Personally, I don’t go to the parties much.
I go there for business, I meet with as many people as I can, I scan the exhibits for new opportunities (always there), I attend lectures that interest me (even if they present nothing much new tend to give me new spin-off ideas) and I go to small gatherings where you can still hear what the other folks say. (The parties are too loud and crowded for me).
I go and sit on the beer panel and steer the conversation to an issue hot in the mind of affiliates (and there have been programs most likely wishing they could shoot me).
Every time I come home with renewed vigor, new ideas, better deals and new business partners and friends.
ROI? Definitely, when I get home I can’t wait to put the new ideas to work. It usually takes 3 months or so to show the added profits, but they are definitely attributable to what I did at the conferences.
Whether you are an old hand and just want to firm up relationships and strike better deals, a party animal who learns from and exchanges ideas and experiences with other party animals as you go, or new to conferences and learn a ton from the lectures, or any mix thereof, you will benefit from an industry gathering.
One thing is for sure, I could never have done what I did with G&C without the various conferences and gatherings.