westartup is a set of tools designed to supercharge local efforts for building entrepreneurial communities. Some of my thinking on the subject can be found in an article I wrote for the Whiteboard magazine (How to build an entrepreneurial ecosystem in 4 steps http://bit.ly/XwH0bS) and another for DataNews (Entrepreneurship: we're teaching it wrong http://bit.ly/1bDhZyZ). If you would like to discus - or evaluate the tools for your own region - please contact me at leo.exter@westartup.eu.

1. Community tools
for more effective
entrepreneurship support
programs
Leo Exter

2. We help to
answer a
fundamental
challenge:
getting
more people
to interact
more often,
to learn more
from each other…
with low extra
cost.

3. Focus for most
existing programs
westartup focus
Basic
Training
Discovery
Incubation
Acceleration

4. Use community
power to
- find
- motivate
- educate
future
entrepreneurs.

5. Community site +
real-world events
help you build
large, effective
local
(globally
connected)
entrepreneurial
community.
+

6. Community site
brings in new
people for your
community:
entrepreneurs,
mentors and
investors.

7. Community site
improves projects
through feedback
(comments)
from fellow
entrepreneurs.

8. Community site
helps to find
co-founders,
create stronger
(cross-functional)
teams.

9. Individual involvement
Online community, events like Startup Weekend
Introductory group sessions
In-depth group workshops
€ 20
€ 50
€ 500
Equity
stake
Acceleration program
Incubation program
Combine site with events to
identify and strengthen best teams
Threshold
(Example)

10. Startups need
time (and
knowledge) to
build their
success stories.

11. Mentors from the
community
happily share
their knowledge
at events –
if you only need
to ask.

12. Does it work?
Hell, yeah!*
* This is how Davy would say it.

13. Davy Kestens, 25.
Asked questions,
joined workshops,
got crowd
feedback… and
stopped his first
business.
Then created a
much better one.

14. Sparkcentral
sells to Delta and
Brussels Airlines.
20+ employees in
Hasselt (BE) and
San Francisco.
Raised over
$ 17.6 MLN.

15. Building
community is
hard work:
minimum 1/5 FTE
better yet
a full-time person:
superconnector.

16. We provide the tools
• Customized website: your branding,
your language, your community
• Six proven event formats

17. Example from
Lithuania:
- Lithuanian-
language site
- Own branding
Over 760
members today.

18. Example of a
“vertical” site:
- Focus on
digital health
startups
- Own branding
Over 1200
members today.

19. Stay in touch with
your entire
community with
automated
emails, invite
them to your
events.

20. Keep track of
interactions,
measure success.

21. Our simple,
low-cost event
formats:
- Pitch Night
- Startup
BarCamp
- Topical
workshops
- Member Nights
- Circle of Growth
- Investor Match

22. Let’s talk.
@westartup
Leo Exter
leo@westartup.eu
+32477457539