Internet Geek Girl

Last year I wrote my re-cap to Internet Week and described it as  “the start of something grand.”

Internet Week NY 2009 will undoubtedly prove me right. For those of you that don’t know about it, Internet Week New York is a week-long festival of events saluting New York’s thriving Internet industry and the many talented companies, organizations, and innovators creating the future of online media. It is presented by IADAS & The Mayor’s Office of Film, Theater, and Broadcasting.

This year, The TechSet and PepsiCo will be kicking off the week’s activities with the TechSet party on Monday June 1st (6 – 8 pm at the Bubble Lounge). PepsiCo’s commitment to bubbling up innovation will be on display all week. Stay tuned for other exciting announcements from PepsiCo soon!

It will be a busy week in the always busy Big Apple.  There are a range of events planned,  from educational to celebratory. Whether you want to pitch your start up or just add to your LinkedIn Network, Internet Week is sure to delight your digital sensibilities. Keep in mind, there are activities that suit every budget level as well.  While some of the conferences are more pricey, most events are free or cheap (though require sign up early).  Bookmark the ever-growing online schedule to stay up-to-date.

My list of don’t miss events include (please feel free to add more to the comments):

The Conversational Marketing Summit hosted by Federated Media ;  the NY Tech Meet Up Showcase and Monthly Event; Silicon Alley Insider’s Startup 2009; Mashable’s NextUp NYC: Social Media Marketing 101; the Digg MeetUp; Social Media Camp, hosted by the Social Media Club; Ignite NYC; and the Webby’s, which will be a star-studded line up again this year.

Lodging in NYC is never cheap, but the kind folks @InternetWeek have secured an excellent rate at the Standard Hotel – $235 while supplies last.  Also, you should check out The Roger Smith Hotel (for those of you who are mid-town inclined). Their “Roger Smith Life” and active Twitter account have made them a favorite for out-of-town blogger-types on a budget. Their rate for Internet Week NY is $165 / night (you really can’t beat that in NYC). Ask for the Internet Week Promo Rates at both locations.  But hurry – rooms will go fast.

By now, most of my fellow SXSW Interactive attendees have made it home and unpacked. Hopefully you have caught up on your lack of sleep and have warded off the SXSWsars (unfortunately I didn’t – can you hear my sniffles and scratchy voice?). If you’re like me, you’ve been digging through your email and reviewing the huge stack of business cards you collected in Austin. Processing all the information and inspiration takes time, especially for a show which overflows with both.

Unquestionably, SXSWi was a qualitative and quantitative success. There was a reported 25% increase in attendance year over year and the blog posts, tweets, and Facebook updates show nothing but love for this ritual “geek spring break.”

For me, the highlight of the trip was obviously the honor of co-hosting the TechSet Blogger Lounge with my co-founder @BrianSolis (and our event partners at Tokita Bethune, Inc.) The lounge and party were sponsored by Windows Mobile. The Windows Mobile team provided a great service to the community of bloggers, developers, marketers and influencers that set up shop in The Austin Suite. With great bandwidth and great company, the Windows Mobile lounge was THE PLACE to be every day (especially during our tweet ups from 4 – 6 pm – thank you AMD and Zappos). Plus, check out the videos that a bunch of well known geeks made in the lounge – Can you say Fantasy App? We were even lucky enough to have live entertainment one day from Paula Nelson (Austin native and Willie’s daughter). Big thanks to 1938media and John Rosenfelder (@earbender) for putting that together.

On the social front – I enjoyed going to Stubbs for the Diggnation event, The Salt Lick, Gueros, and of course, attending the many parties. “Best in show” include, Alltop, Facebook, Mashable and of course, The TechSet. The best pictures from the entire week come from Laughing Squid, Brian Solis and Wm. Marc Salsberry. Huge shout out to Joie de Vie salon and all the ladies from there that helped make me pretty every day (thanks Amanda, thanks Erin and the other Jerseygirl Steph).

For the last few years the Geeks have taken over the town before the music festival swings into full force. If you stay for part of the transition time, it’s funny to see the difference. My cab driver summed it up best – “the geeks are way more quiet and they are always playing on their phones.” He just doesn’t realize we’re making a ton of noise online and talking to our friends (who are sitting next to us in RL) on Twitter!

If you missed the show or like me, were too busy to attend most of the panels, here’s a short list of some recommended recaps:

• BlogWorld Expo Radio Podcast with yours truly and Jim Turner!
• The very awesome Nicole Jordan on her blog, Kicking Sand. She captures the style and substance.
• Nothin’ but SocNet’s Zena Weist has a great list of other recaps in addition to her insightful musings. She doesn’t just chat about social media – she lives it.
• Omar Gallaga from the Austin Statesman has a bunch of good stuff (with a local spin) on Austin360, with individual panel/party/videos here. Omar also did an NPR segment last Monday which was very cool.
• Pamela Lund on Massively Networked reviewed some very cool panels, which included tidbits of advice from: Thor Muller (Get Satisfaction, Inc.), Patrick Moorhead (Razorfish), and Ben Rigby (Mobile Voter), Barrett Fox (COCO Studios) and Jeroen Lapre (distant-galaxy.com).
• Jeff Beckham’s SXSW Scorecard looks back at the 19 panels/talks he attended, and he ranked them.  Very good stuff.
• RJ Owen of O’Reilly’s InsideRIA had at a great take on parties and panels!
• The ever-good-spirited @technosailor shares his journey and musings. Love the shout out to the Blogger Lounge!

BTW – David Carr wrote a nice piece in the NYT today that tells the story of the founding of the entire festival and it’s impact on the town. Plus his insights about the THRIVING Austin Chronicle, which has fueled this multimedia event since its inception, are especially intriguing given a market where many newspapers are failing.

All I can say is….keep Austin Weird and Geeky!

I’ll leave you with a video from my friend Guy Kawasaki that he did from his Kirsty-Alltop Party. Ya gotta love Texas (especially once / year in Austin)!

Jersey girl wanted a Hugh Card.

Jersey girl got a Hugh Card.

Big thanks to @shelisrael and of course @gapingvoid.

Last week Hugh Macleod used his cartoon defibrillator and his witty word smithing to revive blogging! Last December at this time, the analysts at Gartner made their predictions for 2007 and they said that blogging will peak next year and all the hype will fizzle out. They weren’t the only ones writing about the death of blogging. Hugh on the other hand has provided us with quite a different view on this (still emerging) media:

If you have something to say, then a blog offers a cheap, easy global medium in which to express yourself. This is as true now as it was three years ago, regardless of what the groovy cats in Silicon Valley may be up to.

Whether you have the time and the talent for it, “i.e. the skill and the will”, is another matter altogether. Also, whether other people will want to read it, is something one has little control over. But in both cases, the same is true for all other media.

This got me thinking – and truthfully – feeling quite guilty for not blogging lately. Blogging is not dead for me (as the title suggest, I’ve just been insanely busy). I suppose Twitter and Facebook serve as creative outlets for the time-deprived. [NOTE: I posted my 1000th Tweet on Nov. 5th, which means I did about 230 Tweets in a month.] Yum… metrics! Bottom line here is – in 2008, I commit to making more time for me and for blogging! (Are they one in the same?!?)

I think my Twitter, Flickr and Facebook are important tools that go hand and hand with this blog (not separate from it). In fact, I think all marketers would benefit from maximizing the cross-promotional synergies of blogs, Facebook, Flickr, Twitter, Magnify, Utterz, Seesmic, , and all the many social networks out there. Hey and let’s not forget off line expression. Be creative and build your micro brand (or macro one!)

If Marshal McLuhan is right and “the medium is the message,” the focus should be on the various ways human beings extend themselves, and how these extensions affect our relationships with others (and as a marketer I would add, with companies).

You may *prefer* one form of extension to another, but IMHO if you’re not making use of the depth and breadth of what’s out there, you’re not doing a good enough job. Fear not – there are lots of people out there to help you.

In addition to my (now relieved) guilt – the real message here is that Hugh’s work really cracks me up. I love his clever cartoons and bon mot. I know, so do lots of people (1840 Followers as of 10 pm EST on 12/7) . I’m just a fangirl! Oh yeah – I’m also just the cutey-pie you met in a bar.

By Jay Levan (www.JayLevan.com). Left to Right: Jim Kukral, George Nemeth (holding the sign Jim made) and Thomas Mulready. Not pictured: Eric Olsen of BlogCritics.org

I am at the convention center here in Vegas, listening to the insightful Shel Israel and Mike Prosceno. It is fascinating to think about how SAP has incorporated social media into “the conversation.” Their company has seen the power of blogging and social media. It may be early in the game, but I can tell you this – it will make all the difference in the marketing mix!

Lots more to come this week. Just wanted to let you know that I too will blog for attention!!

Twitter me @stephagresta if you are here.