** Continued From: Internext Florida 2003! - Part #1

THE NETWORKING BEGINS

Thursday morning, the atmosphere of the Diplomat had dramatically changed. Even before I left my room, I knew the Gathering was picking up momentum. My peoples were arriving in droves. Soon, we would be seeing people from previous shows, plus new faces. And, we did. Going downstairs to the lobby, that great meeting place, we began to see familiar faces. Pretty soon, we were making introductions and giving out hugs and handshakes. The energy was palpable, as we made our way over to the Convention Center to get our name tags.

Even though the show officially didn't start until Friday, I felt the show began Thursday morning, informally. At the front desk, lines were formed with webmasters checking in, chomping at the bit to get this thing started. The mood was festive and anticipatory.

The networking had begun.

Since this was my first year in Florida, my head played the swivel game, looking this way and that. My friend, Marsha, hosted the first party we attended. Known as Princess on the boards, Marsha owns Rated Hot resources and had already let us know there was an informal get together at 5 p.m. Nice opportunity to get Princess Hugs and meet some of the fine folks from Rated Hot. The surrounding pool and bar area had already become crowded and the drinking, which would last from that moment until the trip to the airport, had begun.

"That's one of the reasons I love these shows. The people I miss at one show, I get to see at another."

By that time, Kath from Klixxx and Burtros, her husband, had arrived. Kath and Marsha are two of my very favorite people. I met them at an AWE in Atlanta a few years ago. Those two changed my life back then and we've been close friends ever since. The trust we have for each other not only allows us to conduct business together; but, we also enjoy non business relationships and we're all very close. We share similar ethics and business methods. Makes for a very happy networking trio of strong women.

In between seeing close friends, I flitted from table to table, renewing acquaintances, some of whom I haven't seen in a few years. That's one of the reasons I love these shows. The people I miss at one show, I get to see at another.

Once Rated Hot's little get together wound down, we whisked Gary-Alan, European Lee, Kath and Burtros, EC Steve, Tev and Monique/Afrekete off to dinner. Very exciting to all of us that Gary has just opened Stud Money, home of the very powerful, just released DILF. This site will rock the gay world as we know it, opening up a brand new niche for marketing by both gay and straight webmasters.

GFY's party was much later on, so having dinner out was a nice break from the hectic activity of the Diplomat. It gave us all a chance to talk and eat, maybe drink a little and make some deals.

GFY's party was very different than it was in Vegas. This time, it was held outside on a boat, a rather nice boat. We didn't stay very long, as the boat was expectedly crowded, with perhaps too many people on the top. But, it was nice and part of why we go to parties is to see people and be seen. Free drinks help, too.

Friday, the day of the show, dawned terribly for me. The stress of preparations had taken their toll. There were too many projects, too many people to coordinate. The thought of going to the show suddenly did not appeal. EC Steve was having issues of his own, with the launching of Erotica Cash, the new version. He and Tev were fixing the little bugs, inherent with every launch. It's no one's fault; but, it is the way of things. I sat in Steve's room, along with Monique/Afrekete or we ran from room to room, carrying messages between Steve and Tev.

I finally got to the showroom in the afternoon. At first, I was terribly disappointed with what I saw. This was not Vegas. It seemed small and crowded, no pizzazz, no pomp. As I walked from booth to booth, I saw companies I'd never seen before, along with those familiar to me. There were names missing from the line up. Those walking up and down the aisles also seemed subdued.

It didn't take very long to cover the showroom floor. By that time, I was becoming accustomed to booths that contained a chair and a cardboard sign. I realised, at that point, this was a golden opportunity for those who don't have the capital to invest in the show in Vegas. Companies who otherwise would not be exhibiting were proudly showing off their wares. I saw a plethora of booths promising ways of stopping those nasty chargebacks. There were lots of sex toys being sold. Herbal products. A few sponsor programs, some of whom I'd never heard.

All in all, I was impressed by how professionally everyone behaved on the floor.

I noticed many talking about billing company solutions. Given the demise of Website Billing, Glo-Bill, and AC Pays, I think webmasters are finally starting to understand that VISA is not kidding. This industry will be regulated, by hook or by crook, as my grandmother used to say. Those of us who treat this business as a business already know that the Law has come to the Internet.

Porn is about to be cleaned up. Rape and underage will not be tolerated, nor will shady business practises, allowed to run rampant and unchecked for so long. There is concern on many of the faces I see, as I make my way through the maze of booths. Many sponsors have cut back for this show. It is my understanding as I talk to those who were here last year, that, this show is less than. This show is minimalist. There's a part of me that's satisfied. And, there's that other part that loves the show and the showing off. It doesn't take very long to navigate this showroom. Within an hour, I'm done for the day.

It's Friday night and it's time to party. The problems with the sites will have to wait. I don't think I've ever seen a site launch smoothly, which is the only reason we walk away from them to continue our Internext experience.

** Click Here For: Internext Florida 2003! - Part #3