proud to be a digital immigrant

GUEST BLOGGER - Erika Levy, VP Sales & Marketing/Wiredrive

I was over-prepared for SXSW. I got myself and my team geared up with A/V equipment, armed with apps and in sync with a strategy to document the entire interactive festival. We had all logistical information at our fingertips and 11 different ways to connect with each other and the outside world: Facebook, Twitter, Tweetdeck, Tumblr, iCal, SXSW App, i-nigma, Bump, Foursquare, text message and the actual phone.

The funny thing, though, is that I still found comfort in going to the information desk to ask a human being for directions, and sometimes it was faster. They had computers set up all around, but I noticed a lot of people went to the booth to ask questions. I always thought the term “Digital Immigrants” referred to my parents or ancestors, but I guess I do still have one foot in the past. 

From Marc Prensky’s Essay Digital Natives Digital Immigrants (http://bit.ly/cAkI3S):

The Digital Immigrant “accent” can be seen in such things as needing to print out a document written on the computer in order to edit it (rather than just editing on the screen); and bringing people physically into your office to see an interesting web site (rather than just sending them the URL).  

...the single biggest problem facing education today is that our Digital Immigrant instructors, who speak an outdated language (that of the pre-digital age), are struggling to teach a population that speaks an entirely new language. 

I think the same is true for advertising. That is why it was so encouraging to see “traditional” ad pros at SXSW. We are no longer in denial. We are no longer afraid. We are becoming more humble and open to learning. Partnerships between “traditional” and “digital” agencies are forming. Though they both aim be the leaders, they will always be dependent on one another. The business models will change, but the skill-sets that each possess are both needed to guide clients through to the other side.

Everyone’s been talking about creating “original content” and making a video go “viral” for the past 2 years. Now it’s all about “real-time” coverage. I wanted to try it out for myself, so I put together a strategy to accomplish the following: 

Post real-time coverage to a blog we set up for SXSW (http://wiredrivesxsw.tumblr.com)

Conduct video interviews with speakers and attendees

Create a microsite (powered by Wiredrive mRSS) to showcase photos, videos and blog recaps 

My team and I were able to post 45 times to the blog throughout the festival and we tweeted over 100 times.  However, I don’t think anyone could really digest the amount of information we doled out. As much as we crave information, consuming it is like eating empty calories most of the time. It goes right through you. Brands who target digital natives will get a much higher ROI on real-time advertising than brands who are trying to get the attention of digital immigrants because they are still fumbling with adoption and overwhelmed by the constant flow of information.

I think the biggest payoff will come in April, though, when we launch the microsite. As Damon Webster says, “You gotta filter the grid.” You have to use aggregators, filters, lists and bookmarks to scan information, keep up with what you’re interested in and come back to it later. How information is organized and presented is still one of the most important factors in landing sales.

Technology has always been in my DNA. Speak to my father, Mitch “GadgetJunkie” Levy, and he will tell you I was born with it. My mother is a psychologist so I love connecting with people and studying them as well. The biggest challenge for me at SXSW was being a real-time documentarian. How was I supposed to live in the moment and capture it at the same time? Some of the best connections I made were when I put down my phone and was present in the moment. I hope we don’t lose that natural instinct as we evolve because some of the best moments are the ones you don’t capture. 

 

Erika graduated in 1999 from the University of Oregon with a B.A. in journalism and communications and a minor in marketing. Her first job was as a PA at Zentropa Commercials, owned by Dancer in the Dark director, Lars von Trier.  She returned to the U.S. in 2001, moved to Los Angeles and became a below-the-line agent at Montana Artists Agency.

Erika has worked for Wiredrive (http://wiredrive.com) since 2004 and is currently the VP of Sales and Marketing. She has consulted with hundreds of clients on digital workflow for production and sales.