5 Lessons From my 1st #SXSW Interactive

February 15, 2012 by Raul Colon

1. Only Bring What is Necessary

For some reason I end up bringing more stuff than what I need. Take a look at what you need to sustain you during the day. A water bottle preferably one that you can refill might be the most important thing you might want to carry.

I will create a list of the critical gadgets I will be taking and carrying with me if you want to receive the next posts via email feel free to subscribe.

Keep in mind that the days are long and when you have to carry a lot it can slow you down and make you uncomfortable.

2. Browse the Schedule

After being in SXSW last year I realized that to much planning can actually hinder you from enjoying your time at SXSW. Pick a session or two a day which you want to go to. Meet up with someone you know online or join them to one of their sessions.

Like many will tell you and I have heard before, the most of the value you get out of SXSW comes out of the networking you can do in Real Life.

If you are not convinced feel free to read C.C. Chapman’s post “Yes I’m Going to SXSW, But Not to Your Party.

3. Which of your Contacts will be at SXSW?

Last year by accident I met the founders of @lanyrd (@simonw and @natbat). I had already mentioned their app as one to use in your planning before you arrive at the conference in my SXSW 1st Timer Quick Guide.

Lanyrd.com will help you identify who of your contacts on twitter will be attending or speaking at SXSW (or pretty much any other conference). Make sure to open your account and update your assistance at SXSW or future events.

4. Stay Informed & Connected

This year, I have been using Google Plus. I created a SXSW Circle to stay up to date on the conversations and information being shared by those who will attend. This can also help you meet people in advance before arriving at SXSW. If it is your first time this can be very helpful.

Last year I had the opportunity to get great tips from @cc_chapman. If you have any questions I can probably answer a few since this is the second year I will be going.

5. Some Prep Before You Arrive

Make sure you order your pack of Meet-Meme cards which are a fun way to connect people from offline to online. They are also a cool and economical replacement to traditional business cards.

If you want to save some money on transportation companies like Freshbooks (affiliate link) have a free shuttle if you are arriving on the 8th to take you from the Airport to the convention center.

Any other suggestions or tips on getting ready for SXSW?

Updated: #SXSW Google + Circle

February 15, 2012 by Raul Colon

Updated on February 6, 2014 10:26 PM (AST)

I created this circle with the purpose to keep track of those who will be attending SXSW like me.

If you are attending SXSW and would like to be added to the circle feel free to leave me a message on the circle link.

SXSWi Attendee Google+ Circles

2013
2012

If you know of any other circles feel free to share with us?

Other SXSW Google+ Circles

Moritz Tolxdorff 2012 circle

We will be sharing other posts as we get ready for SXSW feel free to suscribe to get updates directly into your email.

Benefits of Going to Conferences

September 13, 2011 by Raul Colon

I really enjoy having the opportunity to assist marketing or technology conferences. I have created very solid relationships when I have visited conferences in the last two years. I have been able to assist the following conferences:

Chirp (Twitter Developer Conference)
CM Summit (Conversational Marketing Summit)
Inbound Marketing Summit
South by SouthWest Interactive (SXSW)

At Chirp I was able to establish a relationship with my friends at Followfriday.com. I met individuals from all over the world and I have stayed in touch with many. I also had the opportunity to talk with twitter’s management at the time and current twitter CEO Dick Costolo. This also opened the door for me to collaborate on the Followfriday.com as a moderator for Puerto Rico, which has put me in touch with meeting some awesome people online.

My experience at the CM Summit was a different one since it was more for learning about the experiences of individuals like Arianna Huffington, Tony Hsieh, Dennis Crowley and a few other individuals which are at the top of their game in their industries. It did help me understand how some of these large companies see online interactions and communications at a very high level.

My trip to the Inbound Marketing Summit was one that had the most impact last year. Not only did I get to talk with Chris Brogan in person, I also had the opportunity to see and listen to a few people I admire. I was able to relate to Scott Stratten, John Janstch, C.C. Chapman, Tim Washer, and Robbie Vorhaus. Out of all the conferences I have attended, I have to say this one turned many of the speakers into people that have influenced the way I do business for the past year. I have had the opportunity to continue the conversation with most of them. I really enjoyed the Inbound Marketing Summit because it spoke to the small businessperson and to the larger companies, which I found very useful.

Today I am in route to the Inbound Marketing summit. I am sure that along with @robhatch COO of Human Business Works we can identify new opportunities as I am a strategic partner of Human Business Works.

As for SXSW I really don’t need to give an explanation of my experience there since it is so different for the over 20,000 people that went this March 2011. I really got value out of meeting so many people that were doing new and impressive things.

I get a lot of information when I go to conferences, meet many great individuals, and learn new things. For me a conference has been mainly a place for me to create relationships and change perspective.

So many people go to conferences and their main focus is selling. I go to conferences to create relationships that will open the door to continue the conversation going with individuals who in the future might have a need.

What benefits do you get out a conference?

I will be posting update on the conference as I get a chance.

Book Review- @garyvee’s “Thank You Economy”

May 17, 2011 by Raul Colon

I had the privilege to meet @garyvee at SXSW while hanging at the Samsung Bloggers Lounge. I also had the opportunity to receive a complimentary copy of his new book The Thank You Economy (Amazon Affiliate Link). I also listened to his Keynote where I came in a bit late. He made key references to topics that captivated my attention right away.

That is the power @garyvee has over many people. He is so transparent and genuine that one begins to trust his judgement very quickly. @Garyvee spoke about the Old Spice commercials and how the company used various social platforms to get their message heard. One key factor that @Garyvee touched was the fact that although multiple platforms were used, they forgot the most important part of the campaign; the social part with customers. I had thought that the Old Spice commercials where great examples of Social Media but when he pointed this out to us, I look at the campaign from a different perspective. The Old Spice company ran a marketing campaign and did not make sure to continue building and taking care of the following they built.

I read The Thank You Economy (Amazon Affiliate Link) and many phrases caught my attention. One of them being that @garyvee is Not a fan of SEO. I completely understand him when he approaches it the way he explains it in his book. It should not be a priority when there are many other things on the table that will bring good quality traffic to your site. I was also very happy to see @joesorge someone I admire and have gotten to know a bit more online since I joined Kitchen Table Companies (Affiliate Link). I had the opportunity to learn a bit more about @ajbombers from @garyvee perspective which really made me want to visit the establishment. (I am not sure if they have vegetarian options). I have interacted with @joesorge and I can say many of the qualities @garyvee pointed out in the book, I have been able to experience. I will try to summarize as much as possible some of the points I really enjoyed.

Perfect Date

Gary always uses the example of dating towards creating relationships in social media. I am a fan of quality content and thanks to @garyvee I can also see I am even a bigger fan of Quality Engagement. Gary gave me a quick way to explain this in one or two phrases. He also sees it as a marathon; many business people want to sprint the whole 26 miles without even knowing what direction to take. Make sure you are making steady progress while providing Quality Engagement and Quality Content.

Everything has Changed Except Human Nature

During his keynote at #SXSW, Gary mentioned how the family dog went from being an outside dog in the 50’s towards being really part of the family and living inside of the house (in my case Juanga sleeps on my bed.) Everything has changed except human nature and how easy it is for many people to forget that. Customers are no longer just walking wallets they are seeking something more. On the other side people have prioritized profit over principle and only those who put principle first will have an advantage over it.

Shock and Awe

I have always been a believer of surprising those who are always there for you including your customers. Gary’s advice is “Not too much money invested just a whole lot of heart”.

Intent

The importance of Good Intent is key and for @Garyvee it plays the same role. Intent allows to put Quality vs. Quantity into the equation which can be the difference between being popular and/or successful.

Importance of the Right Culture

I have collaborated with several organizations and getting everything in place for the success of the effort has been key. For an organization to take advantage of the Thank You Economy they need to invest in their culture. Gary advices us to stay away from script reading foreigners (or even locals) and telephone systems that make us press to0 many numbers after the call has been already answered. There is a need for passionate armies not employes.

“A capitalist society taking a communist approach towards there employees”~@garyvee

Gary also brings up the importance of complacency. If a person or organization becoming complacent, they deserve to go out of business. Also the right culture will allow you to identify pain points in your business process or organization which can serve as a map towards improvment.

Social Media is more than Media

Many organizations think Social Media is just another channel for them to push out their message and broadcast. Spreading the message can happen only when you are willing to commit and engage.

“Great for Putting out fires, Even better for building brand equity and relationships with your customers”~@garyvee

Although it is great for putting out fires it does a better job at keeping the sparks from flying in the first place.

I really enjoyed the example of how @garyvee explains the effect of creating a community in social media being similar to how ants collectively gather together, go under a table, and pick it up. The importance is in the unity. It is not the number of followers it is the strength of your bond. The strength of your bond will also make it more difficult for someone to come out of nowhere and take away your clients or community.

It also gives the opportunity for Engagement, which should not be forced. In the next few weeks I will be analyzing how I can improve converting a casual buyer to a committed buyer and on to an advocate. I really have to work on attracting the casual buyer i guess the other part I have to work it with time.

Resist the Thank You Economy

Where I have to agree with @garyvee is that organizations that resist the Thank You Economy will have an exodus of employees and many other things will affect them negatively. I will try to follow his example so in the long run I am on the winning side.

Thank You!

Happy New Year #SXSW #Film

March 27, 2011 by Raul Colon

While I was waiting for my flight from Austin to Orlando, I had the opportunity to meet a few people at the Gate while we waited for our flight. I met a gentleman by the name of Joseph Harrell and identified him as a serviceman. Besides the way he appeared and the shirt he had on (Marines t-shirt he had on) it made it easy for me to identify him as a Marine. I asked him if he was still in the service. I quickly connected with Josephe since I am an ex-service member. In the Army had the opportunity to work along with the Marines.

While I was in El Salvador serving as a translator I was assigned to a Marine Combat Engineer unit that was creating a Medical Facility for a remote town in el Salvador. Working alongside the Marines I had the opportunity to understand and admire the discipline and pride they display of being proud Marines.

Joseph is an Ex-Drill Instructor for the Marines and is currently working on his acting career while serving as a consultant from a military perspective for some films.

Joseph was at SXSW for the Film part of the event working on the Movie, Happy New Year , directed and screenplay by K. Lorrel Manning with Michael Cuomo as lead actor and producer. Joseph not only served as a military consultant he is a also a producer and plays “Joe Wallace” a widower who seeks closure from his deceased wife’s platoon sergeant. Get a preview of Joe and his character:

JOSEPH HARRELL (USMC) discusses the importance of HAPPY NEW YEAR from Happy New Year Film on Vimeo.

In my conversation with Joseph while waiting on our flight I was able to see the value of how this film is creating awareness of PTSD.

Being an ex-service member with many close friends and family members that returned with hidden scars, compelled me to write about the Happy New Year movie even though I have not seen it.

My best friend from childhood is an Iraq and Afghanistan veteran who at one moment was too proud to admit he suffers from PTSD. His vehicle was hit by an RPG and along with other action he saw as a Combat Engineer and Sapper for the U.S. Army, still affects his daily life. He is still in the service and has many stories to share but I see how the military does not really take care of those soldiers that have battle wounds that are hard for us to see.

Given the large presence of Puerto Rican’s in the service, I was very happy to see Wilmer Calderon an actor from Santurce, Puerto Rico as part of the movie, representing the face of the many Puerto Rican’s that have served in all US Military Branches. As a Colony of the United States, we have a good presence in the military, eventhough as residents we have no representation in congress or vote for president. I have always heard rumors on how Puerto Rico has larger amount of service members per capita vs. other U.S. territories and states.

I did find stats from the Washington Post on Fallen Members during Operation Iraqui Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom . The states place Puerto Rico 36th out of 56 territories having 45 Fallen Service Members (as of March 25, 2011). This data provides information on how Puerto Rico’s service members have given the ultimate sacrifice when they still don’t have the same rights as those that serve and live in the Continental U.S.

Screen-shot-2011-03-25-at-3.16.43-PM-300x136 Happy New Year #SXSW #Film

I think that given the high ratio of individuals serving our military in Puerto Rico and how everyone has a family member, friend, neighbor, or co-worker serving in the military and/or combat veterans, I think this movie would be a big hit on the Island. It can have a very engaged group of people who have lived through some of the experiences depicted in the movie.

Until then, I will be waiting on getting a chance to watch it in the near future. Here is the trailer on Happy New Year and please let me know what you think:

Happy New Year Trailer from Happy New Year Film on Vimeo.

Do you know anyone who is suffering from PTSD?

Would they be interested in creating awareness of the subject and supporting a film like this one?

Happy New Year Reviews

The lonely road back from war
SXSW World Premiere and Vets Screening With Elvis
Happy New Year Austin Chronicle