VIRTUAL CONFERENCES ARE NOT THE FUTURE

With the rapid spread of COVID-19, trade shows and conferences have been shut down for the foreseeable future. Luckily for us, we live in an age where technology allows us to hold these same trade shows and conferences virtually. They’ve served their purpose while we’ve been stuck in our homes, but they are not the future.

Yes, a virtual conference saves time and money, but it will never provide the same experience. It’s hard to replicate the anticipation of viewing all of the new tech on the trade show floor. The exhilaration of being faced with opportunities at every step completely vanishes when you’re attending virtually.

Virtual conferences are not the future, and here’s why.

LACK OF HUMAN CONNECTION

It’s safe to say that you cannot replace human interaction with a computer. It’s one of the main disadvantages of the virtual world. It takes away the excitement, but it also takes away the element of being in the right place at the right time. Most great connections aren’t planned. They’re made with the people you happen to see in a booth or at a networking party. It can’t be replicated or replaced.

ACCESSIBILITY

Have you been to any virtual conferences this year? Most of the virtual booths have someone manning them from the desk in their home office, and it’s highly likely that the decision makers aren’t the ones doing it. At a physical tradeshow, you can find decision-making executives at every turn. They’re there for meetings, to converse with their target audience and to find opportunities for their business to succeed. You lose that in a virtual booth.

NETWORKING

It’s hard to replicate a networking environment when you can meet someone new with every step you take. While you may be able to shoot out an email quicker from the comfort of your home, you miss out on the networking events that bring every attendee together in one place. And let’s be honest, the best part of any conference or tradeshow are the parties. They give attendees a space to relax and connect with people, they otherwise would have missed.

NO DISTRACTIONS

When you’re at tradeshow, you’re dialed in. You have zero distractions. A virtual tradeshow can’t guarantee the exclusive attention of attendees. They could be distracted by things going on in their house or office. They could simply be checking in every now and then. This doesn’t mean that an in-person attendee will be focused 100% of the time, but it is a lot harder to pretend to be focused when someone is sitting across the table from you.