Event Guide : Startup Weekend Northwest Arkansas
Developers, startup enthusiasts, marketing gurus, graphic artists and legal minds are invited to attend the first Startup Weekend event to be hosted in Northwest Arkansas on October 2 – 4 at the University of Arkansas Global Campus in Rogers. Northwest Arkansas Startup Weekend is presented by Rockfish Interactive.
Tickets are $75 per person for the weekend, and give attendees access to networking, beta testing, co-founders, software, speakers, special offers, 3 days, 7 meals, drinks, swag, seed money… you get the idea!
What can I get on the Northwest Arkansas Startup Weekend?
A typical weekend might go something like below, although most weekends find their own schedule that works best:
6pm Friday: Everyone gets together; figures out who else is there; what would be interesting to build. 7pm: Pitches start (if you have an idea for a product you pitch it to the group). 8pm: Teams start breaking off (generally about nine teams will form during the weekend, creating nine products or companies). 9pm: Hopefully teams have solidified their concept and created an elevator pitch (even a simple one) by now. 10pm: Break off to a bar or coffee shop to continue the discussion and attempt to paper prototype out their application.
9am Saturday: Crowds pour in; work starts on development. Noon: Lunch.
3pm: More coding, business plan development, and a special guest (music, vc, sponsor etc). 6pm: Special guest drop-ins and pitches from the teams. 9pm: Gut check on the product; basic prototype building; group get-together for drinks and to talk about the products everyone is working on.
9am Sunday: The day’s work starts again. Noon: Projects are being developed; live website with signup is possibly set up; more special guests drop in. 6pm: Sink or swim time for those looking for a weekend launch. 9pm: Presentations from each company; what worked, what didn’t, what could go better and contacts are exchange for those continuing in the future.
