I first heard of SXSW in 2007 when Twitter was the rage of the interactive-music-film festival. In fact, because of all the buzz, I joined Twitter and have been using it since.
Since being on my own, professionally, I’ve enjoyed the freedom of getting out and about: being one of many others who are helping develop the social media community in Northwest Ohio and Southeast Michigan, attending a couple conferences, and even being involved in some presentations.
And, “being out and about” means submitting proposals like the one I did for SXSW 2010 on social media monitoring. Lo and behold, mine was one of 2210 selected for public voting for Interactive 2010.
The neat thing about the SXSW voting process is that, it’s not just a popularity contest. It’s not just determined by a 
small, select group. It’s both. The votes for determining the final 300 panels and presentations for the final program comes from three key groups:
- 40% SXSW Advisory Board
- 30% SXSW Staff
- 30% Public Voting
And that last portion is where you and I come in.
I’m a firm believer that social media monitoring is a fundamental foundation of any marketing program — particularly if a company or organization wants to be active in social media. If you hold that belief as well, here’s what I want you to do:
Check out the handful of social media monitoring-related proposals. You can do so here (it’s a search for “monitoring” in SXSW’s PanelPicker. There are some that are not exactly applicable, but most of the eight results are.). Of course, mine is included.
Check out the proposals and vote. (Yes, you have to register to vote or comment.)
I’ve already voted a “thumbs up” for my proposal.
If you think mine is worthy of being among the final 300, great! Thank you. And, if I somehow do become part of the final program, HOLY TOLEDO! I don’t know how I’d get to Austin or how I’d pay for it, but I definitely will go. You’d just call me Carl Spackler.
If you don’t think my proposal should be among the final, hey, that’s okay. Please at least vote for one of the social media monitoring proposals.
And, if you have any feedback on what I proposed, please leave a comment at my SXSW PanelPicker.
Thank you.
-Mike
For other SXSW PanelPicker proposals to consider and related posts on SXSW 2010, have a look at:
Industrial to Interactive: From Old Town to Tech Town: A panel discussion with a focus on Detroit, lead by Brandon Chesnutt, but applicable to other cities trying to develop a strong digital community. Several solid Detroit and area folks are involved (many of whom I’ve met and know).
Please Vote: A Smorgasbord of Learning for SxSW Interactive 2010: Kami Watson Huyse’s solid overview of several panels she is involved with and recommends. She invited others to plug their own proposals in the comments section (which I did), so you can check out other SXSW possibilities.
SXSW PanelPicker or panelpPimping? Sonny Gill’s good discussion with good comments on the public voting aspect of the PanelPicker process (and yes, I left a comment as well). The post includes a link to one that he and Bryan Person proposed.
