Hey ,
Last night I hosted a livestream asking whether virtual events can still generate pipeline in 2026.
The interesting thing wasn't the answer.
It was the assumption hiding underneath the question.
Most companies assume events fail because nobody attended.
I think events fail much earlier than that.
They fail because nobody decided what pipeline they wanted before creating the event.
Think about it.
A marketing team celebrates 1,000 registrations.
An executive asks:
"How many opportunities did we create?"
Neither person is wrong.
They're simply measuring different things.
The problem is that many event strategies begin with attendance goals instead of business goals.
"We need more registrations."
"We need more attendees."
"We need more engagement."
Okay. But from whom?
If your target audience isn't in the room, those metrics don't mean much.
If the people attending don't have the problem your solution solves, those metrics don't mean much.
If there's no plan to continue the conversation after the event ends, those metrics definitely don't mean much.
The companies generating pipeline from virtual events aren't treating events as isolated campaigns.
They're treating them as conversation starters!
The event creates the conversation.
Content extends the conversation.
Community sustains the conversation.
Pipeline becomes the outcome.
That's a very different way of thinking about events.
It's a much more useful.
So now I'm curious.
How does your organization measure event success today?
Are you measuring attendance?
Engagement?
Pipeline?
Revenue?
Or something else entirely?
Hit reply and let me know.
I'd genuinely love to hear how you're thinking about it.
To your success,
Ericka Bates
Host, Talk Virtual
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