SXSW: A blur in the rear-view mirror

Photo courtesy of SXSW Interactive Festival

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Both Austin and myself are fully recovered from the sleepless madness that is the South By South West (SXSW) onslaught of all things branded and hipster and geeky-cool that is now a much-loved and/or much-hated March tradition, depending on whom you ask (and whether or not you ask them as they sit in gridlocked traffic courtesy of all the road closures).

Though March and April(!) have come and gone, as have the road closures, thank goodness, I’m still thinking about a few sessions at SXSW Interactive (SXSWi) that opened my eyes to new ideas, and that’s the true value of SXSWi. As a busy professional, and one of the 69% of PR professionals that eat lunch at their desks every day, it’s so easy to put on blinders as I sit, chained to my computer every day, waging war against deadlines and monitoring budgets. Everyone needs to shake it up sometimes, and two sessions in particular posed questions that, a month and a half later, I still can’t shake.

The first session that blew me away was #bingle, a joint session with Danny Sullivan, Founding Editor Search Engine Land at Google, and Duane Forrester, Senior Product Marketing Manager of Bing Webmaster Tools. A pure Q&A format, the conversation was fluid and candid as SXSWi attendees took to the microphone to ask the experts. See the whole #bingle twitter feed here—look at the tweets from March 8-14.

 

 

 

The main question I walked away asking myself was this: What is the value of wire distribution for press releases?

Search engines have been discounting press releases for SEO for years.  So what’s the real value here? This question has come up a few times recently at KG, but hearing it directly from Google and Bing has increased our sense of urgency in reevaluating our internal processes. While we’ve always been very selective about which press releases we distribute via the wire and which circuits we recommend, we can still be more strategic in why and when we recommend wire distribution.

The other session that I still quote and think about daily (not exaggerating) was #socialb2b, “B2B Social Marketing: Blazing New Trails,” led by marketing experts Jamie Grenney, VP of Social Media & Online Video at Salesforce.com, Jason Bartlett, VP of Global Social Marketing at Xerox Corporation and Jeanette Gibson, Sr. Director of Social & Digital Marketing at Cisco Systems Inc. See the feed of tweets from March 11 here.

This session was packed with tidbits that have not just lingered in my memory, but have actually inspired change within myself and across KG:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And to quote myself quoting the panel:

 

 

 

The question that a session attendee asked the panel that still haunts me is: How can we translate big enterprise B2B social media success to much smaller companies with fewer resources?

The panel didn’t have an especially confident answer on that one, which is admittedly a really tough question with which the majority of businesses across the country struggle. The idea the panel did suggest, though, resonated with me. They all stressed how successful YouTube videos have been for their enterprises, and this is something many smaller companies do not invest in, but could produce on a budget. So long as there is a direct call to action within the first 15 seconds, YouTube videos are highly effective. One reason for this is how safe it is to share a familiar YouTube link. This point was driven home this week when I found an email from Networld in my inbox that aggregated some incredibly compelling stats about video:

  •  “89 million people in the United States are going to watch 1.2 billion online videos today.” (A second source: Comscore)
  • “Online video users are expected to double to 1.5 billion in 2016.” (Source: MediaPost & Cisco)
  • “Online video now accounts for 50 percent of all mobile traffic and up to 69 percent of traffic on certain networks.” (Source: TechCrunch & Bytemobile)

What’s more, PR giant FleishmanHillard saw the writing on the wall and this week announced they are rebranding from a traditional PR agency into a “channel agnostic” integrated marketing communications firm that will tackle digital marketing projects, including video.

SXSWi 2012 left me enlightened but exhausted. SXSWi 2013 left me inspired and recharged. The post-SXSWi zombie syndrome is always worth it to get out of my comfort zone and hobnob with the bright minds and progressive thinkers that are shaking up my industry. Ketner Group is committed to evolving with the times, staying fresh and current to bring our clients the most relevant, thoughtful counsel possible. We’re excited how far we have come—the new website, the new-and-improved PB&J blog, and the addition of the incredibly digitally-savvy Sara Lasseter—and we look forward to continuing to chart this new, more digital course through the rest of the year until SXSWi 2014, when we’ll fill up our inspiration tanks once more.

SXSW 2013 by the Numbers [INFOGRAPHIC]

It’s finally upon us… SXSW Interactive starts this Friday! In the spirit of all things SX, we’ve created a little infographic to boost anticipation for the start of this year’s tech, music and film extravaganza!

We’re pumped for the festival – keep a look out for KG’s Brittany and Caitlin at your interactive sessions this weekend!

Attention Tech Companies: DO NOT – I repeat – DO NOT Launch at SXSW

This blog post is reposted from Laura Beck’s shirtshorts blog. See Laura’s awesome fan-wear business at stripedshirt.com. Also, check out what Ketner Group has to say about SXSWi on our Be Spectacled page.

After 18+ years working for PR agencies, Laura Beck is focused on independent marketing and PR consulting as well as running her own commerce business, www.stripedshirt.com. Until May 2010, she ran the Austin Texas office of Porter Novelli for nearly 10 years.

 

I’m not kidding this just happened to me: this morning, last day of SXSW Interactive 2012, I get an urgent plea from a friend helping a friend who’s “PR firm dropped the ball” b/c the client was ticked no one wrote about them yet, and they needed to call in some favors, get some coverage. This client launched at SXSW (and I’m not making this up): a Smartphone app that’s a free mobile guide for events, complete with location based mapping and social media integration. iPhone only now, but coming soon for iPad, Android.

SERIOUSLY? You and about 2,000 other companies.

This one, is irritated with their PR people for not getting them enough coverage, especially after they got 50 requests for beta day 1. 50??? SXSW attracts over 20,000 tech people. 50? You are but a speck of sand on the beach, in so many ways.

Now, I feel for this PR person or firm, but really, ultimately, it’s their own fault, and here’s where this public service announcement blog post come in handy. Read it, believe it, remember it, and PLEASE please preach it from now on, for all the rest of us PR folks, and the press and bloggers, and the betterment of the tech companies of today and tomorrow.

DO NOT Launch at SXSW

The odds of you “being the next Twitter” are slim to none. And remember, that big moment for Twitter at SXSW 2007 wasn’t its launch anyway. Jack sent the first tweet a full year earlier. SXSW 2007 is just when that “hockey stick moment” happened for Twitter and everyone has been trying to replicate that magic ever since. YOU CANNOT. It was MAGIC. This stuff sometimes happens at SX, often times does not.

Last year, you could argue Group.me and Uber were the buzz, but holy cow they put the money down to do so, whether hundreds of free grilled cheese sandwiches or branding every pedi cab in town. This year, this sweet delusional mobile apps company is competing against Amex launching Sync with freaking JAY Z. Seriously? How can anyone compete with that?

So, again, DO NOT LAUNCH AT SXSW. Or at least do not come expecting traditional PR, press and blogger meetings or coverage. Just do us a favor, and do not come here with those unrealistic expectations that kill us all.

But come! SXSW is an amazing 10 days, 5 (or more) of just us tech folks. There are 20,000 people here, and over 2,000 of em are press, bloggers, influencers. And they are here to meet, and talk, and network. BUT NOT TO BE PITCHED, not to commit to a sit down briefing or meeting.

They come once a year to Austin to put faces with names, meet the companies they covered last year, get their research in for companies to cover in the future, LEARN, and network. They want to spend time with the tech community, with each other.

They will not commit to time with you or make a packed schedule (or shouldn’t) because at SXSW, you don’t know what’s coming at you when. You need to be fluid and flexible, and go with what happens. Enjoy the ride.

So PR people, please counsel your clients. And companies listen and learn. COME to SXSW, use it as an opportunity to talk to anyone and everyone about what you are up to, what you care about, and LISTEN to what they care about too. Talk with the masses, and tell them about your company, your apps, your tools, your location based social discovery smart phone apps. Do take advantage of the feeding frenzy that is 20,000 people combing the streets of Austin as awareness building, branding, marketing, stunts.

Enjoy the ride and that it is so crazy. Do not torture your PR person asking where “so and so” is, and why “such and such” didn’t agree to a meeting. Do not come here thinking you are the next Twitter, or Amex Sync. Just come, and enjoy the experience, and respect the rest of us (including the press and analysts) doing the same. With the influencers, meet them, let them know you love their writing or read their story last week. Build relationships that will last you your tech life time. But don’t pitch them or ask them for anything. Not this week.

I have done SXSW now since 2004. I have seen the show grow like crazy. I still love it. But maybe that’s because I play it right. Along with friends, I created an event each night for a smaller group of people, including national – and local – press, bloggers, analysts, influencers, VIPs where you can go to just talk with people, hang out, catch up. A “no pitch zone.” I do the same at any other events I hit, I enjoy the moment, don’t party hop or try to catch Leo or Tobey. I don’t look over my shoulder the entire time I’m talking with someone to see if anyone better is there. And I decline any PR project that comes my way that involves “launching at SXSW.” I have a lot of press friends who I hope respect and like me, because I will NOT call in favors or abuse their time here at SXSW (or anytime).

Please keep this blog URL, PR peeps and tech entrepreneurs, because I promise, if you’ve gotten to the bottom and agree with me, you’ll forget by SXSW 2013. Or you’ll talk with someone who doesn’t know, hasn’t been here, and will need this advice. It’s easy to get caught in the glamour of imaging you doing the PR for the next Twitter, being the “Next Big Thing At SXSW.” But those odds are very slim, rare and Magic! DO NOT Launch at SXSW. Rather, just come and enjoy the experience. It’ll serve you way better in the future, and over the crazy 5 days we live every March.

Goodbye 2012!

We’d like to take this time to say goodbye to 2012. It was a good year, and–just like any year–we had a few downs, but mostly ups.

2012 saw Ketner Group go to NRF’s BIG Show for the 13th year. We explored our industry at SXSW Interactive, where we learned about visual storytelling, local SEO, social branding and new SoLoMo technology. We did a refresh of our company messaging and engaged with an awesome design firm, Creative Pickle, for a complete overhaul of our website.

We are looking forward to what 2013 may bring, but before we completely turn away from 2012, we wanted to share our Christmas card photo with everyone. That’s right, we know we look good.

5 SXSWi Sessions PR Pros Shouldn’t Miss

Image provided by SXSW.com, photo by: Brittany Ryan

Image provided by SXSW.com, photo by: Brittany Ryan.
It’s T-minus one month and six days until Austin’s most anticipated conference of the year. South by Southwest Interactive (SXSWi) begins Friday, March 9 and the whole city is preparing. Hotels have tripled their rates and are mostly booked, the city is organizing the transportation routes and local Austinites are planning their schedules and thanking their lucky stars they live close by.

I’m excited Ketner Group is sending a couple of us to SXSWi—I can’t wait to absorb all of the marketing, new media and technology ideas and advice everyone has to share. The session line up looks really interesting, and the only thing that disappoints me is that I can’t be in more than one place at the same time. You should see my schedule on the SXSWi. The site lets you star the sessions you find interesting and adds them to your “My SXSW Schedule” tab in your account. There are places where I have five sessions at the same time—that’s just not possible.

This got me thinking, “I wish someone would read through all several hundred sessions and let me know which ones are a MUST-SEE as a PR professional.” Apparently, bottles aren’t big enough to hold genies and leprechauns are really hard to catch. So I read through every single session description and starred my favorites. If you’re a PR pro, I would recommend starring the following sessions for yourself:

“Newsjacking: How to Inject Your Ideas”
Presenter: David Meerman Scott (Best-selling author!)
The rules have changed. The traditional PR model—sticking closely to a preset script and campaign timeline—no longer works the way it used to. Public discourse now moves so fast and so dynamically that all it takes is a single afternoon to blast the wheels off someone’s laboriously crafted narrative. Enter newsjacking: the process by which you inject your ideas or angles into breaking news, in real-time, in order to generate media coverage for yourself or your business. It creates a level playing field—literally anyone can newsjack—but, that new level favors players who are observant, quick to react, and skilled at communicating. It’s a powerful tool that can be used to throw an opponent or simply draft off the news momentum to further your own ends. Marketing and PR expert and bestselling author David Meerman Scott prepares you to launch your business ahead of the competition and attract the attention of highly-engaged audiences by taking advantage of breaking news

“We Made This, and it’s Not an Ad”
Presenter: Robbie Whiting, Director of Creative Tech & Production, Duncan/Channon
What if agencies and marketers created products and services, not just ads? And what if they made these things for themselves, not just for clients? They do. But tackling things like product design, creating new businesses or building complex real-world experiences requires a creative, technical, managerial and entrepreneurial spirit more associated with Silicon Valley than Madison Avenue. It demands new roles, agile approaches, external partnerships, technologies, investments and compensation models that can drive even the most hardened finance director crazy. And in some cases, it may even require a complete reboot from the ground up. The ability to make something that isn’t an “ad” is no longer optional in modern advertising. But it’s certainly not easy, either. So what can we learn from the makers, technologists and agencies already playing in this space? Turns out, a whole heckuva lot.

“Get Lit: Why Story Matters”
Presenter: Jill Meyers, Editor, American Short Fiction
You built a product. It’s amazing, brilliant, even earth-shattering. You know it, your team knows it, your mom knows it. So why doesn’t anyone else seem to get it? The answer may be that you haven’t told them the right story. As it turns out, good writing is hard to come by, and people who are good at making things aren’t necessarily the best at telling their story. But don’t worry: you can learn! In the world of fiction, we’ve been thinking about story–and how to make it powerful, visceral, and beautiful–for a long time. This panel will bring the practices and structure of fiction to help you transform your idea, product, or service from the mundane to the sublime. Continue reading

Austin Got a Tattoo, and it spells Social Media

Have you heard? Mashable has challenged us to celebrate this year’s Social Media Day by proving why our city is the most social media savvy city in the world. Is it even a contest? When you think of social media’s birth of innovation and its spirit of togetherness while celebrating oppositeness, and find you still have the energy to be enthusiastic about it all, are you from LA? New York? London? No. You’re from Austin, baby.

That’s right. Home to the geek producin’, barbeque lickin’, music lovin’ masses, Austin, TX, is the birthplace of social media acceptance. Austin lifted the concept of social media from its crib and nursed it to maturity, accepting it as a part of its own flesh and blood, because that is what it has become. To Austin, social media is an organic life force, an interwoven fiber of networks that has been braided into nearly every aspect of our daily lives. Social media has tattooed itself upon our city and to prove it, we’ll give you the “A, U and S, the T and I to the N” of why Austin is the most social media savvy city in the world.

A is for Apps. Austin is a playground for social integration app developer companies. Anything from smartphone games for consumers to mobile web integration apps for businesses are created here. Many smartphone app developers call Austin home, including Qrank, Gowalla and Pangea Software, developer of the iPhone game Enigmo, which was one of the most downloaded apps in 2008.


U is for User-Friendly. For years, the City of Austin and other community groups, like the Austin Wireless City Project, have been campaigning for free wireless throughout the city. In 2006, the City of Austin partnered with the World Congress on Information Technology and Cisco Systems to provide high-speed, outdoor Internet wireless access to select areas in town. Austin’s emphasis on the importance of providing complimentary wireless access to citizens highlights its commitment to fostering an online, social and sharing community.


S is for SXSW. “South by Southwest” is probably the largest contributing factor to our argument that Austin is the most social media savvy city in the world. In fact, people from all over the world travel to Austin to spend one week of every year at the SXSW Interactive (SXSWi), Film and Music festival. According to SXSWi, attendees get “five days of compelling presentations from the brightest minds in emerging technology…showcasing the best new digital works, video games and innovative ideas the international community has to offer.” In fact, one of the most successful social media debuts at SXSWi was Twitter. That’s right, Twitter introduced its recently launched concept in Austin, TX, in 2007 to a very receptive crowd and has since grown so successful that the term, “Tweet,” has a place in the Merriam-Webster dictionary (as a noun AND a verb). Foursquare, which actually launched its location-based service at SXSWi in 2009, is another SXSWi success story. There is a reason that SXSWi in Austin is the go-to show for innovative technology companies to teach, learn and share ideas. Continue reading