As many Atlanta startups made their inaugural trip to SXSW, they represented our great city well. Mr. Arlo won a People’s Choice award, Techturized won the BIT pitch competition (automatically qualifying to pitch at the Black Enterprise conference this year), and NeuroTrack won the SXSW Accelerator Health category.
Creative Loafing followed along with the SXSW ATL Bus to document the SXSW experiences of James Harris of N4MD. You can read how his resourcefulness landed him a couple of meetings with AT&T and Scripps (who owns the Travel Channel, Food Network and HGTV).
Tuesday Potluck Lunch & Learn
Did you get back from SXSW and want to share what you learned? Didn’t make it to SXSW this year? Either way, we’ve got you covered.
You’re invited to join us for a Potluck Lunch & Learn this coming Tuesday (March 19) starting at 11:30am. Those who went to SXSW will share about their experiences in Austin and help you understand the value of going to SXSW 2014. RSVP here today and let us know what you’re bringing.
Sneak Peek: “What Did You Get from SXSW?”
All those who participated this year in SXSW from Atlanta had great things to say and shared why they want to go back next year and why you should accompany them. Here are some answers to the question “What did you get from SXSW?”
Joey Womack:
SXSW was a life changer for me. To finally see and experience the “magic” you read and hear about will have a serious impact on my company’s acceleration. I’ll be telling other founders about this for the next 365 days.
Kyle Azevedo:
viaCycle had a blast at SXSW. We used the event to represent Atlanta startups and build connections with advocates and partners that would be difficult to get in touch with otherwise. There’s no other event on earth where so much of the startup community congregates in one place, so with the right planning and a little bit of luck, you can get huge leverage out of your time.
Nawar Alsafar:
It’s true, SXSW interactive is the place to be if you have a tech startup. Over the course of just one weekend, my startup now has more customers, is on the radar of two major accelerators, gained mentors, and connected to several very interested investors. I connected to hundreds of innovators, learned about their backgrounds, and told them my company story. After telling and iterating your company story that many times, you can’t help but refine the way you communicate your startup. For me, SxSW finished with a bang after I went to a private party with Ashton Kutcher, Marc Cuban, Sean Parker, Janes Addiction, Coolio, and other awesome people. My consensus is SxSW is a weekend event entrepreneurs must attend.
Jacqui Chew:
SXSW this year was all about customer discovery, TEDxPeachtree speaker curation and catching up with industry colleagues in 3D. Not quite ready to talk about what the discovery is for but can say that much success was found on all fronts. SXSW is the perfect place to meet smart people in digital and technology and get a more global perspective in both areas.
Jess Watson:
SXSW 2013 was a first for Techturized but certainly not our last. Winning the Blacks in Technology Competition and becoming a Black Enterprise Entrepreneurs Conference finalist have created excellent opportunities for Techturized. Our network has expanded globally. What you can do here in a weekend can change your life so I encourage you to join us on the 2014 ATL Startup Bus!
Ashia Sims:
As a SXSW newbie who has been eagerly reading my Twitter timeline in past year’s events, I was very excited to go. After going and spending 4.5 days immersed in networking, panels, parties and technology, I am already planning my trip for SXSW 2014. As the owner of a startup, met some amazing people and got some great “coffee table” advice and insight on my business from some of them. While the panel discussions and sessions were very informative, the best knowledge came when everyone was out and about. The streets of SXSW were the great equalizer. At one point, me and my business partner found ourselves unknowingly pitching our company to an angel investor over lunch. He gave us some great insight and his business card. Those kinds “accidental” but very valuable connections are why ATL folks should start preparing now to attend SXSW 2014 like we are.
Janelle Jolley:
This year was Sidewalk District’s first time at SXSW and it was an awesome experience! We were able to connect with movers and shakers in the fashion tech scene, as well as people at the helm of closing the digital divide for minorities and women in tech. The connections made at SXSW will prove to greatly help our growth and development.
Save the Dates for SXSW: March 7-11, 2014
We are really, really proud of our city and the great startups that represented so well. Congrats to everyone who had a great time and did some great work while they were there. There’s great valued in limited chaos that is SXSW. We can’t wait to see what happens next year and are really excited about all the possibilities.
Remember to RSVP and join us on Tuesday for the Potluck Lunch.
