Valley PR Blog

Should Phoenix start “hotpavement”?

By Linda VandeVrede on December 22nd, 2009 In Professional Development

What’s the best kind of networking event that Phoenix could sustain on a long-term basis? Can we take cues from other cities, like Seattle? I had coffee this week with Brian Seitz (twitter @brianseitz), who works for Microsoft in Redmond. He helped form a networking group for communication pros in Seattle called www.coldpavement.com, and comes to the Valley occasionally to visit his in-laws. We started comparing notes about Seattle vs. Phoenix.

What he’s found with the networking group is that people in Seattle (Seattleites?) aren’t that much different from Phoenicians in that they are located in pockets all around the city, and travelling can be a hassle. Also, some of the new communication pros are intimidated by older pros and can’t always afford the $25 event fees, so ColdPavement was started as a free, no-frills meetup service to connect everyone at rotating venues throughout the city.

It’s sort of a cross between the PRSA meetings and the Social Media Club meetings, without the fees and without the large, impersonal attendee numbers. Average attendance is from 10-55 people, Brian said. With so many people out of work now, the event has become part of the networking circuit. The description on the website reads, “Networking with fellow professionals shouldn’t be difficult or expensive. With us it’s not. All we ask is you pay your own tab.”

He mentioned some ideas they’re tossing around, like an Open Mike night where people can stand up and talk about anything they want (like the IgnitePhoenix format). I get a lot out of different-sized events, such as the bi-annual www.socialmediaaz.org, and the small, monthly intimate groups, such as PRSA’s master practitioners.

Is Phoenix doing it right, or do we need to try something different?

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We have about ten different meetup groups and none charge. Is it really time for another one?

I’m not really feeling the need for this, since that’s exactly what I do twice a month with the AZ Independents’ PR Alliance. But, I do love the concept: an easy, inexpensive way for people to connect in person. It’s critical for building “high-touch” relationships and making meaningful connections in this high-tech world.

I wonder – it makes me think that, just as communications vehicles have evolved from “mass” media to hundreds of segmented media, our ad hoc groups have as well. That leaves room for all sorts of meetup groups to cater to individual needs.

I like the name though – if the community that extends between PRSA and Social Media Club is not being served, maybe have one of them sponsor a HotPavement event and see how the turnout goes.

I’m with Tyler. There are many free meet/tweet-ups and they’re terrific.

And excuse my skepticism but why does someone from Seattle feel the need to colonize in Phoenix? What’s the real motive? I’m friendly to everyone and a “more the merrier” kind of guy but underneath is it a way for an out-of-town opportunist to build a name for himself and aggregate contacts for a “sell” down the line?

Whoa, Dan, didn’t mean for my post to sound like Brian is poaching on Phoenix. You’re sounding way too suspicious! He isn’t trying to colonize. I always like to meet w/ communication pros from other cities to compare notes. Sometimes I feel landlocked here in Arizona.

I like having lots of opportunities to meet peope yet I agree with Ann. I think PRSA has done a great job with variety of options. Like steve I do apgree it is a cute name

IABC Phoenix also started free, small networking events for members hosted in different locations around the Valley this past fall. Similar reasons – we wanted our members to have a free opportunity to network in smaller groups and not have to travel across the Valley to get there. The chapter even picks up the appetizers; attendees only have to pay for their own drinks.

I initially thought that if people aren’t aware of these small, free meetups, maybe there’s an opportunity to better publicize them.
But the beauty of groups like Ann Videan’s Az Independent PR Alliance or Kim Stearn’s Commpose is the small, intimate group size that allows for real interaction beyond just a series of elevator pitches. More publicity and more people might work against us.

Networking outside of the usual PR gatherings can provide value as well. The Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) does a free After Deadline monthly event (and we even provide FREE FOOD!). We have found that many PR professionals (and marketing / general business professionals) have come for our discussions. Recently we had several PR people join our organization because of all the programming they receive.

Hey gang! I promise I am not colonizing, looking for new gig or starting my own commune. As Linda said, I like to meet other smart PR peeps whenever I can and I am in the area quite a bit so, hey figured I would get started.

The Cold Pavement events were just a small part of what we talked about, as an example of comms and tech professionals self organizing for a common good, hanging out. :O)

I was a big PRSSA person in school and have been active in our local PRSA chapter in the Puget Sound for a long time. I have also attended my share of SMC Seattle events. The idea behind Cold Pavement is not to compete with anything else going on. It’s also not the goal to poach people from other groups. I have found we attract some of the same people but we also have lots of great people that would never go to a PRSA event. The more connections we make with people in different positions from different backgrounds, the stronger the network becomes. When I ask for help on Twitter, I don’t want all my followers to be like me. I need alternative points of view. That is what I love about the group.

If there is an event happening in the next few weeks that I should attend, let me know. I would love to meet some of you. No agenda, no promises. :O)

Hi everyone,

Love to chime in here as co-founder of Cold Pavement in Seattle. Brian and I met at a PRSA event, and as he said we’re both very involved in the Puget Sound PRSA, and I even served as a national officer for PRSSA while I was in school.

Seattle has a number of meetup groups, too, but what I love about Cold Pavement (and while I’m certainly biased), as Brian said it’s a way to connect with people from all different walks of life. We’ve had Tech, Web Designers/Developers, Marketers, Producers, Communications folks, PR flacks, and Social Media Strategists attend. Very different fields, but that just makes the conversations much richer.

It’s been a great thing in our community, but you know better what will work in yours. Best of luck!

Hey all, I’ve gone to several of the Cold Pavement things. I just wanted to say that part of what makes them great is we’re actually not all out there thrusting business cards at each other like it’s last call.

Now, what is a point of question is just how saturated is the “meetup market” (not totally unlike the “meat market”) and can the group support it. In Seattle, we have all the PRSA, WOMMA and countless other acronyms. In fact, I’m on the board of our Social Media Club (12 consecutive sold out events, the last had more than 250 people attend). What I can say is that what I go to Cold Pavement for is a slightly less-formal setting to connect with great people.

For what it’s worth, this is one of the funniest comment threads I’ve read in weeks.

Thanks, Peter

Hey Brian,

I think your group is great, it is always nice to know what other communities are doing. Don’t get me wrong, AZ has tons of great networking groups (small to large), however it doesn’t hurt to meet new people.

Kudos to you and your passion for connecting with others!

Besides Shankman’s comment (which is true), CP is solid and should not be looked at as some insidious organization (although insidious and PR often go hand in hand .
I would welcome it in NY anytime.

One problem most groups/meetups face is that they have no outcome, no goals and really no reason for existing beyond the social aspect.

I hope that the groups that exist purely to exist are honest with what they are (social opportunities) and what they are not (places to actually accomplish SOMETHING).

We have meetups nearly every day of the week and most, if not all, are free. Hell, http://phoenixfridaynight.com meets in four distinct locations nearly every Friday and is open to all professions, ages and cultures.

You also have sites like http://eventification.com that are attempting to establish a one-size-fits-all database of local recurring events.

Want to start your own group? Great, but get involved in others first so you can determine if it actually needs to exist.

Personally I’d rather see people get involved and help shape the many events we already have than making new ones. Reading this post, I don’t see anything really unique being proposed.

Don’t we have Jon Talton?

Wow – thanks everyone for weighing in. Tyler – thanks for the tip about eventification. It would be nice to go to one place to see all the meetups that are happening here.
I belong to a number of organizations that have a “mission” or “cause,” and I drive a fairly long way to get to them. The social side of me is looking for more meetups closer to home (Scottsdale) that are mission-free. I work from home, don’t want to be on any more committees, no desire to hawk for business, and truly get my thrills out of meeting up with different kinds of people, preferably over a good martini.
Phoenix is definitely an area of a lot of transplants who are looking for more ways to connect face to face. I personally see a lot of room for numerous meetup groups all over the Valley. No matter how scintinallting a group might be, I’m lazy and hate battling traffic to Tempe, downtown Phoenix, Glendale, etc. I’m not able to sit that long, anyway, without pain.
So maybe in 2010 I’ll initiate a few tweetups for like-minded people in Scottsdale who just want to have a drink or two and discuss life. Anybody with me?

Tyler,

Whether an event “needs to exist” or not is really a matter for the market to determine. If it doesn’t “need” to exist, people won’t show up. It’s as simple as that. I don’t agree that one needs to be careful before starting a meetup in case theirs overlaps other meetups like it’s some zero-sum game here.

People will show up and, if they like what they see, continue to show up and contribute. Whether or not it’s “needed” doesn’t really matter—again, if no one shows up, it’s safe to assume it wasn’t needed. If the organizer wants to start what might be considered a “rival”, “superfluous”, or “unnecessary” event, then the community will vote with their feet and he’ll feel a bit silly if it doesn’t work out.

And people like you can say “told ya so”. No need to kneecap them out of the gate because you think the need is already being sufficiently met, though.

–Chris Cardinal

Chris-

Everyone constantly doing their own thing without regard for anything else seems wasteful to me. Wouldn’t it be a bit more prudent for a newcomer to the area to get involved first?

And I didn’t kneecap them. If my fairly benign commentary either a) convinces them not to even try or b) encourages them to get involved first, then, to the former, they must not have wanted it too badly and, to the latter, I’ve help in exposing them to the people who are already here.

Nothing wrong with a little criticism and I in no way kneecapped their ability to do anything. What’s wrong with expecting a little quality over quantity here?

PS…why are you using quotation marks around rivals, superfluous and unnecessary? Are they quotes? Were you being sarcastic? I can’t tell.

[...] might have read this article from Valley PR Blog late last year as his club was mentioned. Brian and his partner Jessica started [...]

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