Tag: SXSW

SXSW Gets Intelligent, Raises as Many Questions as Answers

Posted on | by Aidan Griffin

SXSW 2017 was a terrific week spent in the presence of some of technology’s brightest minds, music’s best acts and film’s most creative souls. For Ketner Group, the event was a chance to lose sight of reality and dive into the fascinating beyond, the next era of the intersection between technology and humanity. It’s exhausting work, but hey, someone’s gotta do it.

It seems that with each passing year, SXSW does a better job of asking questions than providing answers. Maybe that’s because each one-hour session doesn’t do the experts on stage enough justice. How can someone who has dedicated their life to mapping the human brain using machine learning break that work down in one hour, while sharing a stage with the founder of Siri and a biologist learning how to grow everything we need by having intelligent systems program atoms and microbes? It takes the hour just to fully realize how much smarter these folks are than you!

But understanding the question that needs solving is the key first step to success. And we saw a few critical questions arise that anyone involved in commerce and technology will need to consider within the short and long term to ensure their prosperity. Some will be answered before SXSW 2018, and some not for many years, but the work starts now. Let’s dive in.

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning
Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the last few years, these are some of the most hyped technological concepts out there. And they were everywhere at SXSW 2017. And really, they should be. AI and machine learning will be incorporated into nearly every aspect of retail, from logistics and distribution to marketing to in-store and online customer experience.

AI has the power to greatly reduce the stress of manpower on a retail business, opening up human capital for more valuable roles that drive better experiences. Intelligent systems will understand human language and new age personal assistants will make Amazon’s Alexa look like a pet rock.

And as the founder of Kasita revealed, even your living room will be AI-heavy to the point that it may actually be artificial intelligence in physical form. TVs, window blinds, thermostats and many other items will become smart gadgets, learning how to adapt to your lifestyle and reduce your time spent doing menial tasks, which include buying things like groceries or razors. Watch out, because this one is going to be fun.

Conversational Commerce
Siri started the voice command personal assistant craze that has since grown into a full force commerce craze. But based on nearly any metric – capability, adoption, competition – it hasn’t yet hit the mainstream and is nowhere near its full potential. Alexa and Google Home can’t understand complex speech patterns, can’t infer deeper meaning from simple requests and are prone to making real mistakes, like ordering something because it overheard someone on TV or a demanding child say it. Chatbots will combine the best of speech recognition and cognition to make customer service a breeze. No, really.

Our voices will eventually replace our hands as our primary machine operating tools, and how retailers integrate this technology into their omni-channel platforms will be fascinating to watch.

Social Commerce
The golden rule in payments innovation is not to compete against other forms of digital payments, compete against cash. Social commerce has long been an area that retailers have felt could be the next frontier in omni-channel commerce. And as they started to understand its potential, conversation apps outpaced them. So what’s the future of social commerce? Think small.

Commerce on social media or conversation apps is not a significant growth area for enterprise level business, at least not yet. And part of this is the limitation of highly complex payment, banking and regulatory systems.

Instead, this is an area in which independent businesses, individual sellers and developing nations are the true pioneers. In fact, according to Facebook’s Director of Commerce & Payment Partnerships, Facebook alone has over 5 million businesses registered, many using it as a critical platform to do business.

Sellers can create mini-storefronts on their Facebook or Instagram pages, listing the products they have for sale, deleting the posts once they’re no longer in inventory. They can use peer-to-peer payments apps like Venmo to manage cashless and remote transactions, and communicate instantly via apps like WhatsApp and create a marketplace for their goods much broader than available within the constructs of their physical environment and local infrastructure. 

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The question for major retailers will be whether they can integrate massive SKU count assortments into this sort of framework, if the social and conversation apps will evolve with their platforms to enable a simple integration, or if social apps will avoid the invasion of commercial interests on an otherwise personal interaction space.

What Now?
For now, we wait, we watch and we marvel at the technologies that are revolutionizing our world. Within retail itself, we’ll continue to see the automation of process, the personalization of marketing and experience, and the simplification of consumption. Where we’re going, we don’t need answers (right away), we just need the right questions.

Don’t Forget to Vote for Your Favorite SXSW Panels!

Posted on | by Catherine Seeds

OK kids, this is a BIG week! It’s the last week to vote for your favorite SXSW 2017 panels. In case you missed the memo or just need a friendly reminder, this Friday, September 2 is the last day for public voting and commenting for the panels you’d like to see as part of the 2017 programming.

If you are having trouble deciding which panels to vote for, let your friends at Ketner Group help you out! This year, our clients at DynamicAction and Convey have thrown their hat in the ring to speak on some incredible retail and brand-focused panels. And because we love retail tech so much, we’ve also listed several additional panels from our friends at RetailMeNot, Bazaarvoice and eyeQ. Check out our recommendations below:

The Fight for Fit in Retail

In this session, four female thought leaders will discuss how the concept of “fit” has evolved from the early days of ready-to-wear clothing to custom clothes-on-demand. From clothing to cosmetics, we’ll explore how retailers need to keep up with changing styles, sizes and gender identities, the changing role of sales associates and how technology (magic mirrors, virtual reality, mobile apps, body imaging) is changing the way shoppers find the perfect fit – forever!

How to Protect Customers from Delivery Disaster

Rising customer expectations are forcing retailers to build complex carrier networks with disparate experiences and capabilities. How can retailers use data to unify the experience, reduce cart abandonment and boost post-purchase satisfaction? What is necessary to answer customers needs for real-time updates? In this panel, eCommerce leaders will discuss how they are overcoming modern delivery challenges to wow customers.

Understanding Privacy in the Land of Oversharing

In this world of consumer oversharing, the line between public and private content is blurry, leaving brands to navigate a murky gray area of what kinds of consumer-generated content can be repurposed for a brand’s needs. How do the boundaries of the law differ from the ethical guidelines set by industry groups, and what can brands do to protect themselves and the consumers they hold so dear?

Data is the New Black: The Consumer “It” Factor

Brands are living in the age of the consumer, but with smarter insights the age of the savvy marketer is bursting onto the scene. So, how can you harness the power of consumer behavior and data in a way that is discrete, empowering and not….creepy? To remain relevant in the cut-throat world of retail, brands must start to leverage consumer behavior data at scale, and optimize the information overload in new and interesting ways.

Privacy in an Era of Shopper-Aware Machines

Retailers and brands are adopting new technologies to better compete with e-commerce. From responsive signage, to beacons and sensors, store environments are becoming embedded with shopper-aware technologies in response to customers’ demands for easier, more fun, and more engaging shopping experiences. But if these devices are aware of – and responding to – shoppers, does that create new privacy concerns? In this survey of emerging technologies panelists will discuss the privacy implications for shoppers, brands and retailers.

Final 2017 programming will be announced the week of October 17. Click here to check out already announced key note and featured speakers!

Getting a Seat at the Cool Kids’ Table: SXSW PanelPicker Tips and Tricks

Posted on | by Catherine Seeds

It’s hard to believe, but the programming preparation for SXSW Interactive 2017 is already underway. As many of us in the industry already know, the PanelPicker submission process kicked off last week and closes on July 22. Which means if you are working to submit a panel, duo, trio or solo session for next year’s line-up, you have exactly 15 days to finalize your panelists and hit the send button.

Courtesy of Ketner Group
Courtesy of Ketner Group

Getting selected to be a part of SXSW’s much coveted Interactive program is no easy task. The competition is fierce and it gets tougher every year when going up against highly sought-after tech speakers in the areas of robotics, virtual reality and machine learning, not to mention President Obama and J.J. Abrams.

Over the past two years, the Ketner Group team has led the charge in getting a few of our clients’ panels selected as SXSW speakers via the PanelPicker process, and in doing so, have learned a few tips and tricks.

For those of you who may not know, the PanelPicker process goes something like this:
It is a “three-step online process” that allows the SXSW community to have a voice in programming. The first step encourages the community to enter proposals for daytime conference programming for all SXSW events; the second step allows the community to browse all of these ideas, leave comments and vote for those they think are the best fit. The third step, not open to the public, is the input of the SXSW staff and advisory boards, which helps ensure that less well-known voices have as much of a chance as being selected to speak at SXSW as individuals with large online followings. The voting breakdown looks like this: Public Votes – 30%, SXSW Advisory Board – 40% and SXSW Staff – 30%.

While one can argue that luck and timing plays a huge part in getting picked for the “cool kids” table at SXSW, there is something to be said for paying close attention to the things that the advisory board and the SXSW staff recommend when putting forth a session to be voted on. According to SXSW, “Fully-proofed, narrowly-focused, forward-thinking ideas that emphasize creativity and innovation will have the best chance of successfully navigating SXSW community voting, staff analysis and Advisory Board feedback.”

Here are a just a few recommendations from the Ketner Group team on organizing a successful panel at SXSW:

  • It has been our experience that having at least one or two high profile speakers, whether by name or association with their company, coupled with an eye-catching topic that is new and different, is key. Our clients who have been selected for SXSW Interactive programming in recent years have used titles such as the “Future of Cool” and “Ghost Economy,” for their sessions, combined with speakers from Google, Zappos and Brooks Brothers.
  • Some of the coolest sessions that I’ve been to at SXSW have also included well-known media or industry analysts, such as this session from 2015 titled “Personalization for the People,” featuring Forrester’s lead ecommerce analyst and a reporter from CNBC, in addition to an executive from Sephora.
  • Take the time to review the sessions that were selected in previous years – SXSW loves featuring new speakers and new, never-seen before topics and data. As well, when recruiting for speakers, try to find candidates that have presented at other industry events – part of the submission process is to upload videos of the proposed speakers doing what they do best, speak! SXSW is looking to fill their programming with engaging folks who will, for lack of better words, put butts in the seats.
  • Learn all you can from others who have been successful at SXSW, and don’t make the mistakes of others. SXSW is hosting best practices meet ups in multiple cities over the next few weeks – take advantage of these events to learn how to make your proposal stand out. As well, there are plenty of blogs and articles, like ours here, that will give you guidance on what works and what doesn’t. Check out this great article in the Austin American-Statesman that outlines four concepts that make a better panel for SXSW audiences.

If your panel does get selected for SXSW, that’s when the real work begins! Stay tuned for future blogs on how to best prepare your speakers for SXSW and how to successfully promote your panel leading up to the festival. In the meantime, if you need any guidance on submitting a panel for SXSW this year, feel free to contact me at [email protected] and our team would be glad to help!

Good luck!

 

SXSW 2016: The Customer May Always Be Right, But What The Heck Do They Want?

Posted on | by Mariana Fischbach

SXSW Interactive 2016 blazed through Austin this past week in typical disruptive fashion, bringing the tech industry’s brightest minds into town for a five-day festival that was all business during the day and all party during the night.

No matter the application, the topic of how to engage customers was at the forefront of the most prominent conversations. From machine learning to data analytics to mobile, all technology pointed to one focal point – the customer and their engagement.

However, during all of the discussions one thing became apparent: while we now have technology that can help us track and study customers’ actions throughout the engagement cycle, we cannot yet decipher what prompted the customer to begin the engagement process with a particular brand.

Zappos Product Manager Kandis Yaokum best described it during the panel session titled “Future of Cool: Predicting What’s Next in Fashion”. Sitting alongside ThoughtWorks Senior Retail Consultant Rachel Brooks, Google Fashion Data Scientist Olivier Zimmer and Shoptelligence Founder Laura Khoury, Yaokum discussed how data analytics is helping fashion retailers predict what will be the industry’s next big trend. When Yaokum was asked “what kept her up at night?,” she answered that it was not knowing why a particular customer decided that a certain product was the “cool one” to buy and what stirred the initial curiosity to engage with a brand.

All the panel members described how data analytics is historical by nature, and can help deliver better insights into overall trends that can help predict the future. However, understanding what sparked a customer’s initial attention is still something that technology cannot yet decipher.

It seems we are at an inflection point, however; additional sessions all pointed to a better understanding of the customer and different ways we can look at the convergence of brand and technology to spark and measure customer’s attention. Key themes that emerged included:

It’s all about psychology: a brand’s engagement with a consumer should have personal and organic connection.

  • Marcela Sapone, founder of the New York based startup, Hello Alfred, discussed that how brands make you feel is all about perception, and brands can use this perception alongside technology as a metric to continue innovating and building a better product.

Going beyond the product – A physical store setting should be more about the overall experience and providing content customers can immerse themselves in.

  • STORY founder Rachel Shecthman discussed how the retail store should be utilized as a media channel to create an experience that immerses customers in the overall story and gives them something to do. We should think about physical stores as living labs and places of entertainment that are enabled by technology.

Democratizing access to luxury: luxury is now defined as a combination of access, experiences and usability.

  • Discussing wearables, Uri Minkoff and Decoded’s Liz Bacelar emphasized how luxury items should be both about usability and functionality and how the wearables of the future will be more about portraying emotion than tracking health data.

ALL customers are individuals.

  • Refinery29’s Phillipe von Borries discussed how all brands should look to people as individuals instead of grouping them into a block such as a generational age group. The power, he says, lies in niches – people who are defined by their overall passions and hobbies.

At the end of the day, the customer is the key driver, and brands that look to incorporate innovative technologies and tactics into their overall customer experience philosophy will continue to spark their attention.

Videogames, Stethoscopes and Retail Robots: South by Southwest 2016 is going to Rock

Posted on | by Ketner Group

SXSW_Platinum-2015-RGBWhen the experts from a diverse range of disciplines come together under one roof, each with their own unique perspectives and hard-earned knowledge, invaluable insights are to be expected. This March, some of the world’s most respected medical innovators, videogame designers and marketing all-stars (just to name a few) will join the panels of South by Southwest 2016’s Interactive Series in Austin, Texas to dissect, debate and present the most groundbreaking discoveries in each of their respective fields. Of course, they will all be awesome, but there are six in particular that we are dying to see (and you should be too). We have a handful of clients throwing their hat in the ring to speak on some incredible panels, and we encourage you to support the panelists with your vote, and tell us which presentations have you most excited!

First up is Order Dynamics, resident experts at retail data analytics. They will dive into the world’s toughest industry to find the perfect commerce cocktail with their discussion on “Retail Data Mixology.” John Squire, President of DynamicAction, will join Kevin Ertell of Sur la Table, Laura SXSWHeller of FierceMarkets and Forbes, and Dr. David Bell, a consumer shopping behavior expert from the University of Pennsylvania, to uncover key ways to pinpoint customer and marketing needs. Show your support by voting them into the Panel Series here.

As well, 360pi, big data pricing analysts, are prepared to give you a glimpse “Inside the Retail Vortex.” They will share valuable insights along with Paula Rosenblum of RSR Research, Andy Voelker of Ace Hardware, and Dana Klein of Reebok Adidas Group, on what the “new normal” of retail looks like for brands who are adapting (or not) to the online surge. Vote them into the Panel Series here.

Shopatron will save you from the wait of online shopping and divulge how to avoid the retail “time suck.” Learn from CEO of Shopatron Ed Stevens and San Francisco Chronicle columnist and author Thomas Lee about how retailers can improve customer sentiment and reduce shipping costs by getting smart about local product searches. Vote for this panel to be officially selected into the Series here, and we’ll see you there!SXSW2

Mirakl will tell us the story of “How the Online Marketplace Ate Retail.” We all love shopping online in some form or fashion – but how much of that is done on Amazon, and now Jet.com? While it may be ideal for consumers, retailers are still working out exactly how to keep their profits up and overhead low. Join Mirakl’s CEO for the U.S. Adrien Nussenbaum, Paula Rosenblum of RSR Research and Forbes, and Chandhu Nair of Staples as they provide insights on our web-based retail era. Show your support with a vote here, and we’ll see you in Austin!

Watch human and machine collide with Edgecase’s Lisa Roberts and their fellow panelists Brian Schultz of Crate and Barrel, John Perasco of Urban Decay, and Alicia Fiorletta of Retail TouchPoints as they present “The Future of Retail: Human + Machine Curation.” Show them your excitement and support with a vote here to see just how machine learning can revolutionize online shopping.

Want to be a retail fortune-teller? Retail Innovation Consultant Rachel Brooks of ThoughtWorks will predict the “Future of Cool” for retailers in the fashion industry alongside Google’s Fashion Data Scientist Olivier Zimmer, Zappos’ Content Editor Kandis Yoakum, and CEO and Founder of Shoptelligence Laura Khoury. They’ll discuss how technology can help retailers deduce up-and-coming fashion trends, but they need your vote here to officially join the Series.

With such a compelling lineup, innovation is expected, breakthroughs are likely, and fun is a definite. Place your votes now (deadline is this Friday, September 4), and we will see you in March!

Looking back on SXSW Interactive 2015

Posted on | by Ketner Group

Originally posted on PRSA Austin Chapter website. 

SXSW Interactive celebrates its 21st year in Austin, Texas.
SXSW Interactive celebrates its 21st year in Austin, Texas.

Every year, South by Southwest Interactive brings together the most innovative, entrepreneurial and accomplished individuals to showcase their products and ideas in front of eager audiences. 2015 was certainly no different.

A number of PRSA Austin Chapter board members were in attendance and answered a few questions about their experience. Check out their insight below:

What was your favorite session/panel at SXSW Interactive and why?

  • Sara Lasseter: I immensely enjoyed the panel on the Next Generation of Retail Innovation with the CEOs and founders of StitchFix and Rent the Runway. They had wonderfully insightful commentary on the state of retail and ecommerce operations, as well as where they see their innovative companies going in the future. As a woman in the technology industry, it was inspiring to hear the obstacles they faced in a male dominated startup/venture capital world.
  • Madison LaRoche: My favorite panel of SXSWi was on Reinventing the Cooking Show, in which representatives from PBS Food, ingredient sourcing show Original Fare and online cooking site ChefSteps.com discussed their experiences with digital cooking and food content. Regardless of their goals or plans for how their content would be consumed, all agreed that the digital format allowed for flexibility that was nonexistent in the time of Julia Child. Versus broadcast TV, the digital format allows for greater audience participation, allowing for content to create a feedback loop and a channel for dialog not previously available. At the close of the panel, the message was clear: stay true to the story you want to tell and maintain your authenticity in order to build and maintain brand equity. This lesson rings true well beyond the foodie content culture.
  • Erica Schuckies: My favorite session was called Entertainment and the Edge: Post Millennial Culture. Ian Pierpoint and Jack Horner (who both had very sexy English accents, by the way) provided insight into the minds of ‘Generation Edge,’ which consists of individuals born right after the Millennial generation (after 1995). Pierpoint’s research into this group showed that kids today are more socially aware of the pitfalls in our society and feel a responsibility to make positive changes more than any other generation (at least at their age). Horner described this generation as “rebels with a cause,” acting against the norm to make life better for not only themselves, but also their peers and future generations. Generation Edge is also more thoughtful of what they post on the web and social media; as Horner so eloquently put, “posting less shit.” Let’s hope this is true for all our sakes.
  • Alison Kwong: I really enjoyed the Lyft keynote on Monday afternoon. CEO and co-founder Logan Green is such a smart, articulate spokesperson who was very clear about his company’s story, vision and key differentiators from his competitors. It was apparent in the messaging and what he said about the marketing and plans for growth and future expansion. I also enjoyed Charles Barkley’s panel about staying relevant in the digital age. As a well-respected member of the sports media, I thought his perspective on why he doesn’t participate in social media was interesting as most of his peers and athletes do. The main takeaway was that authenticity and honesty go a long way in the media, especially in the sports industry.
  • Catherine Seeds: My favorite session by far was What Fashion Can Teach Women-Led Companies, which included a panel of the CEO and co-founder of Birchbox, the founder and CEO of Reformation Apparel and the founder and chief editor of Snob Essentials (Great blog on hand bags, by the way, if that is your thing!). This was a wonderful session on how these women have differentiated themselves and their companies by the way they communicate and engage with their customer base and by knowing exactly what their customers (mostly women) want and expect from these fashion and beauty brands. The panel discussed the social media effect on their companies, advice to other women on successfully launching their own companies, and some of the challenges they’ve faced as women-owned companies.

What were the trends that stood out to you while attending the Interactive portion?

  • Alison Kwong: Big data and analytics; the Internet of Things and how it drives innovation; the importance of good content.
  • Catherine Seeds: Retail tech was HUGE this year at SXSW.
  • Sara Lasseter: How to harness big data; mobile tech, of course; the customer experience.
  • Erica Schuckies: Customization of EVERYTHING, from wearables to user experiences to marketing & advertising; short-form video and social platforms catering to this concept (Meerkat, Meerkat, Meerkat); mobile-first mentality.

Did you Meerkat at all during SXSW Interactive? If so, what did you Meerkat?

  • Madison LaRoche: I downloaded Meerkat but was too scared/busy/uninterested to experiment with it at the time.
  • Erica Shuckies: Same as Madison – I downloaded the app with all intentions of Meerkatting my life away. To be completely honest, I kind of forgot about it most of the time, especially in moments that would have been perfect for it.

What was the coolest/most unique thing you saw during the Interactive portion?

  • Madison LaRoche: Unfortunately I didn’t see many amazing brand executions at SXSW this year, but to be honest, I wasn’t looking for them as hard as I have in the past. One of the most interesting panels I attended was the last Interactive Keynote of 2015, in which Dr. Astro Teller, captain of moonshots for Google[x], gave a passionate speech on failing with purpose. At his “moonshot factory” – a sci-fi-esque arm of Google devoted to exploring new technology to solve global problems – Teller encourages his colleagues to fail fast and harness those failures as learning opportunities toward success. He gave case study after case study of huge, time-intensive and expensive projects in which failure was part of the process to figure out what doesn’t work to get to what does. Though these examples were fascinating on their own, the best part of the speech was Teller’s extraordinary tenacity for and promotion of this “fail fast, fail often” approach. During the Q&A portion at the end, an obviously inspired but desperate attendee asked via Twitter how a company without the luxury and budget to fail could harness this approach. An exasperated Teller exclaimed that this poor soul missed the whole point of the talk, which was the simple fact that failing at the START of something (and being able to fix it) is much cheaper than failing at the END (when it’s simply too late to do anything about it).
  • Catherine Seeds: My colleagues and I had the opportunity to sit in on a session with the editor of Lucky Magazine, Eva Chen. She was fantastic and very down to earth. Here is a great write-up on her.

If you weren’t able to attend the Interactive portion of SXSW this year, we did the hard work for you and compiled a list of some great SXSWi recaps. Be warned, there are plenty of Meerkat mentions.

How about we all meet back here around this time next year? Until then, we will be catching up on sleep, nursing our blisters and over-tweeted fingers, and putting our learnings to good use!

Retail Tech & KG @ SXSW 2015

Posted on | by Ketner Group
Media Tech SXSW Image Think
Visual capture of Mashable CEO Peter Cashmore’s featured session at SXSW Interactive

It was a whirlwind of a week for KG at South by Southwest Interactive, and now that we’ve recovered from our java jitters and breakfast taco binge, we wanted to bring you the best recaps and insights on SXSW we’ve seen so far!

Several media outlets had their own opinion on the state of SX and trends we’ve seen become the hot topic

A few tech announcements and launches were made as well, including the rise of Meerkat and the Google Glass cause of death.

For the KG team, we really resonated with several of the gender-focused sessions highlighting the gender gap in technology and how next-generation retail companies are turning that on its side. We also loved this chat on optimizing content for growth!

We live and breathe retail at KG, so of course we hit up the amazing retail sessions throughout the conference. Our esteemed colleague and Editor-In-Chief of RIS News, Joe Skorupa, (who also moderated the OrderDynamics Ghost Economy panel) published an amazing recap of SXSW Interactive.

As well, UK publication The Guardian did a splendid write-up on retail’s growing presence at the innovative convention where retailers meet techies meet investors meet media meet tacos.

What were some of your favorite Interactive sessions this year? How was it different from past experiences you’ve had at the conference? We’d love to hear from you!

Until next year, SXSW!

Geeking out over SXSW Panel Announcement!

Posted on | by Ketner Group

It’s only Tuesday, and the week is turning out to be very special for the Ketner Group team! A few months ago we took on the very daunting and detailed task of submitting a few of our clients to present at SXSWInteractive, in conjunction with the SXSW festival hosted right here in Austin, Texas. Yesterday morning, we were among the thousands of entrants refreshing our Twitter feed and the SXSW webpage. And finally, the magic happened—the list was announced, and we saw one of our client’s panel session was selected! Much excitement ensued, and perhaps a few yee-haws and whoops!

Image courtesy of SXSWInteractive
Image courtesy of SXSWInteractive

In addition to seeing our client OrderDynamics’s panel on the $800 billion “Ghost Economy” of lost sales retailers battle every year, there are several panels and sessions I’m planning on attending next March. Here’s a preview of a few retail and brand sessions I’ll be attending:

  • The $2 Billion Promise of Predictive Intelligence: Predictive intelligence is becoming a major topic for retailers. I’m planning on attending this session to see how Cisco and 6Sense are addressing this through their software platform to turn previous clicks and conversions into future products and purchases.
  • Mobile Tech and the Retail Revolution: Who hasn’t Shazammed a song to win an argument with a friend? In this panel, the CPO of Shazam, CPO of Mood Media and a senior editor of WWD will be discussing how retailers can utilize technology to create one-of-a-kind in-store shopping experiences while employing the wealth of product knowledge on the internet through mobile interaction.
  • Managing a Shit Storm and Restoring Your Brand: Let’s be honest—with a title like that who wouldn’t want to attend this session? I have a personal admiration for professionals and practitioners in the crisis communication field, so anytime I have an opportunity to learn from them, I’m there. This panel will give me some insight on proactively and reactively managing crises. I’m also interested in seeing how big data companies are evaluating social media response to crises.
  • Personalization for the People: Personalization is a HUGE topic in retail for the upcoming year. Retailers are tiptoeing on the fine edge of maintaining consumer privacy and providing personalized experience. I’m looking forward to hearing how this panel will suggest maintaining customer loyalty and amazing shopping experiences while not being seen as the “Big Brother” of retail.

As this year will be my first SXSW to attend and with over 700 sessions, meetups and panels to chose from, I will be making a schedule of my sessions of choice with three back-up options per time slot. Yes, I’m one of those people. If you’re coming to SXSW, be sure to stop by the Ghost Economy panel; it promises to be haunting.

The Rise of Consumer Control: What’s a Business To Do?

Posted on | by Ketner Group
ThoughtWorks ParadigmShift 2014, a thought leadership conference on business disruption and customer engagement in Austin, Texas.
ParadigmShift 2014, a thought leadership conference hosted by ThoughtWorks in Austin, Texas, on business disruption and customer engagement.

With the evolution and widespread use of the Internet, mobile devices and social media, we’ve arrived in a fast-paced, noisy and fickle consumer environment.  It takes a matter of hours for consumer opinions to go viral across the web, and in a world where word-of-mouth travels like wildfire, businesses need to keep their ears to the ground to anticipate the next bit of buzz at the digital water cooler. Consumers have infinite stores and brands and tons of ecommerce choices to search for and buy the products and services they want – so how does a business foster a loyal community of shoppers in the digital world? Our client ThoughtWorks says let the consumer take the wheel.

ThoughtWorks has recognized the significance of the customer loyalty revolution in today’s hyper-connected economy, and plans to address the changing face of engagement at ParadigmShift — its 3-day, invite-only thought leadership conference September 21-23, right in our own backyard. “Technology is upending the dynamic of customer engagement,” says ThoughtWorks CEO Craig Gorsline, and ParadigmShift can help business leaders in all verticals prepare and execute the most effective strategies for two-way digital consumer interaction and loyalty.

Today’s shopper has unlimited instant access to information, reviews, social media and news surrounding a business, its products and reputation – all available at their fingertips. ParadigmShift will illuminate the profound changes in the customer landscape and open up the dialogue between top enterprise executives on how organizations can maintain relevancy with each other and their consumers.

Hugh Forrest, director of the ever-evolving and widely attended SXSW Interactive conference, will lead the closing keynote for the event, giving attendees an exclusive look into the dynamic inner workings of the minds behind the 4-day innovation summit that so wildly inspires SMB entrepreneurs and large enterprises around the world.

With redefined roles of engagement and brand loyalty, increased convenience, speedier interactions and the rise of personal choice, businesses must accept that handing the reigns to the consumer is not a bad thing. It’s what shoppers want, and when businesses embrace it, they’ll lead the next generation of successful customer engagement.

Stay tuned for more insights from conference sessions next week!

KG @ SXSWi 2014 – What’s Hot!

Posted on | by Ketner Group
Keynote speaker Austin Kleon speaks to the idea of “Scenius” during his session on creativity.

Spring is here in Austin, Texas, which means it’s that special time of year where we can all expect the lovely Texas sunshine to accompany us while we traipse around the Austin Convention Center during the annual South by Southwest Interactive Festival. Well, the sunshine hasn’t been quite as present as we would have liked, but even some rainy weather can’t put a damper (see what I did there?) on KG’s time at SXSW!

For the last six years, Ketner Group has had a presence at one of the top technology and innovation conferences in the world that takes place right in our own backyard. We saw it begin as a little seedling of an event, and then grow into the geek-meetup monster that it is today. Before I dive into the hottest topics covered at SXSW Interactive this year, check out these cool stats on the festival:

  • SXSW began as a music-only conference in 1987, but added in a vertical for techies in 1994, marking the beginning of the festival’s 20-year history in tech, innovation and communications as a vital role to the conference.
  • Past keynote speakers include Blake Mycoskie of TOMS Shoes, Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook, Elon Musk of SpaceX, and Mark Cuban, tech investor and current owner of the Dallas Mavericks NBA team. This year adds “Cosmos” host Neil deGrasse Tyson and Chelsea Clinton, daughter of President Bill Clinton and Senator Hilary Clinton.
  • The first SXSW had about 700 attendees, and this year the organization expects to see more than 70,000 techies, musicians and film buffs exploring the streets of Austin and probably enjoying more than a few breakfast tacos.

Along with the growing attendance of SXSW, new and exciting brands, startups, and entrepreneurs are venturing to Austin to showcase the latest and greatest ideas in the tech community worldwide. And speaking of worldwide, several nations have brought their top techies to the festival, with companies representing Germany, Ireland, Chile, Argentina, and the UK (to name just a few) hosting trade show booths and after-hour events, as well as sessions on innovation in their respective countries. Fun fact: Ireland was named the best startup ecosystem in Europe by Forbes magazine. So who knows, the next new neighbor in your office complex may have an endearing accent with a strange affinity for Guinness…

But I digress, let’s talk about the top three trends at SXSW this year:

Wearable Tech: Where is it Now, and Where is it Going?
Whether you’ve noticed it or not, wearable technology is beginning to grow more and more popular among the innovators and first adopters among us. It’s a term we’ve been reading about a lot lately it seems, but what actually constitutes a technology as “wearable”? A list of the most recognizable wearable tech accessories include smart watches, fitness tracking devices for the wrist or ankle, and of course the always controversial Google Glass. But many products that haven’t yet become mainstream, such as wearable tech accessories that range from audio sensors that connect everyday objects to Bluetooth enabled rings that act like wands at the end of our arms – yes, really! We’ll be digging in a little deeper on a follow up blog post, so don’t miss out on what’s coming in wearable tech!

Personalization: What’s Appreciated vs. What’s Creepy
Brands are arriving at a crossroad between giving the customer the ultimate, personalized experience and being just plain creepy. There’s a wealth of data out there, and businesses are beginning to utilize it to learn more about their individual customers in order to bring them exactly what they need and where there need at the right time. So how can brands approach personalization without going too far? One tip: Don’t be overt about why you’re offering the discount you are (“You normally eat lunch at noon, but we noticed you haven’t gone to your favorite sandwich shop yet – here’s a coupon for a $1 off if you stop by at 2 p.m.!”).  Check out KG’s PB&J blog in a couple weeks for a more in depth look at how to keep the “creepy” out of personalization.

Bitcoin: Why it’s the Next Mainstream Currency
Bitcoin is becoming more and more popular, but it’s still not very widely used and is commonly misunderstood. I’m one of the curious-but-cautious types regarding a virtual currency, as it’s a concept that seems too abstract to hold real value. But that’s just it – what does give any of our familiar currencies, paper, coin or virtual, any value in the economy? Value is all perceived and relevant in the marketplace that fluctuates from nation to nation – and a virtual currency works in the same way. Some say that because it’s more secure than credit cards, (again, yes, really) Bitcoin is worth a second look from the non-believers. We’re posting a comprehensive look at Bitcoin on the blog in the next few weeks, so stick around because Bitcoin seems to be doing just that!

Stay tuned for follow up blogs on these three topics, as each deserves their own dedicated, in-depth look so we’re all as well versed as our SXSW Interactive session leaders.

What other trends have you noticed at SXSW this year? Comment below – we’d love to hear from you!