Raleigh Steemfest 2018 - Update 2

I am attempting to coordinate a Steemit Meetup at the Raleigh Convention Center on the evening of June 15. We have a room in conjunction with the Cryptolina 2018 crypto conference. There is no charge for the steemit meetup. The two-day conference, early bird price is $499. However, I am working on getting a Steemit discount added to the website for any Steemians interested in attending both. The slate of speakers for Cryptolina is growing. It is promising to be an excellent event. Again, the Steemit meeting is FREE. I am working on a discount that will likely allow Steemit members to attend for $399, but the price has not been negotiated yet. I would like your feedback. At what price point would my Steemit friends find Cryptolina affordable for them?

One of the suggestions I have received is that we bring in a high profile speaker for the Steemit meetup. I know many of the speakers who are coming to Cryptolina and have one who has not confirmed yet who would be perfect for this event. But if he does not make it, I still intend on roping on of the other high profile attendees into coming to our Steemit meeting. Would having a high profile speaker make this event more attractive to anyone?

The biggest issue facing this plan right now is attendance. I am going to secure the venue at the convention center and cover the cost of drinks and snacks (maybe pizza). It ain't no meeting unless there are snacks, right? The only way we are going to ensure a decent turnout is to spread the word. So far this is what things looks like:

Confirmed or likely
@tomkirkham
@cloudculpepper
@coldsteem (as a speaker at Cryptolina, I will be there anyway)
@beachsagebrush
@journeyfreedom

Maybe
@artibeus
@florio
@bluelightbandit (the most recent addition to the maybe list)

Even if we only have six people, we will still hold the meetup. I plan to provide information about the meet up to attendees of Cryptolina and invite anyone who is attending the crypto conference to come to our meeting as well. This is in hopes that we can recruit new members to the platform who already have a demonstrated interest in crypto.

The list is slowly growing. It has gotten a little bit longer each week. I will continue posting about this once a week. My request is that you resteem this post or send information about the event to people you think may be interested in attending. This promises to be a fun and informative opportunity for Steemians in our region to get together and discuss the platform. I really hope we can get a good turnout. I don't mind buying pizzas and drinks if we an get a good crowd together.

Feel free to leave any suggestions, recommendations or comments you have about this event in the comments section. If you can think of a way to get wider distribution on this event across the platform, feel free to chime in.