The State of Video at SXSW

I’ve become a bit of a SXSW regular and honestly it is the one conference every year that I never miss.

I always arrive in Austin with an open mind to all my current clients and also looking for tools and people that I can get involved in future initiatives. As a consultant I want to be up to date on the latest technologies and also who are the active members of the community in case they are a fit for a project at some point.     

This year because of my work with Overlay.TV I had video on the brain and kept a very keen eye on what was going on.

I’m happy to report that video is alive and well and there were just as many video cameras as there was catchy tagline t-shirts and backpacks. If you are not creating video at this point, you are behind the curve and it is time to start working it into your marketing mix if you want to be successful.

I asked a variety of attendees why they thought video was so important to businesses and what they thought the future of video was. Click on the icons in the video to connect with any of the speakers.

So, what were some of the video trends that I noticed while there?

1.  The days of lugging a massive camera around are no more. I saw more micro HD cameras and video capable DSLR cameras than anything else.
2. Companies are continuing to embrace the power of video. Watch any of the daily recap videos from Chevrolet or the great SXSW:By the Numbers video from CNN as shining examples.
3. Everyone still has a craving to learn how to make their videos better. If there was any doubt, all you had to do is look at sessions led by Steve Garfield or The Bui Brothers to see that video education is important.
4. People are not as hesitant about being asked to be on video as they use to be. We as a society are much more comfortable with video cameras being everywhere and talking to one isn’t as unique of an experience as it use to be.
5. At large events like this, setting up a stationary studio or similar location for people to create video makes a lot of sense. The Live from AOL Studio and the Samsung Blogger Lounge were both examples that jumped out at me.

I did not discover any breakout technologies that will change the landscape in video which was a bit disappointing. Sure, there were more camera rigs, green screen solutions and streaming companies peddling their wares, but nothing jumped out at me and made me say wow.

I left Austin full of breakfast tacos and inspiration to create more video. Every where I looked someone had a camera and a microphone. It is a critical piece of the marketing mix for every company and I want to see people use it more and use it better.

Were you at SXSW? Did you see something that I missed? Let me know in the comments.

Aliza Sherman · Ann Handley · Becky Johns · Brad Powell · Emily Cavalier · Interactive Video · Jeff Sass · Joe Chernov · Julien Smith · Steve Grafield · Tamsen McMahon · Tim Washer