Marketing at SXSW

Thinking about attending SXSW 2009? Well, you should get your badge today, so you save some money.

Registration rates for all SXSW conference and festival badges will increase after today, January 16th. Click over to our Registration page to review your options and register and book your hotel. Please remember that registration fees are non-refundable once processed.

Many of our Registrants, Filmmakers, Panelists, Bands and fans come to Austin from abroad and we appreciate the distance you travel to attend SXSW each year.

As of January 12th 2009, travelers entering the US with passports from Visa Waiver Program countries must obtain advance online travel authorization by visiting the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) website (this online authorization is free).

Travelers historically provided this same information via simple forms onboard their flight or at US immigration but it is now required in advance of your travel. Most applications (99.5%) are instantly approved. But the few who are denied must apply for visas (which takes time).

We want your travel to the States to go well and hope that this information helps. For more information about traveling to Austin, click here.

To kick-start the new year, airlines in the U.S. and around the world have slashed airfares making travel to SXSW ridiculously cheap from lots of places. Airfares under $300 are commonplace online and travel from Los Angeles to Austin can be had for as low as $218. Fare sales like this usually don’t last long so don’t hesitate to make your SXSW plans.

Register now and take advantage of the discount badge price (before January 16th), inexpensive hotels (outside downtown), and cheap airfares (while they last).

More than 35,000 people in the United States and around the globe read the the SXSW in-house magazine SXSWORLD. Doesn't your company, product or service want to reach this influential readership? If so, there is still time to introduce your brand to these creative decision-makers through advertising in one or more of the upcoming issues of this publication. Advertise in one of the two issues that come out in March plus the May issue at the 3x discount rate and receive the second March issue for only $400. This offer only valid when purchasing a companion ad in the SXSW Interactive / Film / Music Program/Directory. Click here for more information on advertising rates -- or just e-mail Katie King for details. Katie can also give you information on all other 2009 marketing options.

Getting your message into the hands of SXSW registrants has never been easier. Just put a super cool and functional insert into our Conference Big Bags. CD samplers, keychains, sunscreen and lip balms can be customized with your company's information and distributed to our attendees through the commemorative Big Bags. SXSW registrants are happy to receive these promotional items and increase your company's brand exposure with each use.

To make things even easier, we also have a turn-key solution available. Simply pick an item from our list of premium inserts, send us your artwork and we take care of the rest. Don't fuss with price comparisons and multiple shipping costs when we have already handled all of that for you. Contact sales@sxsw.com for more information, but hurry, as the ordering deadline for these inserts is January 21.

Click here for a description of each Premium Insert available.

We'd like to welcome back the folks from Armed Forces Entertainment, who've been participating in SXSW for the past few years and are coming back to join us in 2009. They're a lot hipper than the name might imply... think a contemporary USO that books artists from Kid Rock and the Gin Blossoms to up-and-coming bands they meet at South by Southwest to tour around the world. Melissa Welch gives us an update.
Photo: Stephen Kellogg

1. Tell us a little about Armed Forces Entertainment. You guys offer a great service to new artists. Fill us in.

We have the coolest job in the world. We get to work with some of the most talented up-and-coming artists in the US. We scout them, select them, and book them to tour around the world to perform and bring a piece of home to our troops serving overseas.

2. Who are some of the bands you consider success stories? Any that you've found at SXSW?

There are so many. The one that comes to the top of my mind is Stephen Kellogg and the Sixers — they are awesome. A really good mix of alternative rock/Americana. We hooked up with them last year when they were playing a SXSW showcase at the Thirsty Nickel. They are traveling to Europe to play for our troops in March 2009.

3. Where are some of the most intriguing places you've taken bands? Any crazy stories?

We have taken bands to some of the coolest places in the world, from the Egyptian pyramids to Honduras to the Middle East. Bands get to experience the culture of each location where they perform, get to meet the locals, tour the sites. And, well, as for stories, we have a saying: "What happens on an Armed Forces Entertainment tour, stays on the tour." Really, it's one the most incredible experiences a rising artist can have, trust me. I toured with a Chicago-based band, Hello Dave, to the Middle East. That tour ranks up there as one the best memories of my life.

4. How do bands get on board with you?

All they need to do is go to www.armedforcesentertainment.com and click on tour with us. The application is easy to navigate, but does require an EPK. So artists need to have their promo photos, MP3s, video and biographies ready to upload.

5. What music do you all listen to in the office?

Hmm...you name it. John Mayer, Nina Simone, Pat Green, Jack Johnson, Little Wayne, Ludacris, Beatles, Norah Jones, Kid Rock, Kings of Leon, Dave Matthews, Charlie Robison, My Morning Jacket, Cake, Virginia Coalition, Urban Sophisticates, Five Star Iris, Subrosa Union.

After the holidays, be on the lookout for your February issue of SXSWorld magazine. The preview edition will be packed with what to expect at SXSW 09. SXSWorld is how to get the edge with the latest announcements before the event and details on already confirmed participants.

Bone up on Germany's Reeperbahn Festival, past and present. Get the latest Quincy Jones news before seeing his music keynote in March. Have a taste of the film programming with interviews from directors Todd Haynes and Richard Linklater and an expose on the opening night film I Love You, Man. Also, look for profiles on Sam Altman, co-founder and CEO of Loopt.com, Rachel Bussel of food blog Cupcakes Take the Cake and Linda Kaplan Thaler, author of New York Times bestseller The Power of Nice. Plus, check out which companies are confirmed for the Film, Interactive and Music Trade Shows as well as updates on the Texas Guitar Show and Austin Record Convention.

There's still time to get your ad in the preview edition of SXSWorld! Contact sales@sxsw.com before January 7, 2009. Interested in an ad package? Ask about the latest ad special!

Top: Richard Linklater