Web Directions Year round learning for product, design and engineering professionals

John and I went to SXSW 3 years in a row between 2005 and 2007. The first year was pretty good, suffused as it was with that thrill of meeting people we’d known via email etc for years. But the second year was probably the best for a whole host of reasons, not least of which was we made sure we connected up with lots of other Australians who were going before we went. Sound a bit like a ghetto? Well, you can choose to see it that way, but that actually wasn’t our experience at all. For us it had a powerful networking effect where we all shared those “pre-existing” online connections with various people we’d known before we went there, so all of us met a lot more new people that second year.

So, if you’re planning on going this year, try and seek out the other Aussies that are going as well. Not sure if you can still do this, but back then there was a searchable database of all attendees and as I recall I just did a search for the word “Australia” and messaged anyone via that system. Why don’t you all arrange to meet up somewhere on the first night? Or even have a meetup here before you go?

Feel free to leave a message here if you’re planning on going, or get in touch with Tim and Mike from Agency Rainford, Canary Carla, and the guys from Campaign Monitor, all of whom I know will be heading across.

Have fun!