SXSW 2010 Takes the Lead in Social Media

So South By Southwest (SXSW) kicked off last Friday in Austin, Texas. For those who aren’t aware, SXSW is a conference and festival showcasing original music, independent films, and emerging technologies and is one of the largest in the world.

“Year after year, the event is a launching pad for new creative content. New media presentations, music showcases and film screenings provide buzz-generating exposure for creators and compelling entertainment for audiences. Conference panel discussions present a forum for learning, business activity thrives at the Trade Shows and global networking opportunities abound.” – sxsw.com

There are more than 350 bands and music biz delegates from Australia and NZ networking and showcasing what they have to offer, only behind Britain and Canada as the most represented region out of the 54 countries represented at SXSW. This is great for our local music scene!

The most exciting thing for us at d.tail to see is the social media plan SXSW has implemented this year.

The SXSW website has a multitude of information including a guide for first timers, a full schedule of events, and all the latest news. SXSW has gone above and beyond for the SXSW attendee this year.

The official social network of the festival is my.SXSW, which you were automatically invited to join upon registering. This closed network, only available for SXSW attendees enables users to connect with others at the festival, customize their own schedule and join exclusive groups within the festival. This network also has it’s own iPhone app. Within this network, SXSW are using QR Codes (Quick Response Codes), a special kind of bar code that can be read by mobile phones, creating a real-life “follow me” button.

“When you meet someone at an event, let them scan your badge with their smart phone, and they will automatically be following you on my.SXSW, where they can message you or access your contact information. Hopefully, this will cut down on the paper footprint of SXSW by reducing the need for business cards.” – sxsw.com

Another app they’ve created is the SXSW® Play - Music, Film, Interactive, a new media discovery app chock full of rich media from musicians, films and interactive panels featuring at the festival.

There’s also an event calendar on sched.org, integrated with social media, that gives you detailed coverage of each day’s action.

If SXSW attendees want to link up with their twitter friends they can use the SitBy.Us tool that lets you see what panels your twitter friends will be attending and where in the room they will be sitting!

There’s also SXSW badges for Foursquare up for grabs and also real-time maps to see who’s doing what at SXSW and where they are doing it.

The social media experts at Mashable have also put together their own network, “Mashable’s Austin Real Time” to connect people with the social media community in attendance.

And that’s just for those attending…

‘What if I’m not going?’ I hear you ask. Well there’s the Official SXSW Facebook and Twitter accounts, the SXSW video site, the SXSW blogs, or follow along with Mashable’s SXSWi channel.

Seems they have thought of it all! It’s all pretty cool I say and I hope to see more people following their lead!

To see what SXSW has to offer this year, check out their website.

EB