.

Set up your in-person event and send your invites using Nas.io. Your invitation will be sent to your community members, who will also be able to view your event's page for details.

Coffee Shops

Coffee shop meetups have been a staple since that one iconic group of FRIENDS graced our screens oh so long ago. Meet at your basic Starbucks, or go crazy and pick a local artisanal coffee place that grinds their own beans straight from the misty mountains of Rwanda. Whichever, we don't judge!

Coffee shops have the advantage of being casual with comfortable seating and provides the perfect ambience for chatting and getting to know people, especially those you've already met online.

Picnic Meetup

More elaborate than a coffee shop event but still casual and fun, picnics are great to enjoy nature and make connections.

Themed Activity

We can't get too specific here because this depends on the theme of your community, but create an in-person event around what your community is about. Is your community about fitness? Join a half-marathon as a group. Gamers? Organize a LAN session. Art and history? Visit a local art museum. The possibilities are endless.

So, now that you have a bunch of inspo, head on over to our walkthrough of how you can setup your own event on Nas.io!

We hope this helps you create some exciting events of your own! If you're stuck for inspiration on events you can host, head over to our guide on Event Ideas, or message us on the Chat in the corner and we'll get back to you as soon as possible :)

Happy building!