Why did we build the biggest meetup in the Ruhr Valley?

Every month we are bringing people together to spend an evening in our Setlog office in Bochum: To have some food, some drinks, to network and to listen to an expert talk about their topic of passion. We have been organizing these meetup events under the name "Digital Innovation Ruhr" for the past 3 years. However, it has been a long time since we saw these meetups as just another event series. Instead we pretty much knew early on that we want to build a true community behind DIR. So we did it.

The first thing that we did, was build its own brand for Digital Innovation Ruhr and keep it relatively independent from Setlog. This gave us the opportunity to explore other topics that might eventually be interesting for our daily business but are not necessarily tied into it. We established DIR as its own brand, with its own image and its own network. That does not mean that it is completely separated from Setlog or that Setlog does not enjoy the benefits of DIR.

There were many steps that we took, in order to make DIR into what it is now. The main reason why it is not any other event that a company in any random city is organizing, is the approach to treat it as its own community. I am gladly going deeper into detail on what that exactly means in an other post.

To keep it short: A community needs a different approach than "just" an event. It needs a different style of organizing and interaction. What started as an idea to bring people together and to add value to our business, is now so much more. In the past three years, we went from being one meetup in between many others to becoming a well-known name on the market. We've built a well-functioning, healthy community, doubled our membership in the last year alone and are averaging at a whooping 100 RSVP's per event. Recently, we broke every record we had so far. Not only did we reach 2000 members but with the meetup about the "acceleration of the football industry due to cooperations with tech startups" on February 19th, we also had our highest number of attendees. 100 people came to Bochum that evening and listened to a talk by Simon Mayr, Head of Digital at Borussia Dortmund.

Since 2019, we are holding the title as the biggest meetup community in the Ruhr Valley. It goes without saying that building this does not happen without hard work and lots of effort. Yes, our organization team, consisting of my two colleagues Simone, Bea and me, are spending lots of time and are working hard on building this community next to our everyday tasks at Setlog.

We are frequently asked why we spend so much time, effort as well as money to organize a new event every month.

So...why did we build Digital Innovation Ruhr?

The reasons for this are as varied and colorful as our meetups themselves.

The vibrant Ruhr Valley

In recent years, innovative companies, new start-ups and technological developments have made the Ruhr Valley a driving force for the industry. While a few years earlier, young people in particular fled from this very place to find happiness elsewhere, they are now founding the companies they would like to work for right in the heart of the “Pott”. When I myself finished university and was looking for opportunities to built my career in this area, it became painfully obvious that my beloved Ruhr Valley was not really a place to flourish. It was difficult to find jobs and the perspectives for each individual were sparse. Not just once did I hear from family and friends that I would be better off leaving. But here is the thing: I am a steel kid. I grew up with everything that makes the Ruhr Valley so special and unique.

It was always self-explanatory to me that I wanted to stay here and not move to another part of Germany. I can't say I did not have a few stops in other cities or countries, but I always came back. Now it is one of my big passions to do my part in creating an innovative, digital and colorful Ruhr Valley. The times of uninteresting employers, no perspectives, little significant developments? That’s almost history here in the Ruhr area.

But we are still at the beginning of this journey. To me it still felt like the old "Ruhrpott" in 2015, before I went to America. Once I came back, I became part of the startup scene in the Ruhr Valley and saw first hand, how much has changed. In addition to the growing startup scene, numerous initiatives, state-sponsored programs and well-positioned companies that did not miss the leap in the age of digitalization, have also played a decisive role in making the Ruhr region an interesting and growing location. And they continue to do so. The innovation of our country is no longer only driven in the metropolises of Germany, but also in the many larger and smaller cities in the Ruhr area.

With our Digital Innovation Ruhr community, we are making our very own contribution.

The topics we deal with every month, concern us all. The media is swarmed with buzzwords that will shape our future: Industry 4.0, Artificial Intelligence, Digital Platforms, Growth Hacking or the famous Elevator Pitch. A lot of these topics are super hyped but not a lot of people really understand what they mean. What exactly could Blockchain do for my company? How could I incorporate this in my daily business? What chances might this offer to me personally or my career? How can we make trends, that affect B2C in particular, more accessible to B2B companies? What do we have to consider in medium-sized businesses if we don’t want to be completely left behind by all the fast-paced startups?

These are all questions we also ask ourselves at Setlog. In the last years, we have changed fundamentally. We have set up agile working methods, formed self-organized teams and have always kept an eye on and implemented important trends that influence our market.

We also deal with digitization, Industry 4.0 and the latest technologies due to being a tech company that is developing supply chain management and vendor compliance software. Are we an expert in all of the fields of Industry 4.0 or the buzzwords I mentioned before? Absolutely not. Can we implement every trend and every new technology? Certainly not. But that does not mean that we shouldn't put an effort into understanding what is happening in the business, tech and economical world. It doesn't mean that we can't build a platform for other people and companies to get a better understanding of these topics. To make them more approachable.

Communities on the rise

One gigantic change in our modern world is definitely the importance of communities. Whether it is brand communities or other movements and communities about specific topics that are impacting our every day lives - both offline as well as online. While consumers are ever changing, it is becoming more and more important to not just treat them as someone that consumes your product or service and nothing more. People want to belong. They want to build relationships with what they consume and the companies behind it. That is one of the reasons why social media platforms are also changing more into community platforms. They understand that the relationships we are seeking, are different now than in the beginning of the 2000's. In a digital world, we have started neglecting the real world and with that also the real relationships and bonds we used to form. This is massively changing back now. Does that mean we are stopping to be digital? Absolutely not. But we expect different costumer experiences, different support systems, different ways of how we are treated by companies. Facebook, Netflix, Airbnb, Apple, Lego, Starbucks and co. have implemented this a long time ago - hence their huge fan bases. But how could smaller companies follow?

With the right community - offline or online.

At Setlog we are certainly no Netflix. But we are helping our costumers to digitize their supply chains and we see it as our duty to keep up with digital trends as well.

I am a huge advocate for community building. I believe that finding the right community or tribe can not just massively change your life but also your career. I am the best example when it comes to that. Which is why it was a no-brainer for me to also implement community into Setlog.

Hence, why we created Digital Innovation Ruhr.

So, what does DIR actually do for us?

Creating a meaningful network

With Digital Innovation Ruhr, we have created a platform, where we can bring experts together with an inquisitive audience, promote a lively exchange and at the same time learn something new for our own company. What better way to get to grips with the most important and latest trends than to hear practical examples directly from experts and those who use it.

A company that became successful through Growth Hacking. An IT expert who has brought Artificial Intelligence into their company and is driving the market. The Head of Marketing, who identified the right emotional triggers with relevant analyses, which lead to customers buying their product extensively. Hands-on experience and true knowledge exchange is worth much more than just reading about it in a distant article.

Due to the wide range of topics that we present with Digital Innovation Ruhr - we are switching between marketing/startup topics and IT topics on a bi-monthly basis - we are basically offering something for everyone. In a healthy community, you will have those people that sometimes engage, those who just consume and those who become your advocates. Even to us, it was surprising that we basically created two communities - one more focused on IT & tech and one more focused on entrepreneurship & marketing. But we also have this core of people that are overlapping and are visiting us every month or as often as possible.

We became a well known brand in this area and the image we created with Digital Innovation Ruhr is inevitably transferred to Setlog as well. Especially in the Ruhr and Rhine area, Setlog is, with its meetup, a household name.

"We love innovation, inspiration, networking and exciting topics - not to forget the people who drive the Ruhr region forward and turn it into a digital motor. That's exactly where we see Digital Innovation Ruhr - as a forum and a meeting place to bring all these aspects together. In the heart of the Ruhr Valley."

-Our DIR manifesto -

We make the buzzwords of the industry more tangible and give our audience the opportunity to network with others, learn directly from the hands-on mentality of the “doers” and to let trends flow into their own work. And we are proud of that.

We see Digital Innovation Ruhr as a part of the vibrating startup and innovation scene in the Ruhr Valley. So, one important factor in the decision of why we built this community is definitely our contribution to the region we are operating in.

Finding employees with the right mindset

When it comes to more internal goals, next to brand awareness and image transfer, it is also important for us to become better known as an interesting employer. So one factor that led to the decision of redefining us as an innovative company through Digital Innovation Ruhr, is the much sought-after job market. It is difficult to find the right employees, who have the right mindset to drive a company forward. Especially when it comes to IT - one of the most fought for employee-categories. The market is huge and companies have to offer especially new generations more than just a nice salary and promotion opportunities.

But where do employers meet the people who have exactly the right qualities?

Events are a very interesting opportunity. At every event, our guests have the opportunity to get an exclusive taste of our company. The people behind Setlog are not just names to our community members. Instead we are bringing faces to those names and are creating real relationships with people. The same works for the company behind it. Since we are opening our doors, our "home", our attendees get an exclusive look behind the scenes and meet our employees. We take guided tours through the offices, our employees are present and it is a great opportunity to get a feeling for a company without any obligations.

Obviously, we are also offering our already existing employees the opportunity to further their education on specific topics and to connect with people that might be important for their own network. We integrate our colleagues into the decision of what kind of speakers and therefore which topics they want to see on stage. This is a process that is not just decided by the three person organization team behind the community. It is a team effort in itself.

Customer and lead relationships

How do you nurture your leads and built your partnerships? Obviously, there are many ways. But we identified our meetup community as one. We are inviting existing customers as well as those that we hope to turn into them, to our events. We are doing the same with our partners and supporters. That way we are not only bringing our relationships to a more personal level, but we are also showing especially our potentials and customers that we are dealing with new trends and are never standing still when it comes to innovation and digitization. Even a small thing like our rule to only use first names at our events, can have a huge impact on a customer relationship and partnership.

Not just potential candidates for our free vacancies are getting a personal and deeper insight into our company when they become part of Digital Innovation Ruhr. The same goes for our leads and customers.

Brand identity, mouth-to-mouth marketing and credibility

All in all, we can say that the biggest driving forces for building this community have been yet again buzzwords: brand identity, mouth-to-mouth marketing, brand awareness and loyalty.

What a marketing bullshit bingo, am I right? What can I say...it's true. Digital Innovation Ruhr has given us a whole new level of credibility when it comes to digitization and innovation in the Ruhr Valley. It has become a "must attend" for people in the area and an important factor in making my beloved "Ruhrpott" more exciting and future-proved. We found wonderful colleagues over the meetup events and created a whole new level of belonging when it comes to our own employees. What started as a few person job turned into a group effort that is bringing different departments and areas at Setlog together. Motivation, commitment and employee boosting are our internal factors. Finding new employees, creating a better awareness for Setlog and building a unique selling point for our customers as well as partners, are the additional external factors.

All in all, I can probably speak for my two colleagues who are just as responsible for Digital Innovation Ruhr as I am, when I say, that we gladly take on the extra work when it comes to this community. What we have built is filling us with pride, a sense of accomplishment and lots and lots of fun.

Plus, who doesn't want to say that they have built the biggest meetup community in the Ruhr Valley?

We love Digital Innovation Ruhr and I believe you can feel that at every event we organize. For those of you, who are reading this and who have visited our events, do you agree?

I can only recommend companies to think about different ways to endorse their own business, to build different relationships with the people that are surrounding their companies. You never thought about building a community? You should.

In my next post, I will explore more HOW we built Digital Innovation Ruhr. For now, you know the WHY.

P.S. You want to join Digital Innovation Ruhr? Our pleasure: Become a Digital Innovator