Having fully recovered from the South by Southwest whirlwind, I find myself coming back to a few questions and nuggets of wisdom that I heard during during panels or in conversations with people. Some of this will surely be fodder for future blog posts, but in the meantime, if you need some food for thought, give these a whirl!
- If you were setting up an office on Mars, which one person from your would you send to start it? According to the quantifying culture panel I attended, this is the question to ask if you’re trying to determine which person on your team best embodies your company’s culture.
- On Instagram, beyond simply posting beautiful/compelling images, how can we create multiple strategic, coherent “storylines” to help brands be more effective storytellers?
- Why do people think smaller agencies only work with less sophisticated clients? During an interview, an SVP of Edelman Digital said this exact phrase: “For smaller agencies that are working with less sophisticated brands …” The rest of the sentence is irrelevant. I know many boutique agencies that work with some of the most forward-thinking brands out there. Even looking at my own company, we’re managing social media for a Fortune 100 brand — one that is routinely recognized as being among the most innovative and sophisticated in its space. “Small but mighty” is a truism for plenty of agencies that work with sophisticated, smart clients. (Note: I have A LOT to say about this. Blog post definitely forthcoming …)
- Even Jimmy Fallon gets nervous before speaking. During his keynote, he admitted that he tweeted about his session a couple hours before it started because he was nervous no one would show up otherwise.
- Rent the Runway began after the founder realized our closets hadn’t caught up with the rest of our lives. She applied logistics and technology to empower people to create “closets on rotation.” That left me wondering: What other elements of our lives or our work are being left behind? How can we add a layer of technology to create new solutions?
The past few years, the evolution of South by Southwest has been the topic of much chatter and debate. For me, I got a lot of value out of the event — everything from the panels I carefully selected to the networking events, as well as the impromptu meetings and conversations that occurred in lines, on the streets, or over beers.
I’m incredibly grateful to my new friends at domain.me, who invited me to SXSW this year. Can’t wait to return next year!