Here’s how we decided to structure our mindmap. Seems complex? Well, it’s not at all, it only contains a considerable number of colored bubbles. Let me explain you a bit better the reasoning underlying the map.

• FOOD+DRINK: I’m pretty sure that it’s the first one that catches your eyes. Seems to be the most obvious topic, but it’s not (food is never a trivial matter!). There are going to be dozens and dozens of people, probably hungry in the early morning, in the middle morning, at lunch time and in the afternoon.
  A hungry programmer is not a good programmer (we should all have this slogan hanging in the kitchen). But, what shall we buy? We don’t want something too complicated to eat, we would prefer something that could be eaten while standing (so that we don’t need to wash the cutlery ). Pizza? Sandwiches? Wraps? (the latest version of that mindmap also contains “indian food”… we obviously came up with this gluttonous idea after having lunch at an Indian restaurant). We still have to make an estimate of all costs, after which we will take our final decision.
  Regarding drinks, basically only beers are for sure. We decided to use a huge coffee termos (we will always be grateful to Martin Ruprecht), while all the other drinks are going to be sponsored (THANKS TO ELANCE!!).
  While setting up your own mindmap, do not forget all the food/drinks related stuff! (what my colleague labeled as “hardware”. I will not even comment on that wording).
• WEBSITE: we are basically done with all those yellow bubbles. Whenever you have the chance to relate an event to an official website, do it without delay! It’s very important that those who are interested in your event realize the reliability of it, and quite often a website created for this purpose is a great business card! Our aim was to create a website with a simple design, easy to read and to understand, but still containing all the useful information, giving the opportunity to also add a new city with just a couple of clicks. Check yourselves if, in your opinion, we have achieved our goal! www.jscoderetreat.com
• PROMOTION: we’re well on track on this point too. You can now find us on Lanyrd, Twitter (#jscr), Facebook, Eventbrite and Techism. We also hope to have the chance to join some newsletters asap.
  Promoting youselves on the main social networks or on other event’s websites is too important to not take advantage of it! It’s for free, in a virtual context with thousands of potential users. If you are not familiar with these different ways of promoting, I recommend you to also try to find out if there are some websites specifically concerning your city or your area. You could not even know them, but perhaps those websites could be used by many other potential applicants.
  Oh, and if your budget is enough, don’t forget to think of some cool gadjets with your logo (pens, cups, notebooks, etc.) to give to your attendees! That would really be cool, and it obviously helps to spread your company’s awareness!
  If you wish to crate your own mindmap, don’t forget to update it with all the aspects concerning the “post event”! People out there need to know how awesome your event was, so take pics, tweet, make videos, do whatever you prefer to have a lovely memory of your event!
• EVENT: what do we need to make our event come true? Wireless microphones, tables, chairs, wifi, projectors… these are all aspects without which your event might not work properly. Make a list of everything you need, and keep it updated! Every day you will think of new and compelling stuff to include in it

I really hope that all this could have been of some help to you!! It’s all stuff that seems obvious, but I can assure you that while you’re going to be in the middle of the organization it won’t be obvious at all.
See you in the next episode :*