Print @ SXSW

by Craig A. Bower

I’ve kept myself pretty busy in the weeks since South by Southwest (SXSW) – an incubator of cutting-edge technology and digital creativity in Austin, TX – ended. Busy reading the media coverage and separating hype from reality. Busy downloading and trying out new apps I learned about. Busy following up with contacts. And busy celebrating how print was a critical part of the most technologically advanced event in the world.

Yes, print.

While SXSW may the “place to be” for all things digital, print continues to play an integral role in making it all happen from the moment you arrive in Austin.

Registration

First thing first, your badge is printed on-site while-you-wait. In addition to your mug shot, it has a unique QR code that’s scanned nearly everywhere you go. Can you say market data? This printed identity is also your only access into any official event and should you lose it, expect to pay full walkup price to replace it ($1,300). This is one valuable piece of printed collateral.

Upon leaving registration you also receive a full-sized, full-color printed conference guide. Its 235+ pages are filled with info, full session descriptions, schedules, maps, and no shortage of (paid) advertising. You also get a printed “mini-guide” containing a more streamlined summary of all the events.

Signage

From direction-based signage for events and room locations to grand format building-sized banners marketing the latest change-the-world app, printed signage everywhere you went was both functional and informative. Not only was it impossible to escape, but found myself quickly relying on it to make sense of the overwhelming chaos that is SXSW. In an age of mobile devices, wi-fi and charging stations on every corner, careful attention was paid to the importance of printed signage and it showed.

Tradeshow
As expected, the massive tradeshow component of SXSW danced with visions of CMYK. Between visually dynamic booth graphics, thousands of brochures, postcards, stickers, flyers, folders, sell sheets, business cards and apparel being pushed on attendees, this huge investment of $$$ into the print economy and it’s importance to marketing success was evidently clear.

Vehicle Graphics

The elevated presence of vehicle graphics at SXSW this year was undeniable, from small local shuttles to oversize city buses. In additional to partial and full bus wraps, there were variations of window perfs, cut vinyl, magnetic, and other physically attached signage of all kinds. With so many moving messages around, engagement was mandatory and competed successfully with mobile device use.

Sessions

From informational to hands-on operation, 3D printing was well represented in sessions and even a workshop. Whether is was simply talking about future possibilities or demonstrating how artificial limbs are being printed and used today, it’s clear that this next evolution in the world of print is growing and here to stay.

Self-Promotion

Strategic branding and guerilla marketing through posters, banners and everything in-between blanketed the city. On nearly every surface in the convention center, hotels, public transportation, elevators, poles, posts, trashcans, bike racks you’d find that people posted their passion for the masses to consume (present company included). There was enough printed material (several layers thick, no less) to make a paper rep consider retirement.

All of this made me realize and appreciate the continued importance that print plays in communication and marketing. Even at a technology-centric event like SXSW there are still goals impossible to achieve with a single conference app downloaded on a smartphone. In 2015, ink and paper may no longer be the only game in town, but it was exciting to see 34,000+ tech-savvy people using, responding to and engaging with print.

Yes, print.

Craig A. Bower is the owner of Design That Rocks and Marketing Director at Hansen Foods. A strategic and passionate creative design professional with 25+ years experience focused on branding and marketing after plans to be a professional KISS roadie fell through.