Learning From The Best: The SXSW Playbook

In this guest post, GPJ Australia’s Felippe Diaz (pictured below) recaps one of the standout sessions from the Meetings & Event Association’s recent conference in Adelaide.
Last month, I was lucky enough to be invited to speak at the annual Meetings & Event Association’s (MEA) Conference in Adelaide. As great as it was to be able to share my experiences with a room full of my peers, the real win for me was being able to spend a couple of days hearing from some of the brightest and best in our industry.
For anyone working in the experiential space, South by Southwest (SXSW) is the benchmark by which all other events are measured. It is essentially Christmas for those involved in music, film and technology. Over a 30-year history, SXSW has developed a cult following, and despite the amount of change the world has seen in this time, it has managed to stay relevant and true to its purpose and audience, with the event taking over the city of Austin Texas for a week, as 80,000 creative folk descend on the city hungry to learn about the direction their industries are heading.
MEA conference attendees were treated to hearing from SXSW’s chief programming officer, Hugh Forrest. He’s been there since the very first SXSW in 1987 and shared his insight around the challenges he faced in growing the SXSW brand over the last 30 years, and how he and his team have managed to keep the event at the forefront of today’s culture.
Here are Hugh’s top seven tips for keeping your event relevant:
- Focus on the future – try to predict what your audience will be interested in hearing about in two to three years’ time. You won’t always get it right, but when you do, the audience sits up and takes notice. The focus for SXSW right now is wearables and the Internet of Things – it is betting that this technology will hit mainstream in the next 18 to 24 months, and wants to be the forum where people hear about it first.
- Mix younger and older speakers – it’s hard to market an event as the place where you can come to listen to presenters who will be famous in the next five years, so this needs to be balanced with well-established speakers who act as a drawcard.
- Energy trumps expertise – no matter how much of a subject matter expert someone might be, a boring presenting style means a boring presentation. Someone not as polished or well-known, but with charisma and energy, will always get a great response from the audience, with Hugh singling out Gary Vaynerchuk as a great example of someone who can have the audience in the palm of his hand just due to his enthusiasm and presence on stage.
- Sell your stories – make sure you promote all the great things that have happened at past events. This will continue to build a groundswell of anticipation (i.e. Twitter launching at SXSW in 2007 – although 11 years ago, is still one of the most talked about pieces of content for SXSW).
- Listen, listen, listen – make sure you have a robust method of being able to collect delegate feedback and act on it. Nine full months before their next event, SXSW launches its ‘Panel Picker’ platform that gives the public the opportunity to provide ideas for future content.
- Build new platforms – ensure you are pushing the envelope with regards to emerging technologies. Exploring the use of apps, VR, AR, AI, and other similar technologies ensures that SXSW is seen as a supporter and advocate of future progress.
- Creativity is king – don’t be afraid to take creative risks. Even if an idea is only 80 per cent baked, being first is far more important than being perfect.
Hugh was the first to admit that he didn’t have all the answers and that SXSW doesn’t always get it right. However, in terms of an event that has grown to transcend business, culture and technology, it remains at the top of the pack – something which we can all learn from and shoot towards.
Please login with linkedin to comment
Felippe Diaz gpj GPJ Australia Hugh Forrest South by Southwest SXSWLatest News

ghd Appoints GrowthOps Digital As Digital Marketing Partner
Global hair styling brand, ghd has today announced the appointment of GrowthOps Digital as its digital marketing partner.

Prahran Market Announces Masterchef Grand Finalist Simon Toohey As ‘Sustainable Simon’
Prahran Market is excited to announce Simon Toohey as the Market’s new sustainability guru ‘Sustainable Simon’

Xandr Shares Comprehensive Approach To Identity
Xandr today shared insight into its multi-faceted approach to identity solutions, to facilitate high-value transactions for buyers and sellers following the deprecation of third-party cookies and device IDs.

Bolster Group Launches Regional Tour ‘Small Town Big Sound’, For The Transport Accident Commission’s Vanessa
A nod to the colourful, late 70’s Aussie pub rock scene, Bolster Group has created the Small Town Big Sound campaign; collecting a handful of the nation’s locally adored bands to tour regional Victoria in the latest campaign for TAC’s Vanessa.

When It Comes Brand Building, Less Isn’t Always More
In this guest post, Hulsbosch’s creative director Marcel Wijnen, casts his design eye over what truly makes a brand and says it’s all about being true and essential… To do simple – and to be original – is a truly tough task. Not impossible, but not easy. Naturally, we can get lost in ‘striving for simplicity’ […]

Seven Victorian Charities Join Forces To Light Up Thousands Of Lives With ‘Power Up’ 2021 Campaign
Seven Victorian charities are uniting for a month-long virtual fundraising challenge - Power Up 2021 - between 28th February and 28th March. There’s no denying that 2020 affected everyone, but small charities experienced a huge drop in much needed donations and it is hoped the Power Up campaign will bring fundraising back to life.

South Australian Supermarket Chain Foodland Launches ‘Mighty’ New Campaign, Via KWP!
South Australia’s largest independent supermarket chain, Foodland – with its unforgettable jingle “Foodland, the mighty South Aussies, yeah” – will launch a new campaign on 7th March. The campaign coincides with the chain’s $251m expansion program to open twenty-five new stores, revamp fourty-seven and create 2,500 new jobs over the next five years. Agency KWP! […]

AFG Launches Brand Refresh From The Works Ahead Of Tech Launches
Ahead of major new technology launches, AFG (Australian Finance Group) has unveiled a new brand design, logo and campaign created by The Works.

Client Retentions Boost Carat’s Billings And Solidify Growth
Jim Groves, Managing Director of Carat Perth, announced today a significant growth period for the agency with the retention of three existing clients.

Julie Bishop, Thelma Plum And More: Klarna’s First Aussie Smoooth Session
A-listers turned out to Klarna's Sydney party last night. It did move significantly down the alphabet on B&T's arrival.

The Future Of Post-Pandemic Advertising Or Plain Gross? People Are Freaking Out Over This Racy Menswear Campaign
B&T warns this contains imagery of attractive people in various states of undress. And by "warn" we mean "encourage".

A Win For Privacy Or For Google? Ad Tech Industry Weighs In On Tracking Changes
Here, B&T asks "a win for privacy or for Google?" & you'd pick the splinters out of our arse such was the fence-sitting.

72andSunny Announce New Narratives: Mapping Modern Masculinity Event
72andSunny announces plans for a masculinity event, adding it's not compulsory to do donuts in a ute before attending.

Government Supports ‘Buy Aussie Now’ Marketplace With ‘Tick Of Approval’ For Australian Businesses
B&T always looks to buy Australian, except that is when it comes to sombreros, Shih Tzus or plundered Inca ruins.

Co-Founder Of Eyeota Returns As Head of Brand Solutions AU/NZ
Eyeota, the leading audience technology platform enabling the intelligent use of data, today announced its co-founder, Trent Lloyd, has been appointed Head of Brand Solutions, Australia/New Zealand.

Muval Launches First Broadcast And Digital Advertising Campaign, Targeting ‘Relocation Of The Nation’
Muval is an online booking platform for removalists, despite sounding like a psyllium fibre supplement for constipation.

The Indie Recipe: A Dash Of Agility And A Spoonful Of Adaptation
Here's the recipe for indie agency success! Sadly it doesn't go so far as tips on stealing your competitor's clients.

Clems Melbourne Launches New Content Division
Judging by the press photo, Clems content division enjoy a laugh. Unless they're learning of a colleague's termination?

The Wiggles Mash-Up Tame Impala’s ‘Elephant’ With Iconic Hit ‘Fruit Salad’ For Triple J
The Wiggles have done triple J's 'Like A Version' and, thankfully, no one had a bout of narcolepsy or a heart attack.

Yes, You Can Now Buy Cadbury Creme Egg-Flavoured Beer!
The hot cross bun said to be the ideal accompaniment to Cadbury Creme Egg beer. Followed by a trip to Weight Watchers.

WPP Snares Facebook’s Dave Rolfe For Global Head Of Production Role
Dave Rolfe named WPP's global head of production while confirming he's no relation to convicted sex pest Rolf Harris.

Thursday TV Wrap: Gogglebox Numbers Continue To Climb
With MAFS on hiatus, it was a Steven Bradbury sprint to the line for the networks last night. Sans the silly helmets.

Australian Community News Launches Travel Website
Clearly having not read a newspaper in the past 12 months, Australian Community News announces plans for travel website.

Moccona Launches New “Me-Time” Brand Platform, Via Edge
Moccona's the premium instant coffee of choice at the B&T office. Even if we do refill the jar with International Roast.

Network 10 And Nickelodeon International Partner For First-Time With Live Action Series
Dreading the fast-approaching school holidays? This may be of interest or even a bulk purchase at Dan Murphys.

Introducing The Zavy Social Scoreboard
Get yourself acquainted with the Zavy Social Scoreboard here. Why not mix a martini for added mood and intimacy.

Study: 81% Of Creatives Say COVID’s Hit Their Earnings, 40% Saying It’s More Than Halved
In lieu of the AstraZeneca vaccine, B&T's warding off the pandemic with a Vick's Vapor Rub & a Johnnie Walker & honey.

Priceline Pharmacy Celebrates Every Day Being A Festival of You, Via Whippet
Priceline celebrates the 'festival of you' in latest campaign. Particularly if you stink, itch, secrete or blister.

Foxtel Media Unveils Four New Digitally Enabled Cient Offerings
Miss the Foxtel Group 2021 Showcase yesterday? Watch a video replay of it in full here while pausing for toilet breaks.

“The Free And Open Internet Is A Force For Good”: Quantcast Reveals New Intelligent Audience Platform
On Thursday, Quantcast held their Virtual NOVA event, discussing the current state of the advertising industry, the end of third-party cookies, the open internet vs walled gardens, and data privacy and consent. The event coincided with the launch of their new Quantcast Platform. It is an intelligent audience platform powered by the company’s patented AI […]