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Nika

Attending meetups and conferences – does it help with sales?

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I’ve attended a few conferences and meetups over the past two years – always for a different purpose. Sometimes it was just 1. to socialise 😅, other times 2. to interview guests, 3. find PR or 4. sell products. I have to say that the last item on this list was the least fulfilling – we recruited a few trial users, but there were minimal paying customers. How do you approach similar events? What positive results have you seen from it? [If you have any recommendations for meetups or conferences where people are more open to buying a product, I’d be grateful if you could share them.]
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Nika
By the way, from each conference (I have been to), I created a mini-short documentary YouTube movie: Slush, Helsinki (2023) – https://youtu.be/WNH5thZmI30 DevWorld Conference, Amsterdam (2024) – https://youtu.be/yLhjMgO22Sw Bits & Pretzels, Munich (2024) – Bits & Pretzels I also attended WebSummit (Lisbon) and Reflect Festival (Limassol, Cyprus) in 2023 – but haven't documented it. WebSummit and Slush were the best according to me. :)
Nika
@sonu_goswami2 Thank you so much! I hope will be a part of more opportunities like these :)
Paola Santiago
@busmark_w_nika That's so smart for creating mini-short documentaries. Have you posted anywhere other than YouTube? I struggle with getting views on YT, but I get better reach on Tiktok or Linkedin (depending on the type of videos).
Nika

@psproductperson I posted them on Twitter and LinkedIn too + contacted organisers via email.

Paola Santiago

@busmark_w_nika That's really smart! Twitter has been a hit or miss for me but Linkedin has been really good especially now that they're also shifting towards videos too. I think there's going to be a lot more emphasis towards videos soon on Linkedin.

Gabe Perez
I'm actually very curious about how folks approach this as well. In my experience a lot of good relationships are built and in the long run, does help with sales. I feel that the more targeted the event ie "How to get your first customer event" and you're a marketing agency, the better luck you'll have at getting or closing a deal faster. Super curious to what other folks have experienced.
Nika
@gabe TBH? I do not know about such event but it had to be very regulated because many companies would be open to this but the harder part is to find relevant customers for businesses. That would be more like investor event (maybe).
Aleksandar Blazhev
Oh, I love going to conferences! It’s one of my favorite things—I truly enjoy attending them and networking. But what I’ll say is that events like these aren’t about selling, they’re about meeting people and being friendly. The vibe at most conferences is very open and social, not purely sales-driven. That’s why I use these events for networking, not immediate sales. Of course, I always exchange contact info—taking photos with attendees, swapping social media, and if possible, phone numbers. The actual sales part happens later, after the event. That’s when you can follow up and try to convert those connections into business opportunities. But during the event itself, the focus should be on building relationships, not pushing a sale. Just be cool and smiley. P.S. Check your X inbox.
Nika
@byalexai That's true. After each conference I had a full inbox about inquiries to jump on a quick call :D OKay, I will have a look! :)
Aleksandar Blazhev
@busmark_w_nika yep don't miss deals because you don't know the game xD
Rajiv Ayyangar
If the conference is really targeted and high quality, it can be pretty useful, but you need to approach it in a very targeted way. Generally, the move is to avoid the conference proper. For example, when I was building a web3 exchange for hedge funds, we went to a web3 conference, but didn't attend any of the sessions. I messaged all the people I wanted to meet asking if they were going to be at the conference and either met them for coffee outside, or met for a conversation in the lobby of the conference. Basically, you should treat the conference as an excuse for many people to gather in a city, and just try to have lots of one-on-one chats.
Nika
True! When I was at conference at WebSummit, I got there 1 hour before closing time :D Most of time I gathered with people in the city or at the parties. 😅 @rajiv_ayyangar
Darren Lang
We tend to find more leads from conferences and meet-ups, but you have to qualify them. Meeting someone in person, in our experience, has proven to be more valuable for deal closure and shortening the sales cycle (together with other things obviously).
Nika
@darren_lang_kepler Interesting POV. Like I am more likely to trust that person but some people or their products weren't relevant for me but they wanted me to jump on the call anyway. :D
Darren Lang
@busmark_w_nika correct, you'll always get the unqualified. But I'd go with the law of averages too :-).
Ajay Sahoo
If done with proper CTA adherence and with all necessary marketing awareness not solely to sales.
Nika
@ajay27324 What do you mean? Like CTA of event? :D
乐 李
Social events often increase the chance to try out a product, which leads to new customers.
Nika
@lle_lile Probability is a higher as you earned trust.
Richa Sharma
It totally depends on your industry and company sector. Like for People10 Technologies (where I work currently), the CES 2025 has been a HUGE success but the events from last year got no conversations. We got at least 35 new SQLs and they're in pipeline with some very interesting conversations. But previously when I used to work at a SaaS product-based company none of the events ever got closures. In fact people ghosted us immediately after the events.
Nika
@richa_sharma07 Have never been at CES. Why do you think that it went exceptionally well there? Did you have any special stand or the target group was more willing to pay for things?
Stefani Sparysheva
Sure, if you use Wisery :D It was created exactly for smarter networking! You can find us on PH launch page today and support our idea if you like it :)
Prithvi Damera
Attending meetups and conferences can significantly boost sales by providing opportunities to expand professional networks, learn industry insights, and directly connect with potential clients and industry experts. These events offer a platform for knowledge exchange, lead generation, and building meaningful business relationships that can translate into increased sales opportunities and strategic partnerships.
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