Media Coverage at SXSW: A Tailored Guide for B2C and B2B Tech
It is no secret that South by Southwest (SXSW) represents a significant opportunity for media exposure in the technology industry. Conferences draw thousands of journalists with the sole intent of covering whatever tech will hold their attention—and that of their readers. Ensuring that your presentation falls within both of those categories is your key to being part of a conversation that far will outlast and outgrow the event itself.
So how can tech companies appeal to journalists? The answer to that question lies in the unique nature of SXSW coverage, and its implications differ drastically between business-to-business (B2B) and business-to-consumer (B2C) tech. Once you understand what drives the news—and what it means for your business—winning media exposure becomes a simple matter of timing and framing.
What Journalists Are Looking for at SXSW
SXSW is about trends. The exhibition halls of a conference like the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) or Mobile World Congress (MWC) are designed for new products to be displayed and compared spec-for-spec. SXSW, meanwhile, is a decentralized, idea-driven, conversation-based event by nature.
As a result, journalists consistently seek out broader, more interconnected stories over detailed product reviews. Most of these stories are even identified far ahead of time. Once at the event, journalists simply investigate the various panels or presentations on their shortlist for elements that conform to a newsworthy pattern.
B2C Tech: Sharable Product Presentations
Generally speaking, B2C technologies are more self-contained than their B2B counterparts. This means that SXSW’s fragmented, trend-driven reporting offers a receptive environment for product launches and demonstrations so long as they are simple enough to be understood and shared without additional context. The less context is needed, the more easily journalists can transplant your product into their narrative.
You would still do better, however, to make that connection yourself than to hope journalists will do it for you. Every stage of your media outreach should already be framed around a newsworthy trend that your product exemplifies.
Outreach should begin early—as much as 6–8 weeks ahead of the event—with a press release that establishes your presence and purpose at SXSW. In the case of a launch, this release should reveal just enough to garner excitement and position the new product as part of a bigger story. Panel and presentation announcements should clearly state what will be discussed or demonstrated and who it is meant for. Another release can be sent out a week or two in advance, followed by a final release recounting the details of the event after the fact.
B2B Tech: Commentary and Thought Leadership
Whereas B2C benefits from simple, intuitive products, B2B tech often relies on an extensive groundwork of details about integration, workflows, user roles, and compliance considerations to effectively distinguish and market a product. SXSW is therefore not a good environment for B2B product launches or demonstrations—but it is a good environment for drawing attention to existing products through commentary and thought leadership.
Any product or products you plan to promote should have already been launched and explained in detail at a separate event. SXSW should be reserved for a genuinely insightful discussion on problems or shifts in the broader market—and, secondarily, how your product progresses that story. Journalists who show up for the narrative will leave with your offering as the default example.
Outreach cadence should mirror that of B2C tech: one release 6–8 weeks in advance to ensure your panel or interview is included in journalists’ preparation for the event, followed by a re-engagement release offering access to spokespeople and a retrospective release recounting key messages. None of these press releases should include feature-lists or detailed descriptions of your offering; you are selling an idea, not a product.
Conclusion
SXSW is unique. Tech companies—B2B or B2C—who approach it as just another opportunity for media coverage are likely to be disappointed by their efforts. Yet those who can embrace the festival’s story-driven nature will soon find that it is not so much an obstacle to overcome as it is an opportunity to position themselves as the visionaries of their industry.
Be sure to check out our other blogs on useful and interesting public relations topics, like the factors that make a newsworthy story.