10 Tips to Make the Most of SXSW
The annual mecca for techies is back and the flak continues to roll in. How do you make SXSW Interactive worth it if you aren’t at a big brand?
I first went to SXSW 4 years ago on a last minute decision. I had just moved to NYC from California to start Philosophie’s east coast presence. I was in the middle of my first winter. I was chatting with my friend and colleague, Drew Austin, the week before SXSW at his office and he convinced me to go. I bought a roundtrip ticket to San Antonio (it was $450 cheaper) and a megabus ticket to Austin. I found a friend’s place to sleep at and the rest as they say was history. I am a huge fan of SXSW. I know it gets a lot of flak, but I believe how much value you get out of SXSW is entirely up to you.
Unlike Gary Vaynerchuk (who I respect a ton), I am not a tech superstar. He has a very fun intro keynote to SXSW. But going to SXSW is very different as a tech superstar (or if you are at a big brand) vs more of a nobody. I believe I have made the most of my 3 trips to SXSWi and wanted to share some tips to help you take advantage.
1. Have a goal
It is extremely easy to slip into the whirlwind of SXSW. You’ll end up leaving hungover and without benefitting from the conference. You need to have a goal as you head to Austin. Is it to meet potential clients? Find a new job? Learn about cool new stuff in the industry? Impress clients?
I have a single goal when I am there — meet prospective clients for Philosophie.
Having a goal is paramount because it lets you make decisions quickly on the fly. In my opinion, there is nowhere else in the world that brings together so many amazing startups, agencies and brands to one place. There’s always so much happening simultaneously that it is easy to get overwhelmed and slip into the allure of the open bars.
2. Don’t make plans. Go with the flow.
If you try to make plans at SXSW, you will fail. Too much goes on and there is no possible way you can stick to plans without missing out on a once in a lifetime opportunity.
Sign up for as many events as possible before and then just go with the flow when you get there.
Again, it’s easy to get overwhelmed and resort to the booze train.
3. Avoid the booze in the daytime
If you are hitting the conference on your corporate account and using it as a vacation, feel free to hit the bar all day long. But if you are going there to network or learn, you need to avoid the bars during the day. Maybe one hair of the dog mimosa or beer, but in general stick to the seltzers and OJs.
It’s a slippery slope to hopping on the 2pm blackout express and guaranteeing yourself a non-productive SXSW.
4. The best networking events are in the daytime.
If your goal is to network and meet people, skip the panels.
The absolute best events to meet people are during the day.
Finagle your way in to some awesome events outside the conference center and meet the real ballers of the conference. At night, Austin turns into a party and you have just as good a chance of meeting someone valuable as you do dropping them a cold email claiming you met them at SXSW. Network during the day and have some fun at night.
5. Hang out at the Driskill Bar
This is one of the best kept secrets of SXSW- when you have some downtime, head to the famous Driskill Bar and be social. Unless this post ruins that, the Driskill is the best place to meet decision makers at SXSW.
The Driskill is a beautiful old bar so you can feel like an oil tycoon while you sip your seltzer & lime.
6. Always Be Charging
You already know the famous Always be Closing monologue (or you probably aren’t going to SXSWi).
In Austin, “Always be Closing” turns into “Always be Charging”.
You run around town all day and night. If you don’t take every advantage to charge your phone, you are toast. Carry a charger with you at all times. Any break you have, charge your phone. Bring (or buy) a Mophie. You need your phone to get every ounce of life it has, and as any iPhone user knows- that’s a challenging feat.
7. Do the Rally Rinse
I coined the Rally Rinse years ago, but there’s never a better time to rock it then at SXSW.
The Rally Rinse is when you’ve had a long day, but you need to get going for a night on the town. There’s no better way to rally up than a nice shower to shake off the cobwebs.
I have a little song (and I am an AWFUL singer) that I BELT out during my Rally Rinses. The key is to hit a wide variety of octaves with a wide variety of speeds. My song is like the chorus of Mamma Mia, but instead of “Mamma Mia” I do something along the lines of “I do the Rally Rinse and it brings me back to life”. It sounds corny, but really streching the lungs and having that water clean the sweat and exhaustion off you does wonders.
Last year I got the whole Rothenberg Ventures house to do the Rally Rinse and they will attest to its magical powers.
8. Get on every ridesharing app
It is an absolute b*tch to get a cab in Austin. There are few worse feelings than trying to bribe cab drivers at 3am to take you back to your crash pad or to try and get a midday ride to Rally Rinse. Download every ride sharing app before hand — Uber, Lyft, Sidecar, Austin’s Hail-a-Cab app. Have all of them ready to go and try to get lucky. When all else fails, get away from the main streets and do your best to hail a cab. You need to give yourself every chance to succeed at getting a ride, so be prepared (and make sure your phone is charging!)
9. Introduce yourself to everyone!
SXSW is a chance to meet incredible people you normally would not have access to. Everyone is friendly and there to chat. Talk to people on your flight into Austin (I got a ride to/from Austin from San Antonio from people I met on the flight to San Antonio). Introduce yourself to as many people you can. I’ve met / bonded with people at SXSW who I now consider to be close friends. I’ve also generated a lot of business from going. People are there to network so take advantage of that.
10. Have fun!
If you don’t have fun while you are working, you aren’t doing it right.
If you are from the East Coast and dealing with this miserable snow, enjoy the sun (and be prepared for rain). Enjoy Austin’s INCREDIBLE food — get ready to put on some LBs with their BBQ and Tacos. Stick with good people and try to meet more good people.
SXSW gets a lot of flak. People think it is just a big party with no benefit or real work getting done. I know a significant amount of people have that experience. If you aren’t prepared for the madness or the type of person who can roll with it, you are going to struggle. If you follow these 10 tips I think you will find that there is no other event in the world that can provide you with so much knowledge of the tech industry or a place where you can meet so many people with such diverse backgrounds.
My prediction for the breakout hit at SXSWi 2015 is Virtual Reality. Let’s see what the VR world has to offer. I’m excited.
I’d love to hear your top tips for making the most at SXSW in the comments. And if you are planning on heading to the Interactive conference, drop me a line. I’d love to meet, but I won’t try and set a particular plan ;)
