Biking to Change the World, and Save Lives

DL Bryon (left) and Doug Ulman pose in front of a collapsable "travel" bike

Sitting in a room full of people, you can tell the bikers from the non-bikers.  Skinny jeans are dead giveaway, as well as the choice of pullover outerwear, and those who are wet from the ride on a rainy Austin day to the Austin Convention Center for the last day of SXSWi.

What do we find in bike culture?  Or, more important:  Who do we find?

There are so many personalities out there riding bikes.  The connecting factor?   The bike itself.

Well, with the popularity and usefulness of social media, DL Bryon of BikeHugger and Doug Ulman of Livestrong each decided that connecting bike culture and social media would be a great way to help change lives.

How?  By using social media to connect these groups for a higher purpose, such as raising funds for cancer awareness and research.  Most people are familiar with Lance Armstrong and the Livestrong campaign.   BikeHugger is a network of bikers that started with 7 people.  These 7 riders met one day for a bike ride that led the group to a pub and that was that.  The group grew quickly.  This past Saturday, during SXSWi, there were 1,000 riders.

So what do these riders do?  They organize through social media and raise money.   More important, is the ease in which they can now organize and accomplish their goals.

“The bike has democratized transportation,” said Bryon.  Like they yellow wristband of the Livestrong campaign, everyone could participate.   Social media has allowed for the same level of participation.

“Social Media has changed philanthropy forever,” said Bryon.   An audience member expands on these ideas stating that people used to staple, stamp, mail-out.  Now it’s transparent, real-time.  The efficiency with which these groups  can organize is astonishing.  Check out BikeHugger and Livestrong to see exactly what they have been doing.

And, beyond cancer, cyclists are trying to change the way we live.  The panelists discussed how we built our cities for cars and have made day to day living quite difficult.   In order to be “happier”, we need to develop our transportation systems, including sidewalks for walking.  The goal is to “make the world more livable”.

Preview: Convio at South By

With SXSWi just around the corner, it’s great to get a little insight on what you can expect to see. Convio, a company that specializes in providing marketing services and strategies for NonProfits is headquartered here in Austin and will be an active participant in next week’s events. This is Convio’s first year as an official sponsor of SXSWi, and as part of their involvement, James Young of Convio, along with Porter Novelli, Jeff Pulver, Randi Zuckerberg and Stacey Monkwill be speaking at the “Social Media for Social Good” special event at Stubb’s BBQ on March 16th. They’ll also be hosting the first-ever Nonprofit Technology Bash (complete with live music, drinks, nptech application demos and plenty of free swag!), supporting sponsor of the Web Awards and sponsor of the Activism Web Award.

Jordan Viator, Interactive Communications Manager at Convio, talks a little bit about Convio’s involvement at SXSWi this year. Jordan manages Convio’s Connection Cafe blog, new media related endeavors including their social media sites as well as their corporate Web sites.

James Young, Sr. Product Strategist, will be speaking at the “Social Media for Social Good” special event!

Social Media Marketing: The New Black

This is my first year attending SXSWi so I’m getting really excited (as my Twitter feed keeps reminding me how close it’s getting!) I want to not only learn new things during my two-day experience but also be able to take some away some valuable knowledge to use apply to my job and career.

I am fairly new to the world of social media marketing….professionally that is.  People in the media, advertising and marketing world are finding themselves a little lost these days. Companies want to get on the “social media marketing” train but few know how to start or navigate through the sea of the web. Perhaps not overly “monotize” it but to at least have some value and exposure for the company.  The first biggest roadbump is understanding that this new form of communication is interactive – not like traditional media. It’s hard for companies to sort of “let go” of the reins and allow the communications to be more organic in nature and stray ever so slightly from the “corporate” guidelines. I’ve tried to pull some enlightment on the best way to approach this from various sources such as websites like The Best and Worst Social Media Marketing Practices  and and books like Social Media Marketing an Hour a Day. but I am always looking for new ideas and inspiration. That’s why I’m super excited about the book reading, Social Media Marketing, on March 14 from 10:30-11:00am with Alan Moore, founder of Smlxl.

Alan Moore, Smlxl

 

I’m also really looking forward to seeing Old Media Finds New Voice Through Twitter on Sunday, March 15th from 3:30 pm – 4:30 pm. The conversation will talk about how Statesman.com and Austin360.com are using Twitter as an interactive, personality-driven tool to communicate with their readers. The Statesman has close to 5,000 followers on Twitter which showcases their ability to take risks and try new ways of providing news to their readers. The conversation will feature  Robert Quigley, the Internet Editor at the Statesman (who is a journalist and the main person behind the Twitter account @statesman) and Daniel Honigman  from Tribune Interactive.

SO much happening.. so little time!

After initially printing the SxSw Interactive panel schedule, I grabbed a highlighter and set off to narrow down my choices. After a few minutes it became apparent that much more of the page was hilighted than wasn’t. Still.. a select few were hilighted, underlined and circled.

One of those select few panels is “What Do I Do With Myself, Now that the Economy Has Collapsed?” which is being held Sunday, March 15th at 3:30. This panel holds obvious appeal to a student planning on entering the job market in the near future. Sitting on the panel is Andy Baio, a writer for Waxy.org, Lane Backer, president of Get Satisfaction Inc, Ben Brown of XOXCO, Jane Mount of 20×200, and Michael Sippy, VP of production at Six Apart Ltd. I am specfically interested to hear Michael Sippy speak. Six Apart is the world’s leading blogging software and services company. The company was founded in 2001 by two bloggers. I would be interested to hear both the personal and professional advice the panelists, who sat in our same boat not long ago, have to offer.

I’m also making a point of attending the panel “How Social Networks Are Killing the Revolution.” The title of the panel alone intrigues me. The panel will discuss how social media sites give the illusion of a “false majority-view mentality” and actually hinders accomplishing any real large scale change in the world. After being asked to join countless “1,000,000 strong for [insert random cause]” facebook groups, I would be very intersted to hear what actual change, if any, social media sites help ignite.

Preview: Are Women Taken More Seriously On The Web?

Some women bloggers feel they lose prestige online.  Does credibility on the Web depend on gender or content?  If you are looking to gain inspiration and guidance to the female blogosphere make sure to catch this panel, Are Women Taken More Seriously On the Web?  during the SXSW Interactive Conference. Blagica Bottigliero of Bsolutions, Karen Chu of Playfirst Inc., Laura Roederof Roeder Studios LLC, and Carly Kocurek, a doctoral candidate at the University of Texas, will lead this bold discussion about women’s presence on the Web. These panelists provide in-depth knowledge in social media, gaming, online marketing and journalism.  I have great expectations for this panel, and personally believe that women have the power to be confident online journalists.  The panel will take place Monday, March 16 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in Room C.