Welcome to the Venue Section!

The next big step in organizing is finding a venue. Here are some usual ideals of a hackathon venue:

• Preferably a tech company in your area- not in the middle of nowhere
• Can fit at least (3/4 of the people you want)
• Space for food
• Space for Opening/Closing ceremony ==> like a stage area
• Reliable Wifi
• Provides tables and chairs
• Provides cords
• AV provided
• Decent cost or we want free
• Allows kids and outside food
• Big entrances

It's usually best to utilize the entire team to dedicate their team in finding a venue. First of all, I would go onto Google and search up "all tech companies in [your] area" and put all of the companies onto a Google Sheet. Make sure to have your members regularly update it as they send emails.Then, I would delegate an equal amount to each member and for the next 3 week, we would be sending several emails to several of their employees. If anyone on the team has connections, use them. Also, if a company is interested, make sure to ask to tour the place. A way to find employees and contact information are through LinkedIn. Usually, their contact information is on the right side of their profile.

How to find contacts:

• Contact Evangelists/Community Outreach at a company - LinkedIn Stalking!
• Find email by using Voila Norbert, Clearbit Connect or just plain guessing (you can use an email verifier to check if it exists).
• If using Clearbit Connect - make sure the person you find still works at the company.
• Ask for contacts - intros work best (warm email >>>> cold email)

Tips to remember:

• Send follow ups on Monday and Wednesday
• Thursdays is where you need find someone else

First Email:

• Brief & to the point
• Relatable
• Valuable to them (Not begging for money!)
• Upfront & Specific—aiming to get a phone call
• Make sure to follow up! (even if you don’t get a response)

Make sure you have an email template for your members!

Real-life Example

For Superposition, I had some close contacts at my local library since I had been volunteering with them for a long period of time so it was easy to bring it up with the administration. Additionally, it was smart to bring a seasoned organizer with me to answer any questions that they had. If you don't have that option, make sure to brush up and be updated on how working with venues work. For some companies, there will be some liability issues and they will want waiver forms for the students. Others may not want outside food or some may want to have specific rules like a no-food area. Make sure to draw a contract between organizer and company to finalize logistics and so that the venue can't back up last minute. Also, attend other hackathons! You'll be able to see venues as an attendee and find out which areas are suitable for your own hackathon