A review of the key themes and major trends to emerge from the 2015 installment of SXSW Interactive.

1. INSIGHTS: SXSW 2015

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BACKGROUND
For nearly 30 years the South by Southwest (SXSW) Conference & Festivals
have offered the unique industry convergence of music, film, and emerging
technologies. The Interactive portion of the festival started in 1994 and has
been described as “spring break for geeks.” In recent years, companies such
as Twitter, Foursquare and GroupMe have used Interactive to generate buzz
and drive significant adoption of their emerging products.
As we have been for several years running, Access Digital was on the ground
in Austin for the 2015 installment of SXSW Interactive. Our team has compiled
the top highlights, insights and predictions for the future.
SXSW 2015
SXSW Interactive
By-the-Numbers
32,000+ attendees
6,000+ total events
3,000+ attending media
2,000+ conference speakers
1.4M Tweets (and counting)

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Live Video Streams
This year’s break out app was undoubtedly Meerkat, which allows users to live stream video from a mobile phone.
The app proved so popular that “Meerkat-ing” actually became a thing. During SXSW Twitter bought Periscope,
another live video streaming app, and subsequently cut off Meerkat’s access to the Twitter social graph. Stre.am
launched into the same, suddenly crowded market — needless to say, live video streams are here to stay.
Internet of Things (IoT)
Internet-connected devices were being demonstrated and talked about nonstop — the festival even had an IoT
category in its Innovation Awards. There were connected devices for the home and beyond, including a smart
water sprinkler system that adjusts its watering schedule based on weather information it downloads, speakers
for streaming services that learn as you listen and a BBQ smoker tricked out with sensors to detect the temperature,
amount of smoke and humidity in the interior. Every type of device we know will soon become connected and
through that, get smarter. Before connected devices see widespread adoption they must become simpler and
more secure.
Emotion + Empathy
Whether it was discussions around content, new apps, attracting and retaining talent or focus areas for innovation,
using emotion and having empathy were common themes in 2015. Given the massive glut of content that is
generated every day, brands were repeatedly told to focus on evoking emotion from their target audience or
not bother.
What’s Trending in 2015

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What’s Trending in 2015
Wearables
A hot topic at SXSW in years past, much of the wearable discussion this year focused on design. There was a
fascinating discussion around how the human body is the most difficult canvas for which to design and experts
suggested that technology and fashion are quickly becoming one. What we consider “wearable” technology today
will be invisible tomorrow — embedded into the very fabric of the clothing we wear.
Health / Wellness
Improving the quality and elongating life has and will always be a top priority for the human race. It’s why we see
so many fitness-centric wearables succeeding, the healthcare tech space blowing up and yoga classes and runs
scheduled each morning for the duration of SXSW. This year we even saw popular fitness tacking devices for babies,
pets and beyond. Thanks to continued technological innovation, health and wellness will be a theme for years to
come.
Humans vs. Robots
There was a robot petting zoo where the robots were created with natural disaster relief efforts in mind. Leading
tech figures, including Elon Musk, discussed the need for artificial intelligence research and regulation to ensure that
robots are used for good and don’t ultimately replace humans. A dating app even used this trend to organize a
marketing stunt — a Stop the Robots “protest.” How close is “Chappie” to becoming a reality?

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What’s Trending in 2015
Food
Food (read: BBQ and food trucks) has
always been a huge part of the SXSW
experience. In its second year, the SouthBites
program included a host of panels, mixers
and meet ups that had people buzzing
in multiple senses of the word. With
participation from multiple celebrity chefs,
hot topics included how technology and
entrepreneurship are impacting the future of
food and a lively discussion on the role of
digital media in food criticism.
Sports
SXsports has grown immensely since its introduction in 2014 and continued to explore the cultural impact, human
experience and innovation within the sports world. Live events drive massive social media sharing as fans react to
action on the field, on the ice or on the court — so it only makes sense that athletes and teams will use those same
channels to engage fans. This year saw a higher caliber of speakers (professional athletes, social media leads of top
teams, etc.) and a more robust variety of sports-related topics covered at SXSW.

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Intimate VIP Events
With the crazy number of events held each day / night, attendees have
their pick of the litter. Aim for quality over quantity by making your event
an exclusive one, so attendees can be confident that everyone in the room
is someone they’ll want to hang out with.
Make it even more attractive by having a hot musical performer or
celebrity speaker.
Getting Out Early
Startups that do want to leverage SXSW as a launching pad of sorts have to get their product in the hands of the
digerati at least 2-3 weeks prior to the annual migration south to Austin.
This allows early adopters to use the product at the festival and expose more of their fans and followers to it in the
process.
Lounges and Spaces to Actually Get Work Done
Believe it or not, Wi-Fi and battery life continue to be major issues at SXSW. Attendees are constantly looking
for places to plug-in — and it’s even better if they’re able to have a bit of quiet and calm, enjoy a fast Internet
connection and get a little work done.
SXSW: What’s Hot

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SXSW: What’s Hot
Brands That Add Value to the SXSW
Experience in Creative and Useful Ways
No one needs another flyer about your app
or service. Figure out a way to make your
product useful to attendees during the show
and you’ll win over fans.
For example, the #mophieRescue campaign
had St. Bernard puppies deliver free mobile
phone chargers to attendees in need.

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Leveraging Brand Equity to Get Out of Paying Bands
Don’t try to get bands to play at your event by offering them free publicity instead of cold hard cash. The negative
backlash isn’t worth it.
Big, Blowout Parties
There’s so much happening every night at SXSW that the massive parties of years past are no longer the place to
be. Even if you do something intimate, don’t expect to get a ton of business done — for the most part people just
want to blow off some steam.
Repetitive Content and Topics
SXSW veterans notice similar programming that doesn’t stray very far from prior years. If you’re on a panel or
proposing one for next year — think outside the box, pair up with unexpected partners and offer up something truly
different.
Stalking Celebrities to Get Them to Invest in Your Startup
Most celebrities are in for their appearances and then head out soon after (unless there’s a really hot party to stick
around for). They don’t want to be bombarded by thousands of startup founders trying to pitch them the next big
thing — save it.
SXSW: What’s Not

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Our Predictions for 2016
SXSW will get even more crowded, increasingly noisy and further embraced by big corporate sponsors. What
was once a start-up driven conference where exciting things happened is growing up and evolving quickly into
something else.
Given many consumers’ intense interest in all things food, SXSW will continue to expand its SouthBites programming
and related sponsorship opportunities.
It’ll be nearly impossible to stand out. Given the volume of activity and the increasing number of big money
sponsors, startups that truly break through the noise will be few and far between.
SXsports will continue to grow and it will draw in an entirely new SXSW
audience — perfect for lifestyle and tech brands seeking to engage.
Grumpy Cat will make yet another appearance — and for some reason the
lines will be just as long.
Celebrities will continue to play a big role at SXSW. Whether it’s in a
speaking capacity, performing at a party or doing a book signing, they will
continue to serve as one driver for attendees to register.

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Don’t Miss These Articles From SXSW 2015
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»» Three shocking content and social media data points
»» Athletes and sports teams are hitting home runs with digital media
»» How to create authentic digital engagement strategies for leaders
»» Read more here...
For more information on the impact of social media on communications, visit Access POV.
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