Divi Meetup Network Community Update: May 2020

Happy late Spring, Divi community! How have you been persevering the state of things? We certainly hope you have been well and healthy! Like most organizations during this time, our meetups have gone through a bit of a stagnant period as we have proceeded lightly with onboarding of new groups. Alas, we finally onboarded some new Divi meetup communities! Read on for more details!

Check out our current stats.

The Divi Nation Meetup Network by the Numbers

• Total Members: 7,691
• Total Groups: 61
• Total Events Hosted: 541
• Total RSVPs: 3,418
• New Members (Last 90 Days): 953
• New Groups (Last 60 Days): 3
• New Group Pipeline: 2

If you have a passion to build your local Divi community, locate a group near you here or use the button below to apply to become a local organizer.

APPLY TO BECOME A DIVI MEETUP ORGANIZER TODAY

Let’s Welcome Our New Meetup Groups

Please give a warm welcome to our new hosts! May brought us two more organizers and three new Meetup groups, and we’re thrilled to introduce you to the hosts.

See below for introductions (in the host’s own words) and info on their next Meetups.

Divi Brampton, Ontario, Canada

Christina of Divi Brampton

Meet the host, Christina Gwira:

My name is Christina and I’ve been using WordPress for over 10 years at my digital design firm NOYADESIGNS. I didn’t start off using WordPress, however, I used to work on Joomla (RIP to a real one), but was convinced to switch to WordPress about halfway through my career. When I took up WordPress, I was always using a variety of themes from Avada to BE Theme, and I was always overwhelmed with the way that their default setups worked. I’m not entirely sure when I landed on Divi, but when I did, I love how much customization I could use to create websites for my clients. Over time, I become #TeamDivi and began to convince my other designer friends to use the framework. At this time, Divi is my most used theme for all my client websites.

I want to talk and share about my knowledge of Divi, but also build a support system ([local to Brampton]) that I can bounce ideas off of, share code snippets, and have work-a-thons.

We’re so excited for another Canada-based Divi meetup! We sure hope you join!

Divi Brampton

Divi Washington, DC, USA

John of Divi Washington, DC

Meet the host, John Browning:

John Browning shows small companies in Washington DC and Northern Virginia how to create a great WordPress Web Design and online presence and uses the DIVI theme builder to do it. John also trains individuals to use WordPress to build their own websites. In addition, John consults with online companies when they need to improve their social media and digital marketing strategies. During his free time, John enjoys hiking, biking, kayaking, traveling, and photography.

I want to be a better DIVI web designer myself and be inspired by other creative professionals. I would also like to network with other web designers in the area to see if we can collaborate in some way. I am a freelance professional so this will be a nice place to network. I am also a WordPress instructor so I feel leading a group would be a good fit and would enable me to anticipate future students’ problems with WordPress and DIVI. The more experience I can get instructing and sharing the better.

Divi DC has been poised and ready to build their community! Get involved today!

Go to Divi Washington, DC

Divi Satkhira, Bangladesh

Delower of Divi Satkhira

Meet the host, Delower Hossain:

My Name is Delower Hossain. Currently, I work with a US Company named Turnkey Web & Marketing. I work remotely from Bangladesh. Also, I have a little venture in my area called Dbuggers (http://dbuggers.com).

I started my journey in 2014. That means I’m working with WordPress Since 2014. The best thing is the first premium theme I used for my work is DIVI. I found it’s a great theme I’ve ever seen so far. You’ll be very glad to know that since 2014 I’ve designed more than 300+ websites with Divi.

In 2014 I started my journey as a Freelancer. But now (2020) I work as an Entrepreneur. I got lots of experiences from my work. So it’s high time to work for newcomers. I love to share my experiences with the newcomers on how to want to learn about WordPress, Divi, and other things. That’s why we host a WordPress Meetup here. And I think it’s the best time to share some great experiences with the community about Divi.

I found Divi is one of the best [Themes] I’ve ever used. It’s been 6 years so far that I’m using Divi. It’s the time to share all the great experiences I’ve got from Divi to my Local Community. They will love also to hear/see these awesome features from Divi. So I want to lead a Divi meetup group to introduce Divi to the community.

This is our first Divi meetup in the country of Bangladesh!

Go to Divi Satkhira, Bangledesh

Now here are our two new co-organizers!

Divi Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas, USA

Tommy Lee of Divi DFW

Meet the host, Tommy Lee:

For as long as I can remember, I have been obsessed with building businesses online. Whether selling a product or service, it has been a great joy of mine to be a part of a companies journey to growth. Divi has helped me create excellent branded experiences online for some of the best eCommerce companies!

I have been asked to Co-Chair Jube Dankworth’s Fort Worth/Dallas MeetUp. I want to help other users learn the power of Divi. With 4.0 Divi has become the industry standard in WYSIWYG editors!

Their next virtual event is in a few days! On Tuesday, June 16th. Join their group and check them out!

Go to Divi Dallas/Fort Worth

Divi Atlanta, Georgia, USA

Cammy Farone of Divi Atlanta

Meet the host, Cammy Farone:

If it is creative, Cammy Farone thrives on it. [When] Cammy was introduced to Divi 5 years ago, her creativity knew no bounds. Having been in web development, graphic design, and marketing for over 28 years, Cammy has become an advocate for Divi, sharing her passion for the theme with other WordPress users at Meetup Groups and WordCamps in the Atlanta area. “I enjoy the creative journey life brings and Divi gives me an adventure every day.” When not building with Divi, Cammy is an avid player of Texas Hold’em and enjoys gardening and nature photography with her husband of 36 years.

I’ve had people tell me my face lights up when I talk about Divi and the projects I’m working on. I actually look forward to the blogs Nick Roach sends, as I know there is something new and fun to explore on Divi. I have been a part of the Divi Atlanta Meetup group since Sinoun Chea started it in 2018. When Mark Treager took over managing the group in 2019, I “unofficially” have been assisting him with the meetings and have been a topic speaker for several events. I also initiated a “Happiness Hour” for our group, offering to be at the venue several hours before each meeting and helping members with whatever Divi question or issue they may have. When Mark asked if I’d like to “officially” be a co-lead for the group, I was honored for the opportunity.

Be on the lookout for Divi Atlanta’s first virtual meeting happening soon!

Go to Divi Atlanta

Updates from Existing Groups

Even though cities and neighborhoods all over the globe are slowly starting to phase open, we’re still taking precautions. All of our meetups are still meeting virtually and we’re having a blast! Some of our organizers are now able to join each other’s events all over the globe. Many have expressed a desire to continue with a virtual component even when our in-person meetup requirement engages. Silver linings of the current state of the world, right?

Check out the monthly happenings of some of our communities below!

Divi Bogotá, Colombia

Divi Bogota

From the Host, Jaime Eduardo Gómez:

Taking up our usual route of work for virtual meetings, we talked about the start of DIVI, its installation, basic functions, and structure. We learned that DIVI is powerful for any type of project.

This time it was very interesting to know the testimony of a person, who had thought about requesting a refund, but upon learning how DIVI works at our meeting, he was encouraged to keep his license and learn more about DIVI.

We are very much looking forward to our next meeting. We will wait for you!

Divi Bogotá would love you for you to join them!

Go to Divi Bogotá

Divi Chicago, Illinois, United States

Divi Chicago

From the Hosts, Joan Margau & Scott Winterroth:

In this virtual meetup we were joined by Divi users from across the Nation, Illinois, and Chicago. Co-Organizer Joan Margau demonstrated creating a Style Guide and integrating the style using sections from the Consultant Layout Pack. After the presentation, there was a lively question and answer session. The next Divi-Chicago Virtual Meetup is on Monday, June 8, Improving Your Web Accessibility With Divi, presented by Co-Organizer Scott Winterroth.

Do check out the upcoming Divi-Chicago Meetup events.

Go to Divi Chicago

Divi Dublin, Ireland

Divi Dublin

From the Host, Peter Pudaite:

Greetings from the community of Divi Dublin!

Divi Dublin just held their first virtual meetup! Did you participate?

Go to Divi Dublin

Divi Edmonton, Alberta, Canada

Divi Edmonton

From the Host, Amin Ahmed:

This month we held a virtual meetup to respect the social distancing guidelines. The topic of this month’s meetup was centered around how to become a great storyteller and convey your message on your website. We explored Divi’s motion effects as a way to visually tell your story.

Divi Edmonton just had their first virtual meetup! Don’t miss their next!

Go to Divi Edmonton

Divi Kolkata, India

Divi Kolkata

From the Host, Rajesh Ravidas:

Another wonderful virtual meetup session again by Divi Kolkata. More than sixteen attendees were present in the session where Manjay Ray showed us how to create a responsive header and footer using Divi Theme Builder. It was wonderful seeing such keen learners who went through one and a half hours session without a break.

In our June virtual meetup, we are inviting an SEO Expert who will be showing “How to Improve SEO for Divi and WordPress Websitesite” from scratch.

Divi Kolkata has a wonderful energy about their community! Do check them out!

Go to Divi Kolkata

Divi London, Ontario, Canada

Divi London, Ontario

From the Host, Heather Peel:

What’s great about virtual meetings during the pandemic? Being able to meet people from much further away than we normally would! Our meetup for May 2020 only had 5 attendees, but I was happy to meet people from as far away as Kentucky! Unfortunately, we had a couple of members who were not able to join for some technical issues so hopefully, they will be able to resolve those for the next meetup. The discussion topic was quite varied as we tackled some of the challenges that members were having including how to adjust bulleted lists, vertically center content, CSS issues, and more. I’m looking forward to perhaps attend a couple of virtual meetups in other locations myself!

Our membership has grown to nearly 100 members in the past year. I’d like to see more participation from local members at future events.

Do you reside in the London, Ontario area? Get plugged in with this great Divi meetup!

Go to Divi London, ON

Divi Los Angeles, California, USA

Divi Los Angeles

From the Host, Christian Mauerer:

This was our biggest meetup in LA – 16 attendees – wohooo!

We helped out wonderful Divians to get their site online & [troubleshot] some things for people LIVE on the call.
What a joy to help people.

We also touched upon a legal topic – ADA compliance & shared a fun snippet to make your website more legally compliant.

Keep creatin’

Divi LA just hosted its first virtual meetup! Check this group out and join the next!

Go to Divi Los Angeles

Divi Milano, Italy

Divi Milano

From the Host, Francesco Cinque:

in the last meetup 16th May 2020 we talked about the integration between Divi and the external plugins. 6 participants, online session on Zoom.
Plugin List: Smash Baloon IG, Bloom, Akismet, Yoast SEO, Polylang, WPS Hide Login, Divi Booster, & iThemes
In particular: is that possible to live only with Divi? Or some external plugins are necessary? We have developed a very interesting discussion with some points of view…
Other random topics: Rankmath (SEO), Storychief

Divi Milano is back and at it! Check this community out!

Go to Divi Milano

Divi Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA

Divi Milwaukee

From the Host, Kimberly Huges:

Our virtual Divi Meeting on May 26 was informative and full of camaraderie. We even had a guest from Australia. How cool is that! One of our discussion topics was how to best set colors globally. On a different subject, a participant shared one of his general rules of thumb: “My goal as a developer is to use as few plugins as possible.

Have you visited this group either physically or virtually? Join today!

Go to Divi Milwaukee

Divi Sacramento, California, USA

Divi Sacramento

From the Host, Rosalinda Huck:

Divi Sacramento met in May via Zoom and had a great turnout for a discussion about all things footers! Members shared the types of content they include in this universal website element, and how they go about it — including using the Divi Theme Builder. Next month, we’re sharing our current projects and getting tips and helpful ideas. Feel free to join us and attend our online Meetup!

Divi Sacramento would love for you to check their community out!

Go to Divi Sacramento

Divi Salt Lake City, Utah, USA

Divi Salt Lake City Meetup

From the Host, Dustin Olsen:

We had a successful online meetup here in Salt Lake City with people joining from as far as Georgia to get help with their Divi websites. This month we did a happiness bar where those who joined us were able to share screens and learn from one another how to overcome roadblocks. Make the web a better place, one problem solved at a time.

We’d love to have your presence at this meetup! Join today!

Go to Divi Salt Lake City

Divi Santa Cruz, California, USA

Divi Santa Cruz

From the Host, Anthony Garcia:

We [had] two! A few people showed up to each, and it was cool because they were mostly from out of town and wouldn’t have been able to come otherwise.

Did you know there was a Divi Meetup in the Santa Cruz area?? Join their group today!

Go to Divi Santa Cruz

Divi Seattle, Washington, USA

Divi Seattle

From the Hosts, Bradon Garley & Shane Griffiths:

This month we showed Divi Seattle members how to reduce image and video sizes by 98%! Using a combination of best practices and advanced techniques, we showed how fast a Divi site can be and how to achieve it. The presentation was incredibly well-received so we created a technical guide with best practices on speed optimizing images and videos for Divi. We also built a Divi microsite to see the before/after results of image and video optimization at different stages. Included are best practices for image file types, dimensions, and compression. For video optimization, we covered self-hosted background videos and also optimizing YouTube videos. The techniques we explored were relatable for both DIYers and web designers.

Divi Seattle is thriving! Check it out for yourself!

Go to Divi Seattle

Divi Tampa, Florida, USA

Divi Tampa

From the Host, Steve Willingham:

December 18 was our inaugural Divi Tampa meetup. At that time we established only a couple of weeks earlier, but about 28 members had already joined the group. Our first Meetup goals were to discover our collective knowledge, talents, strengths, and gaps in the realm of Divi and WordPress. We wanted to share or expectations of our meetup group, what we want to learn, and what we might be able to share with our fellow members. Our group actually has an especially convenient site located inside a mall that’s being reimagined and redeveloped, so we have free parking and easy access from anywhere in the Tampa area. As our meetup time approached, not surprisingly, few members actually were able to attend as the holidays grew near and family priorities took the forefront. Nevertheless, those of us that were able to attend had a wonderful time viewing and discussing our website creations as they displayed on a huge TV screen. We shared Divi tips and tricks and discussed objectives for our future gatherings. We’re so looking forward to our next Meetup in January.

Divi Tampa is eager to grow its community! Be sure to join!

Go to Divi Tampa

Divi Toulouse, France

Divi Toulouse

From the Host, Fifa Randrianasolo:

Pour cette première rencontre virtuelle, la plupart des participants étaient des nouveaux membres.

Nous avons échangé sur la façon de gérer les projets et les clients en ce temps de crise sanitaire.

Dans une communication bienveillante, nous avons partagé nos savoirs sur Divi et des contacts.

Les nouveaux participants ont parlé de ce qu’ils attendaient concernant Divi Toulouse.

Nous avons passé un très bon moment, le format a plu et a super bien fonctionné.

La rencontre virtuelle a permis à des personnes loin de Toulouse d’assister au Meetup, c’était super !
Nous avons hâte de nous retrouver le mois prochain 😉

Word on the street is Toulouse is beautiful! Do check this group out!

Go to Divi Toulouse

Want to Host Your Own Local Divi Network Meetup?

Great! We’re always on the lookout for people around the world who are passionate about Divi and building community and want to spread that enthusiasm to their local community. We take care of the monthly Meetup fees, and we provide all our hosts with tons of resources to help plan and promote their events, including help with finding a venue and coming up with topic ideas.

Starting a new Divi Meetup group is simple. Just apply by filling out this form or email [email protected]. Once the form is complete, we will work together to get your group launched and linked to our Meetup Network. Easy as that!

Not sure if there’s already a Divi Meetup Group in your area? Just head to our Meetup Network page to see a map of our current locations.

Global Divi Meetup Network

Featured Image via Cienpies Design / shutterstock.com