In case you were caught up in the Oscar hoopla this weekend, there’s also another huge event taking place — South by South West (AKA South by or SXSW). This is the time when the annual pilgrimage of techies, creatives, musicians and more descend to Austin.
In an instant, the city turns into a hub for innovation. People who attend the festival are diverse, ranging from filmmakers to tech leaders, musicians and entrepreneurs. They head there to be inspired courtesy of big name panels with thought leaders, keynote speakers, introductions to the latest technologies and access to the many industries leaders for professional development.
But, SXSW isn’t just about panels, screenings and concerts. For SXSW badge holders, they get even more than conference sessions and music, they get access to the brightest minds leading brand activations. Brands play a massive role in creating the festival vibe and buzz courtesy of immersive brand activations. However, at this event, attendees don’t leave talking only about swag bags; they talk about the events. These events are major and designed to engage attendees, build buzz and get people talking on every social platform well past the end of the event. As marketers who create experiential experiences, we’ve always got our eyes on SXSW to see the thriving creativity and how it compares to last year.
While we’re not there this year (ICYMI, we’re busy gearing up for a NYC launch and our first Founder’s Dinner at the famed Hotel Chelsea later this month), we are still keeping tabs. These are our top picks for activations at the 2024 event that stand out for their creativity and social-media generating hype. Sadly, most of these events took place March 8th, March 9th and March 10th, so unless you were there over the weekend, these are but a memory. But, you never know. Perhaps you’ll stumble up an intimate setting with a special performance
SXSW Experience: the top SXSW activations
The La Croix House
Let’s get things started with one of our favorite sparkling waters, La Croix. This year, the brand created a house to establish its brand presence.
On March 8, it was opened to everyone for free drinks and cocktails featuring all 31 (who knew!?!) flavors. Complete with a DJ, merch and interactive experiences, this was a crowd favorite. People piled into its ball pit, played cornhole and had a general awesome time in perfect spring weather. We loved how playful this activation was over the weekend.
Paramount+ Presents: The Lodge Experience
This year’s South By features a return of Paramount+ Presents: The Lodge. A staple of SXSW, the activation features themed sets tied to Paramount shows and movies, as well as drinks, music and even an airbrush tattoo station. The Clive Bar has been remade into The Lodge, complete with rustic decor and three floors of photo opps and experiences. Guests can sip on themed cocktails at the Lawmen: Bass Reeve’s saloon. Or, they can grab an Azalea, the signature drink of The Masters at the Paramount+ Pub.
But, it goes beyond that. There’s also a Halo interactive experience that allows fans to explore props and costumes. In addition, they can also step onto the iconic bridge of the USS Discovery in advance of the Star Trek: Discovery Season 5 premiere that’s on the SXSW schedule. Finally, The Chi, Survivor, Ink Master and others have inspired other interactive moments at The Lodge. What sets this activation apart is that its a festival series regular and delivers a familiar environment courtesy of The Lodge that attendees can return to every year.
Prime Video Fallout
To celebrate the new Amazon Prime Video series, Prime Video Fallout’s experience recreates the Wasteland shanty-town of Filly. The show, which premiers April 12 on Prime recreates the post-apocalyptic world of the show and gives attendees a chance to see if they have what it takes to survive in this immersive experience.
Prime Video took a Downtown Austin parking lot at the Hotel San José and transformed it into “Filly,” a post-nuclear fallout world. Visitors (called Vault Dwellers) are then transported into this immersive experience. The creativity here is incredible. Vault dwellers enter through an old sewer tunnel and are greeted by local resident before they embark on a journey into the Fallout world. The goal is to get people psyched for the show’s first time on the air, and we think it definitely does that and more.
Audible Sound Experience
Audible pulled out all the stops for this year’s SXSW, including building a Ferris wheel and creating a carnival-inspired experience complete with carnival games, prizes and music.
Throughout all of the immersive experiences, the brand is front-and-center. On the Ferris wheel, the gondolas have audio so people can listen to Audible content when riding. The games are all Audible themed and there is even one-on-one listening spaces. Plus, when it comes to content creation and content creators, this year’s theme lends itself perfectly.
Porsche Full Service
The luxury automobile maker pulls up to SXSW with it’s Full Service experience. Inside the activation, guests can wander through and learn about icons of the past, meet the new face of the brand’s electric future and witness the North American debut of the all-new Macan Electric.
As far as strategic partnerships go, this one is brilliant because the tech-savvy audience is one of the maker’s target audiences. Not only that, but the activation also includes panel discussions daily, a happy hour, tiny garage musical performances and more. For those with SXSW badges, there’s even an exclusive concert featuring artists like Common, 9th Wonder and DJ Diamond Kuts.
Tide Laundry Experience
Tide is launching what it’s calling the “biggest laundry innovation of the 21st century” to SXSW attendees. The company’s newest innovation is Tide evo. This powerful cleaning formula packs 100% concentrated cleaning ingredients into a lightweight and convenient form. The plastic packaging is replaced with ready-to-recycle paperboard.
At the activation, you’ll meet the industry leaders and scientists behind the product and participate in hands-on demos.
citizenM’s Bucking Bed
Stay in bed and win a free night at any citizenM hotel in the world. With a catch. Attendees get super interactive with this novel twist on the bucking bull in the form of a bucking bed. Climb on the bed and stay. on. Anyone surviving the 60-seconds as the bed furiously bucks to throw you off wins a free night.
@fox7austin We know you’ve heard of a bucking bull but how about a bucking bed? The activation was up @SXSW thanks to @citizenM hotels which held its grand opening for its Austin location. #fyp ♬ Western style bgm cowboy western etc.(1263171) – Shinnosuke Shibata
Engagement is achieved through this fun approach. And, it’s also a great way to attract people who wouldn’t normally stop. Who doesn’t want to watch someone stay planted on a bucking bed for a sweet prize?
Hook’em House
Finally, there’s Hook’em House at Antone’s. This spot is the hub for the University of Texas at Austin at SXSW.
SXSW events here include installations, and panels with academic talent and entrepreneurs. It also includes UT Austin men’s and women’s basketball watch parties and live music performances. There is even a parade marching through downtown.
All in all, the activations at SXSW were fantastic. We cannot wait to see what brands pop-up next year. If you’re ready to head to SXSW and create a memorable activation, contact us today!