7 Things I could be doing at SXSW

For those of you that don’t know what SXSW is – it’s a big ass party with really cool gift bags, if you have the right pass. Previously centered around music and indie film, it is increasingly a place for interactive media. The last time I went was 2001.  I had a flip phone the size of a brick and a $400 cell bill that month – oh roaming, maybe that was the first time.

The older I get the more cities and experiences blur, especially the same city and the same event, so my 3 times being in Austin during SXSW have become a memory mashup with a little bit of 2 ACL’s thrown in. Nevertheless here is my list:

  1. Seeing REM – It’s been 6 or 7 years since the last time I saw them. You have to have priorities
  2. Seeing Darryl Hall and Friends, I mean what is Hall without Oates? I guess Oates isn’t considered a friend anymore. You’re curious too and I bet you never saw them either so new is good. Rock n Soul Pt 1 is like the album of a generation.
  3. The Flagstock Poster Show
  4. I would use cerado’s Pocket Guide to find twitter friends, that sounds weird, but it’s what I would do.
  5. People watch from the lobby of the intercontinental and random around 6th a good deal.
  6. Catching up with folks I know in Austin (John P, Eric S, Dan W & Trey)
  7. Sharing my experience via my iPhone.

It’s weird, my top priorities would be music, then art, then media. It is what it is… I probably wouldn’t even buy an IA badge. It’s all theoretical anyhow, since I’m sitting at home with 2 kids, 2 dogs, 6 episodes of Super Why on the Tivo, an internet connection and just enough Easy Mac to make it through the weekend.

Oddly enough – I think I have more of an opportunity at home, than on the road. Priorities indeed.

March 8, 2008 by
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5 Early Warning Signs that YOU are a TRUE Fan of Social Media

So with all the buzz around Kevin Kelly’s 1000 True Fans, the holy grail of social media artist, I was thinking how do you know if you’re a true fan, so I got a little introspective and did a little browsing of my network to TRY and identify 5 attributes/activities/attitudes of a true fan of social media:

1. YOU realized Facebook is not just a way to stay in touch, but a way to for YOU to understand: With the myriad of applications available, there are a lot of things you can do on Facebook, but do you use the network to better know people, what they do and WHO they are and WHY?

2. YOU use tags as your main browsing/search option: You prefer to browse by bookmarks rather than traditional search on google. Has folksonomy become your taxonomy?

3. YOU appreciate contribution/sharing as much as consuming: Community is about engaging and sharing and as much as any other noun, social media is about community and the conversations which emerge. This item also means you want your favorite sites to be up, rather than down, (think twitter) and you understand it’s the value of your network, not the size.

4. YOU are constantly on the lookout for the next killer widget: When new platforms emerge, new widgets show up on someone’s blog or you get an invite to participate in a beta -you do it because you want to see if it can improve your life and your relationships.

5. YOU vote with your spend/click for your key influencers: This is the final stop in social media fan-dom, you appreciate the folks who influence your social media experience and click on ads which are of low interest, buy their book or hire them for a speaking or consulting engagement. (That being said – I don’t like keyword ads.)

March 7, 2008 by
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