Quote Originally Posted by gaydemon View Post

There I was thinking that people actually went to talk business, make new contacts and find new business. Im sure some of that must go on as well, no?
At the same time that all the shit goes on, it's *still* an unbeatable way to meet and get to know people in the industry, find new opportunities you might never have considered. and learn about what others are doing in the industry.

I've gotten an amazing amount of advice, suggestions, and ideas from conversations at the conferences, as well as made a lot of friends that I talk to all the time to bounce ideas off of.

Other things being equal, I would rather do business with someone I've had a chance to meet, talk to, and have a sense of who they are and how they conduct their business than someone I've only talked to over email. Of course there are exceptions, but you really can't beat the shows for the business opportunities. For us, it's just a matter of looking at them as opportunities to improve our business, not to party... but I know a lot of people who do both and are quite successful at it.