At what point do the various industry conferences, trade shows and networking events cease to be something useful and instead turn into a free-spending spouse who won’t stop making it difficult for you to balance the monthly budget?To be clear, I think industry events in general are a very good idea. In fact, I think they’re a necessity. We need them. As an online industry, sometimes we all get a little disconnected from the real world. We’re scattered across 50 states, across various countries, and it’s not always a simple matter for us to sit down and do business face to face. Sometimes you just can’t get a feel for someone until you’ve spent some time in the same room with him. Getting away from the office is also a welcome break from the daily grind. It’s a chance to see old friends, and maybe make a few new friends. It’s a chance to renew our resolve to succeed, and a chance to remind us why we got into this business in the first place.

So the problem isn’t events.

The problem is that there are entirely too many events. If you’re running a company with a staff of any decent size, budgeting for these events is getting to be a serious headache. It was one thing when there were a couple of shows each year – a couple of Internext events, Cybernet Expo and small parties like YP. Then came Phoneix Forum, which most people would say is a must-attend show now. Add on the various Webmaster Access shows, not just one but two Xbiz shows, Quebec Expo, and various small networking events like Island Gathering… the list goes on. At what point does all of this just get to be a little much?

Don’t forget… for most companies, attending these shows isn’t just a matter of buying a single plane ticket and one hotel room. Since most people enjoy attending shows, any staff member who is left out might very well feel slighted or unappreciated. If you want to make a presence at a show then you need to spend some advertising dollars – printing literature, giving out t-shirts, buying exhibit space, sponsoring an event, whatever. It all adds up. And with the frequency of shows these days, it all adds up quickly.

Every company, of course, has the option of picking and choosing which shows to attend. There’s no rule that says you have to attend them all. But with so many shows to choose from, if you pass on too many events then there are that many more people who you won’t get a chance to meet that year. Back in “the day,” attending all the shows and running into virtually everyone in the process wasn’t such a burden. Now we’re divided and scattered. Is that a good thing?

So first and foremost… enough with the new shows already. The industry already has plenty. In fact, with show attendance so divided amongst the various events, running a show is less profitable than ever. If we continue to drain the resources from the existing shows by cutting up the pie into so many slices, then the existing shows will have to scale back on what they offer. I’d rather not see that happen.

Our industry, of course, has a history of this. Of cutting things into too many slices. Of copying the success of others so many times that a once profitable business model is rendered useless for everyone. Some companies have made their existence out of copying the success of others, and is that really in the best interests of the adult internet industry when it comes to our annual events?

It’s my personal preference to throw my strongest support to the shows that have been here the longest, serving the industry from the start. I’m a bit of a loyalist that way. If I have to cut some of the shows out of my schedule, it’s the newcomers that are probably going to get the axe first – unless a newcomer has something substantially unique to offer. And by unique, I don’t just mean the loudest advertising or a pledge to have “different” seminars when you and me both know that there are only so many places to go with a seminar. If you don’t have something unique to offer then why not just try something other then yet another show?

If you’re the one who sets a company’s budget, then you know what a burden all these shows can be on the pocketbook. If you’re working for someone else who sets the budget, then I leave you with this plea – if you don’t get invited to attend every show this year, go easy on the boss. It doesn’t mean you’re not appreciated. It doesn’t mean you’re not loved. It just means that even in the adult industry there’s a limit to everything – and we passed that limit three shows ago.

And finally, for that person out there who, even as I type, is dreaming up his or her own event, thinking how it would be so much better, how some location would be perfect, how all the other shows don’t get it, whatever… do us all a favor and stop now. We don’t need your show. We don’t want your show. We have that one covered just fine, thank you very much. Now, if you can find a way to solve the problem of flaky models who don’t show up to their photo shoots then we’re all ears.