Casual conversations where someone’s talking about their strategy because they’re genuinely excited about it, not because they’re trying to get a meeting. In-person events connected 40% of previously unacquainted pairs, while virtual conferences managed only 22%. Virtual events, by their nature, eliminate these incidental encounters. This structural difference reveals an uncomfortable truth about our industry’s pandemic response: while we successfully digitised formal content, we inadvertently eliminated much of the informal interaction that drives long-term business relationships. If virtual events are severing these early connections, we’re creating a delayed but devastating impact on deal flow.