South by Southwest (SXSW) is an annual convention in Austin, Texas for the music, film, and interactive industries, attracting around 100,000 attendees each March. In 2013, the focus shifted from technology to consumer behavior, physical experiences, and storytelling. Key topics discussed included the transformation of digital interactions, the importance of content creation, and the resurgence of physical objects in a digital world.

1. AUSTIN, TX
SXSW
INTERACTIVE | FILM | MUSIC
The
@finianmurphy
report
@finianmurphy @ SXSW

2. What is
SXSW ?
Established 1987, South by Southwest is a
convention for the music, film and interactive (tech &
advertising) industries.
Hosted by the residents of Austin, TX, SXSW
becomes home to 100,00 marketers, movie makers
and musicians who converge on the city for ten
days, every March, to discuss and shape the future.
@finianmurphy @ SXSW

3. Last year, 2012, what was the hype?
MOBILE SOCIAL NETWORKS APPS
Brands which were embracing Social design was king and every Apps for finding people, finding
mobile into their strategies, using product and campaign which places, adding tags, declaring
location and building on the didn’t have social networks at interests, sharing photos, making
second screen trend. their core was criticised. events, making coffee...
@finianmurphy @ SXSW

4. Last year, 2012, what was the hype?
} It was all about
the technology
@finianmurphy @ SXSW

5. 2013, we parked the technology
{
1 Behaviour
It was a return to
2 Physical Objects
the real world
3 Storytelling
@finianmurphy @ SXSW

6. 1 Behaviour
We have moved beyond the debates
about technology adoption,
about social networks
about mobile,
about old vs. new media
We have now returned to observing consumer behaviour,
digital just happens to be part of this.
@finianmurphy @ SXSW

7. Content for all platforms
“The railroad tracks
have been built –
now the question is,
“What’s worth
sharing on them?”
Jonah Peretti, founder & CEO of BuzzFeed (25 million monthly
unique users) describes how we should stop talking about the
technology and focus on the content we are creating. @finianmurphy @ SXSW

8. How Twitter is changing TV viewing
US drama
American Idol
SuperBowl
We’re chatting online
while watching live TV, but
who are we talking to
while binging on boxsets?
Breaking Bad
These charts show the level of social media conversations for
different types of TV. Finales and events can cause a dramatic spike,
while streaming/VOD peaks early and then tails off @finianmurphy @ SXSW

9. How Twitter is changing TV viewing
Agencies are currently not
set up to react to TV
viewers who are tweeting
along with shows
Oreos was cited as a brand with a simple tactic, tweeting out this
image during the SuperBowl in reaction to the lights going out during
the football game. It was amplified by over 30,000 RTS or likes. @finianmurphy @ SXSW

10. Foursquare has created the social map
Foursquare can now show
the behaviour of people in
cities - when and where they
travel, work, eat and relax
Many have written Foursquare off, but moving from a game where
people “check-in” to a search utility for finding the best places to go, it
now offers a “social” layer of maps, with over 3 billion points of interest @finianmurphy @ SXSW

11. Online marketplaces now provide viable options
AirBnB provides not just a
place to rest your head but
provides a unique experience
not available anywhere else
Online marketplaces with unique experiences (e.g. sharing a vintage
car via RealityRides; Etsy connecting directly with craftmaker) are
becoming serious competitors to mainstream brands. @finianmurphy @ SXSW

12. What does this mean for communications?
Every consumer is digital
It is not a young person’s game
Every idea has digital baked in
Ideas without digital will not succeed
We need to plan faster and be more agile
As creative content is devoured quickly
1 Behaviour
@finianmurphy @ SXSW

13. 2 Physical Objects
We have been obsessed with
the online world
the digital space
the mobile apps
the social networks
However people seek something tangible, a return to the
real world, physical things which can also be connected.
@finianmurphy @ SXSW

14. Bringing Google (AdWords) into the real world
Google is encouraging
“By bringing developers to build ideas for
technology closer – Glass, but at $1,500 will it
ever reach the masses?
we can get it out of
the way”
Timothy Jordan, Developer Advocate, Google
Google live-demoed their Glass product, a pair of glasses which
displays information in the foreground of your vision as you go about
your day - bringing digital information into the the real world. @finianmurphy @ SXSW

15. Wearable Technology: The Talking Shoe
While the shoe might be far
off, people are already
actively broadcasting their
every move, meal, movie...
Every move the user makes generates data that’s captured using an accelerometer, gyroscope and
pressure sensors. The data is translated into commentary that gets pushed to banners and social media,
creating new, interesting content in the digital world from something happening live in the physical one. @finianmurphy @ SXSW

16. The best interface is no interface
Leap Motion was the hottest technology launch at SXSW 2013, allowing
people to interact with computers with their hand gestures - it is one
step closer to removing interfaces we interact with. @finianmurphy @ SXSW

17. 3D printing digital creative
Allowing people to print
objects has created a
community of makers who
help in product development
3D printing allows the user to print physical objects from designs they
create or download. This allows prototypes to be quickly created.
GeoMagic Inc has produced a 3D printer for home and school use. @finianmurphy @ SXSW

18. Major online retail now experimenting with pop-ups
The retail world has realised
that the consumer wants to
experience both online and
offline buying opportunities.
Owned by Gap Inc. Piperlime.com has created a NYC pop-up shop in
order to see what clothes people buy in ‘the physical world’ where touch
is important, and what people are happy to buy online. @finianmurphy @ SXSW

19. To have and to hold
“This is not anti-tech,
we’re not turning off
electricity, There is a revival of older
but we all like to eat by traditions that are fading
with the transition to digital
candlelight”
Vinyl Never Die
in music, photography, art.
Physical artifacts can be keepsakes, identity markers and status
symbols. Physical objects also have a longevity that digital objects lack;
76% of a JWT 2013 survey said as much. @finianmurphy @ SXSW

20. What does this mean for communications?
Consumers seek great offline experiences
As well as smart technologies
An idea should live in a real and virtual place
Physical (outdoor, retail) and online (sites, mobile)
Ideas people will experience (everywhere)
These moments will be shared with others
2 Physical Objects
@finianmurphy @ SXSW

21. 3 Storytelling
Our focus has been on
big data
the social media strategy
the celebrity endorsement
the sponsored event
However there can be an emotional void in digital work,
and emotions in our creative is vital, storytelling is vital
@finianmurphy @ SXSW

22. Storytelling involves taking risks
“When you’re
making a story...
the things you Danny Boyle (Slumdog
think you shouldn’t do... Millionaire, Trainspotting and
the Olympics Opening
do them” Ceremony) on risk taking
David Carr (New York Times writer) described Boyle’s 2013 movie
Trance as the type of story that “when you hit the sidewalk, you don’t
want to be by yourself, you want to talk about it with someone else” @finianmurphy @ SXSW

23. Do you have a community? Use them
LEGO leans to their adult
fans to help them develop
new products and act as
advocates of the brand.
LEGO presented an impressive case study which has shown how their
crowdsource model for New Product Development has led to stories
being created around three new products in the past year. @finianmurphy @ SXSW

24. Big Data driving creativity!
Data is helping to inform
better decision making,
but must be balanced
with human instinct.
“We know what people watch on
Netflix and how big a likely
audience is for a given show
based on people’s viewing habits”
Jonathan Friedland, Netflix Communications Director
When Netflix analysed their bank of TV and film shows, the viewing data
told them people liked Kevin Spacey, political dramas and David Fincher,
which led them to commission a 13 part drama - House of Cards. @finianmurphy @ SXSW

25. Data without soul is meaningless
Data can inform us, but it
does not account for
emotions or empathy,
created by storytelling
“There is an emotional
void in the digital age”
Paul Woolmington: Naked Comms founder
The Good Night Light, brings is a physical object which is connected to the internet to allow you
know when your friends or family turn on and off their lamp indicating that they are in their homes
(storytelling). This brings an emotion and a behaviour right into a digital product. @finianmurphy @ SXSW

26. 2013, we parked the technology
{
1 Behaviour
“This year it was
all about the real 2 Physical Objects
world”
The Wall Street Journal
3 Storytelling
@finianmurphy @ SXSW

27. So what about 2014?
“One of the certainties of
being a futurist is that
everything is temporary”
BRUCE STERLING, SXSW CLOSING SPEECH 2013
@finianmurphy @ SXSW