Why We’re SXSW Junkies

 In Digital/Social, Events, Front Page, News, Reviews, Trending

SXSW is Still Relevant, Be There.

In a world where everyone is looking for the next thing, the next moment, the next exclusive enclave, we’re supporters of SXSW Interactive, and we’ll tell you why.

Energy

The creativity and entrepreneurial spirit at SXSW is one of its best assets. For startup founders, it can be the elixir needed to push through that next wall. It is amazing to be among the future-gazers, a crowd of die-hard dreamers who are all aspiring to something – usually something big. SXSW gives this breed the dedicated arena to focus on what is next on the horizon and how we as a community will arrive in that space.

Audience

It’s not easy to be all things “interactive” to all parties, but SXSW makes a good run at it. The festival is thoughtfully curated to serve a very diverse set of interests. The people who come to SXSW are those who want to make a big impact and most are amazingly willing to help a fellow entrepreneur. Attendees leave with a raft of new contacts who are truly happy to lend a supporting hand.

Ideas

One of the most amazing things about SXSW is that, no matter how saturated you are in tech or entrepreneurship or pop culture, the festival provides a venue for the overlap of genres and fields and markets, leading to the emergence of new ways of solving problems or reaching people. The data geek comes away with a better understanding of how the beauty industry is applying technology. The educator comes away with new enthusiasm for global technology applications.  The variety of perspectives provides a richness to the experience.

Critical Mass

The sheer quantity of offerings is obvious when you look at the SXSW schedule, there are enough quality sessions to fill your full day four times over. And, unlike many conferences where there is one headliner and attendees are left to select among the least worst for the rest of the day, you regret that you are not physically able to attend several simultaneous events. With this much content coming together, amazing themes, trends and connections emerge.

Variety

One of the most valuable aspects of SXSW is that each year you discover something you didn’t expect to find. Serendipity comes in the form of the unexpected conversation, the session you weren’t planning to attend, or the panelist who says exactly what you needed to hear. The session types run the gamut from mentors to keynotes to meetups to panels. You may be an expert in your field, but it is guaranteed that your topic will be covered in a different way than you have seen it before.

 

Pulse

Somehow, SXSW always manages to have its figurative finger on the pulse of what’s happening now. The festival’s unique crowd-sourced voting approach for panels gives the planning team a great perspective on what people are interested in talking about and in hearing about (great application of data analytics!). This means that the conference is able to adjust content to meet current demand or add new tracks based on emerging trends. This festival has enough cultural relevance to create movements on its own merits.

Big Guys and Little Guys – So Happy Together

It’s rare to find a conference where both President Barack Obama and a 23-year-old startup founder will be presenting. Chevrolet is a sponsor and the social good agency is a sponsor. Eco has a place at the table, women have a place at the table, education has a place at the table, sports are there, data geeks are there, activists are there, lifestyle evangelists are there. This is the beauty of SXSW.

Let the scheduling begin!

Let’s meet up! SXSW is the perfect venue to start something.

Let Us Know in the Comments Section Below!

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