Weber Shandwick Social Studies Blog

A confluence of creativity, technology, and human connection that draws bigger crowds with each passing year, SXSW Interactive can always be counted on to give rise to countless ideas. But which ones really matter for marketers, communicators, and senior executives? In SXSW 2012: Five Big…

A friend of mine asked me once what was the difference between marketing and PR. I shot back by saying that marketing was preoccupied with selling products while PR was about selling ideas. Good one, eh? I don’t claim originality but still ponder my answer…

Leaving Austin after another great SXSW brings a rush of all sorts of emotions, but as you sit in the airport and board the plane it is hard not to ponder what was big this year. As you pore over the panels, the people, and…

Thanks to Robbie Whiting, director of creative tech and production at Duncan/Channon, for highlighting Weber Shandwick’s FireBell, our award-winning social media crisis simulator, during his SXSW talk entitled, We Made This, and It’s Not an Ad. AdPulp has the Robbie’s full deck, which is 1)…

Every March, Austin becomes the noisiest town on the planet. Tens of thousands of enthusiasts flock here to listen and engage until their heads are throbbing. Once the noise dies down, then the music festival begins. All of the noise is generated by brands trying…

Data and analytics were significant areas of interest at SXSW 2012. There were sessions and panels on everything from whether media measurement is science, art, or crap to data visualization and tools to tell the story. While the festival coordinators get huge marks for dedicating…

As a Texan at heart and brand marketer, you’d think I would have been to SXSW years ago. But unfortunately, no, I’m a newbie. Well, to be fair, newbie by attendance. For a couple of years now, I’ve pitched proposals and have supported brands at…

Social media is the phrase on the tongue of every marketer across the globe, and was obviously central to most, if not all, discussions at this week’s SXSW Interactive conference. SXSWi is generally a time to celebrate looking forward, but does social media actually represent a stall,…

In about three to four years we have gone from early adoption to serious discussions about social media as a human right, including as an official SXSW session. Surprised? I am. Obviously rights are not something that come by way of government legislation; they are…

Outside of the digital/marketing universe (or the indie film and music scene), the four letters SXSW have little meaning. But in our world there is no bigger, no broader and no more exciting conference for ‘our people.’ The halls are always full of smart people…