The Roadshow Re-Examined: Has Virtual Replaced In-Person

The post-pandemic roadshow has evolved into a hybrid model. Virtual roadshows reduce costs (no private jet charters, no hotel ballroom bookings) and increase reach (a single webcast can reach hundreds of investors across time zones). But in-person meetings retain decisive advantages for complex stories: a 90-minute in-person meeting allows investors to observe management dynamics, ask follow-up questions, and build the trust that underpins large allocation decisions. The current best practice is a ‘hub-and-spoke’ model: management conducts in-person meetings in Hong Kong (the primary investor hub), supplemented by virtual meetings for investors in London, New York and Singapore. The key insight from post-2022 roadshow data is that conversion rates from meeting to order are 30-40% higher for in-person meetings compared to virtual.