I have built long term relationships from connections I have made online. I have subsequently met many of these people so the relationships are now both online & offline. There are some I have never met because they are in countries I have not visited. This has not stopped us providing support, knowledge and contacts to each other.
I think the real answer is that most people make more offline connections than online ones and a smaller proportion of those online ones develop into real relationships. I wrote briefly about this in 'Quality versus quantity in Business Networking' yesterday.
Good Networking!
Dave Clarke
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