Conference Strategy: Why Depth Beats the Crowd

John Todderud, multifamily syndicator with 40 years in the game, went from writing code at Boeing and Fortune 500 tech companies to writing checks in real estate. Early in his conference strategy, he thought the play was to work the room, meet new people, cast the widest net possible. But he realized the actual deals, the real money, weren't coming from strangers met once in a hallway. They were coming from people he kept seeing. Over and over. Depth, not breadth. And here's the thing nobody's talking about. If you've been in commercial real estate and capital raising for any amount of time, you know there used to be pivotal events. Industry gatherings that everyone circled on their calendar. The rooms where deals got done. Where relationships compounded year after year. A lot of those events? Sunsetted. Minimized. Gone. There's a vacuum right now. The central gathering point for operators and capital in this space doesn't exist like it used to. That's exactly why C.R.E.I.C. matters. This isn't just another conference. This is the new anchor event for people who no longer have one. If you know, you know. You show up to one C.R.E.I.C., you walk away with contacts. You show up three years in a row? You've got a network. You've got trust. You've got partners. That's where deals actually get done.Episode Sponsor: Rise 48 EquityRise 48 helps you protect and grow your wealth by investing in large multifamily apartment buildings. Vertically integrated property management. Vertically integrated construction. They do all the work.rise48.comCREIC | Commercial Real Estate Investment ConferenceMiami | November 6-7, 2026500 seats. Free general admission. Spots are limited.creicmiami.com