Digital Mission Blog
The Digital Mission series is run by Chinwag to support UK-based digital companies expand into new markets and attract overseas investment.
Register Your Interest: Digital Mission to Washington DC, July 2011
We’re gathering interest for a digital government and social innovation-focused trade mission to Washington for UK-based digital companies in July. Interested? Read on...
The last few years have seen a dramatic adoption of social media and digital technologies in government, NGOs and campaigning organisations. There’s a highly active community here in the UK, and an equally vibrant counterpart in the United States, centered around Washington DC.
What started as a conversation with our friends at digital government consultancy FutureGov, community builder BrightLemon and digital media consultant Kathryn Corrick, has come together to form concrete plans for a Digital Mission to Washington DC, scheduled the week 11th July 2011.
Digital Missions are designed specifically for companies in the digital sector to understand the opportunities and challenges of overseas markets. Over a week, mission delegates will have the opportunity to network, meet investors, find partners and develop valuable business relationships.
Building on the success of the previous seven trips, this inaugural week-long Digital Mission to DC, will focus on the exciting space where government meets the digital sector, whether that’s adopting open source technology, opening data, working collaboratively or developing social enterprises.
The full schedule is being confirmed, but will include:
- Masterclass sessions on setting up and doing business in the US
- Specialist briefings on campaigning, transparency, media & technology in government
- Roundtable meeting, Q&A and pitch events
- Networking dinner and meet-ups with DC-based communities in tech & Gov 2.0
- Session covering contracting with the US Government
- VIP reception and company showcase
With pre and post-mission events in the UK. The cost will be in the region of £650 + VAT. Mission delegates will be responsible for covering their own travel and accommodation expenses, although local grants may be available towards this.
The trip will be open to innovative UK-based digital SMEs (<250 staff, <€50m turnover) with up to 20 slots available, with space (but sadly not funding) for a limited number of press and academic slots. Companies are chosen through a competitive process, selecting only the leading firms that can use the trip to support their development plans.
If you’re interested in joining this mission, please let us know by registering your interest using this form. If you’d like to support the mission through sponsorship or by hosting an event, or have access to grant funding to support companies attending the trip, francesca
chinwag [dot] com (we’d love to hear from you).
The full application form will be available in the next couple of weeks. In the meantime, if you have any questions, do drop us an francescachinwag [dot] com (email), or leave a comment below and we’ll get back to you.
// Register Interest: Digital Mission to Washington DC
Photo (cc) Tom Lohdan.
South By South West...Through the Eyes of Teamly
I’m writing this a few days after returning back to the UK after attending “South by South-West” (SXSW) Interactive, Austin, Texas. It’s an enormous conference or festival of all things digital and web related. In Silicon Valley it’s known as “spring break for geeks”, an apt description which describes the attendees and the atmosphere just a little too well.
It’s spread over 5 days, with talks, discussions, panels and keynotes running all through the day with parties running all through the night. There is simply no other conference like it. You won’t see people in suits, instead, flip flops, shorts and a T-shirt branded with your company logo is fairly typical.
It was my second time at “South By”, but this year thing’s have changed, not only is attendance up a whopping 40% but this time round I have a business to promote!
Last year I came when Teamly was at the idea stage and I didn’t know anyone. All the networking I’ve done in the last year in London - helped in no small part by being a member of TechHub - meant that this time round I kept bumping into familiar faces; the world’s web industry was in attendance.
But crucially Teamly was also taking part in the official UKTI Mission, a group of 40 British digital and web businesses. It’s well worth taking part as through the mission events and support from UKTI and organisers, Chinwag, you will definitely get more out of SXSW, and crucially maximise the ROI on your trip.
Meetings with the UKTI team and other mission companies take place in the UK ahead of departure so they understand what you are looking for and this helps them ensure you get the most out of the experience.
Once in Austin there’s specific events for the mission companies, including a morning seminar on doing business in the US, a hands-on breakfast with key industry players to provide advice and intros, a general open-to-all networking breakfast, and finally another open-to-all networking event over beer and BBQ.
Combine these with the hundreds of talks, discussions, keynotes and seminars in the official programme - not to mention all the parties! - and SXSW will be one of the most crammed 5 days of your life!
Separately, Teamly was lucky enough to be shortlisted for the finals of the prestigious Microsoft Bizspark Accelerator startup competition! Both that and the UK Mission helped us to raise our profile amongst the thousands of businesses in attendance; SXSW is a noisy place, so don’t expect any attention as you’ll have to work really hard for it. Instead focus on meeting people that will help your business, and go for making quality connections. Seth Godin offers two excellent pieces of advice on SXSW strategy, here and here.
Last year I spent much of the daytimes in the fantastic sessions, choosing between them all is impossibly hard; frequently you find there are 3 things on at the same time, but you can only go to one!
However, this year I spent less time doing the official panels and more time just meeting and talking to people, making new friends and meeting other entrepreneurs, bloggers and investors. Even when pitching a VC, the laid back party atmosphere means a pitch at “south-by” is not like a pitch elsewhere.
My main goal for SXSW was to connect with potential investors as we close our seed round for Teamly. There were lots in attendance, but with so many people around, finding them is going to be the big challenge. I seemed to hit it very lucky, having checked in at SFO for my flight to Austin I turned around and found myself face-to-face with a VC!
A rather craply delivered elevator pitch then followed, but it was enough to secure a 30 minute slot later on. Other opportunities to meet with VCs came about simply because I knew who I was targeting, and was following their activity on Twitter, Foursquare, Gowalla, (a.k.a. stalking), or had found some of the unofficial VC pitch events listed on Plancast or Eventbrite. (This is also how you will find out about the cool, unofficial parties, so don’t dismiss them, use these channels to your advantage!)
In total I did 3 formal pitches, and had chats or catch ups with another 7 investors. As VC Mark Suster - one of the ones I bumped into, over a glass of wine - says, investors invest in lines and not dots; the point being the more times you meet and connect with people in different ways, the better.
Oh, and if you need one final reason to come to South-By, it’s March and it’s mid 20s and sunny; you can’t beat getting off the plane from London and finding yourself in the middle of summer!
See you next year!
Photos (cc) melmediasauce1 and Chinwag
Digital Mission Research Survey 2011
Chinwag's Digital Missions, hosted with the help of UK Trade & Investment, have been running for over 3 years, and have included 7 trips to the USA, as well as helped promote and recruit for trade missions to Japan and China.
The missions have been a huge success with dozens of companies finding new business, setting up offices in the US and finding long-term business partners and friends amongst the mission companies.
We're continually looking to improve the missions and look at new destinations, and this is where you come in.
The world is a big place and each company has different priorities for new markets to expand their business. We'd really appreciate it if you could spare a moment or two to complete our short survey to help us prioritise for the next set of Digital Missions, and also plan for the future.
We understand your time is precious, so as a thank you we're giving away 10 x £10 Amazon vouchers. To be eligible, just complete the survey (and make sure you've included your contact details).
// Take the Digital Mission survey now
If you'd like to find out more about the Digital Missions, you can do so here.
Drop us a line at missionchinwag [dot] com if you have any queries.
To keep up-to-date with the Digital Mission and other opportunities for overseas expansion, sign-up for the Digital Mission newsletter, or follow @digitalmission on Twitter.
The Ins and Outs of The UKTI Mission to SXSW 2011
After a very busy, very tiring, but very productive week out to the famous SXSW we have returned. All companies in check, no broken bones or more importantly broken laptops and with some great stories to tell - lets start off at day one…
Thursday
As we touched down in refreshingly sunny Austin you could tell it was going to be a good week, with the sun shinning and the geeky vibes buzzing there was a lot to look forward to.
Jumping timezones had left everyone slightly confused as to what day and time it was so we eased the companies participating on the UKTI Mission in slowly with a networking reception at the Moonshine Grill. The Texan food on offer including buffalo meatballs and “corn dog” shrimp definitely got our taste bubs ready for the next few days, washed down with a few magaritas.
It gave the companies a chance to get to know one another a little better as well as meeting the UKTI and Chinwag teams. With the easy start to the busy week ahead most of us headed to bed, minus a few that started the SXSW parties early!
Friday
Into the first full day of the mission, and our first stop was Palm Door for the “Doing Business in the USA” Masterclass. This session set the scene companies looking to expand into the US with sessions ranging from legal battles, protecting IP, employment law to the venture funding landscape taking in trends and predictions for the future on the way.
First up we had James Vicery and Ben Olivas from DLA Piper discussing how to conduct business in the US. Next up were lessons learned from first hand experience by various US businessmen - Matthew lliffe, Creative Director, Beyond and Andy McLoughlin, Co-founder and Global VP of Strategy at Huddle.
After a coffee and brain break it was straight back into it with Rodney Gibbs from Ricochet Labs and Aziz Giliani from DFJ Mercury discussing the US digital market’s trends and predictions. This was followed by a look at the investment landscape and advice on raising capital in the US from Chris Redlitz , TransMedia Capital and Chris Shonk an Angel Investor from Liahona Ventures.
The Masterclass closed with some handy tips from Shaun O'Keefe, Interactive Festival Producer at SXSW and our very own Sam Michel on how to get the best out of SXSW. Being a SXSW virgin myself, I have to say it was very useful! We would like to say a huge thank you to all of the Masterclass speakers.
With the afternoon upon us, and lunch tackled we sent the mission crew headed off to pick up the week’s most vital piece of equipment, their SXSW badges. Along with your badge came the handy pocket guide and the hefty SXSW Interactive programme, packed full of info on day sessions, evening events, maps of the city and all things South By South West.
Friday evening, the majority of the group headed to the HP Happy Hour, where we watched the sunset over the city, not a bad place for networking! The evening continued with the group exploring the networking & nightlife Austin had to offer, and ended with a few of us watching some Texan cowboys do their thing on stage in Maggie Mae’s.
Saturday
With Saturday not having any official mission events, the companies had time to really take advantage of the excellent selection of sessions and panels. With this year being so busy, it was really important for everyone to work out what sessions they wanted to make, tough as it was with so many great sessions prioritising made sure everyone used their time effectively
Lucky for you, we have some first hand footage what the queues were really like this year. Sam Michel recorded his very own “SXSW Interactive 2011 Queue Running” and that was just the queue for the 2pm keynote! Fortunately, everyone got into the room in under 10 minutes, once the queue finally started moving. It certainly shows how popular the event has become.
On the plus side Saturday brought with it some lovely Austin sunshine, any queueing that took place outside was therefore greatly appreciated. After a day full of brain busting, part of the group headed to the Interactive Opening Party hosted by frog design, and then off to The Mohawk for Ning’s Opening Night After Party.
Sunday
Sunday morning brought with it a few sore heads from Saturday night’s activities but the SXSW sessions were not stopping for anyone and were once again packed out by 9am - another busy day for the companies.
Sunday afternoon was spent at Chinwag’s Global Grill, which was supported by UK Trade & Investment. The day, yet again, was glorious so our location at Brush Square park suited perfectly.
SXSW was really doing their part to help out with the awful events in Japan, also very keen to do our bit we decided to hold a prize draw to win a brand new shiny iPad 2 as well a collection for the Red Cross. We are thrilled to announce that with everyone's kind donations we managed to raise over $500 dollars, a huge thanks to those who donated! Picked out of the hat was lucky Andy Halliday who won himself the iPad 2!
With over 600 SXSW attendees through the door, it was a massive success and we just wanted to say a big thanks to all our volunteers who helped out, as well as the team at High Beam events. Sunday night ended with the Party Like It’s 1986 event hosted by Google, and dancing the night away to the ultimate geek band Spazmatics.
Monday
Monday morning and time for the exclusive Round Table Breakfast organised for the mission companies and with the opportunity to discuss their business with representatives from several of the major players in the US market including; Microsoft BizSpark - Christopher Griffin, Google Profiles Product Manager - Rick Klau, Director of Marketing for Client Software for Dell - Russ Ray, Director of Marketing for Client Software, International Creative Management (ICM) - George Ruiz and Business Development Manager for Twitter - April Underwood.
The morning was a great success with companies coming away from the event with a real insight into US business. Big thanks to all our Round Table speakers.
Monday was also the first day of the SXSW trade show and with over 300 trade show exhibitors this year it was a busy one! The UKTI Mission had a huge stand taking up most of aisle 700, nick-named the British Aisle (geddit?) the stand was a great place for our UK companies to base themselves over the next two days offering wired up Internet, laptop and phone chargers, it was just like home.
The stand also gave our UK group the chance to distribute their own marketing material, along with the Mission brochures which promoted all companies on the UKTI mission, anyone visiting certainly had plenty to look at and take in.
Monday night was one of the busiest nights to date in SXSW. Mobile Monday was taking place, which saw some of mission companies, Flypost, Play Mob, Planzai and Psonar showcasing their mobile applications with other companies from Austin, Silicon Valley and other startups around the world. It was also the night of the Great British Booze Up at Shakespeare’s Pub, lets just say the free pouring spirits in Austin can catch you out!
Tuesday
The final day of the UKTI Mission, and another busy one! We arrived at the lovely Cedar Street Courtyard on yet another glorious day for the now-legendary fry-up, the Great British Breakfast (GBB).
The smell of a full English fry up (complete with Heinz Baked Beans) seemed to bring a lot of people back to life. To complete the English theme, each of the attendees from our mission donned a traditional bowler hat. We were lucky enough to have Dominic Chilcott, Deputy Head of Mission, from the British Embassy in Washington at the breakfast, who kindly welcomed the UK and US companies that attended the GBB.
After this little slice of home from home we headed back to the trade show for the last day of Interactive, very sad it was coming to an end. The UKTI Mission stand was buzzing all day and we even got involved in the SXSW Block Party, which was a great way to finish off the successful trade show.
Our last night at SXSW turned into a bit of a treat! Rumors were going round all day that the Foo Fighters may be performing at the Interactive closing party, rumours we more than enough for us to go down and check it out, once we saw the queue it was obvious they were true! Before we knew it Dave Grohl was rocking out on stage, not a bad way to end SXSW!
After a few hours head banging a group of us headed to the British Music Embassy to support our fellow Brits who were out with UK Music do their thing on the stage.
Wednesday
Wednesday was unfortunately home time, well for most of us. There were a lucky few who were staying on for music (not jealous at all) and some who were continuing their trip around the US (again not jealous at all).
So that was it, the UKTI Mission to SXSW was over. As you can see it was a great few days but most importantly it gave a brilliant opportunity for all those who attended to gain the knowledge and contacts needed for expanding their business.
All that is left to say is a huge thank you to all the UKTI staff, both the UK and Houston teams, and of course the real pros of the show – all the great companies who come out with us! Thanks for being part of such an adventure, we cannot wait to hear about all your success!
To find out about future missions, check out:
// Digital Mission Newsletter
// @digitalmission on Twitter
// Digital Mission on Facebook
// Digital Mission on Linkedin
Photo (cc) Benjamin Ellis.
50 Essential #SXSW Tips for the International (Digital) Rockstar
Here are fifty tips from the mind of SXSW veteran, and Chinwag mastermind, Sam Michel. They are good, and they work - I know because I've personally beta-tested every one of them!
1. Shoes - Wear comfortable shoes. There is lots of walking - the Austin Convention Center (ACC) is so large that it could declare itself a principality and have its own royal family. They'd be on Twitter of course.
2. Pace yourself - You know that think about the candle that burns brightly? You may want to be a bright star, but the days are long, and the nights longer still. Don't over do it too soon.
3. Flexibility - Plan to change your plan. The queues for one session or party might be huge, so look at what else is on. You didn't some here to queue, you can do that back home.
4. Contact - Stay in touch on Twitter, Facebook, FourSquare, but don't forget old skool SMS. It's all about the people. Contact and be contactable.
5. Roaming Data Charges - They can be eye-watering. Lots of venues in Austin have WiFi, and a new EU ruling means you shouldn't get ripped off, well, not too badly anyway. Coverage hasn't been great in previous years, it may be better this year. There again, they say that every year.
6. Eating & Drinking - plan your days well and it's unlikely you'll be buying any food or drinks, virtually for the whole week. Check our our BBQ, the Block Party, the Great British Breakfast and more...
7. Breakfast - This is the most important meal of the day, it will set you up right. For us the kings of breakfasts are Magnolia, & Downtown Jo's on 2nd Street.
8. 6th Street - Get to know it, its choca-block of party venues - very lively during Interactive, absolutely heaving during music. Walk the whole length, but perhaps not every day!
9. BBQ - You you might be in its ancestral home. Good dining options: Iron Works, Stubbs, and Salt Lick.
10. Texas - Austin State Rodeo - Get a cab there, and don't forget to get a number to get a cab back!
11. Texas Part 2 - Get a tour of the State Capitol (the building that looks like the one in Washington at the top of the Hill). It's a bit of culture and an insight into the amazing history of Texas that makes it what it is.
12. Getting there - It's a long-old trip from Europe. There are no direct flights, and an above average chance of missing a connection. But you've probably figured that already!
13. Meetings - You can try, but it's a busy, hectic place, so be flexible about meetings. It sometimes takes longer to get from A to B than expected.
14. ID - Bring it. Always. Even old fogies like me get carded (sometimes), and its 21+ for booze, sadly.
15. Sessions - Try something random. Some of the best sessions are the ones you'll just amble into. Don't worry about sneaking out the back half-way through, if it's not working for you.
16. Promotion - Pimp yourself by asking insightful, relevant questions at sessions, and don't forget to introduce yourself when you're at the mic.
17. Power - There's often a dearth of power sockets. Take a four-way adapter and there's very a good chance you'll make some new friends. Charge everything whenever you have the opportunity!
18. Timings - sessions usually run to time, but like everything else in Texas, the distances between sessions can be big (allow 20 min to walk the length of the ACC when it's busy).
19. Programme - it's your bible to sessions, and worth having a good look through for hidden gems and extra stuff that SXSW is laying on. Download the SXSW app too.
20. Ask - people for advice, about sessions, venues, etc... There's things springing up all over the shop and the word on the street (and Twitter) is usually ahead.
21. Supplies - getting something to eat or drink can get pricey, get a stash (of drinks/snacks) for your room from one of the local Corner stores.
22. Queues - are a great chance to meet new people and chat, some of the best conversation happens while you're waiting. Business deals have been done in queues before now.
23. Business cards - You might be able to bump, bluetooth or whatever, but the trusty old business card still rules.
24. Registration - avoid the busy times to dodge the queues, don't forget a picture is involved, and you'll be wearing it round your neck all week. Just saying...
25. Weather - usually warm, but changeable, evenings can be chilly and when it rains, it rains!
26. Bats - Dusk at Congress Bridge, it's the biggest (what's a bunch of bats called?) in North America. Watch them come home to roost.
27. Tradeshow - absolutely worth touring round to see who is touting what, usually some interesting freebies to be had.
28. Block Party - did someone say free drink & food? Pop down to the Tradeshow on Tuesday when lots of stands will be laying on a big spread.
29. Variety - as well as SXSW Music, there's also Games, Film, Comedy and all sorts of other fringe events. Dive in.
30. Overwhelmed? - Just leafing through the programme can do it - it's OK to take in a keynote, amble round the Tradeshow and take in a couple of extra sessions, don't feel you should have to cram your schedule or your brain.
31. Casual - Austin isn't a corporate town. Suits are out, comfy clothes are in. Get dolled up in the evenings if you fancy it, but stick to flats (or have them stashed in your bag). Most venues are on the casual side of casual, including the conference centre itself.
32. Always Missing Out - with so much always a danger of this, throw yourself into whatever event you're at and you'll get more out of it. This is a time to be in the moment, not rueing the tweets from the party/session/hotel down the road that you didn't make it in to.
33. Leaving Austin - allow a little extra time at peak periods. Austin airport is quite small and when the SXSW exodus begins, the queues can be loooong.
34. Rest time - not just the feet, the voice too. It's a marathon not a sprint, so try a mid-afternoon sit down with a cup of tea, coffee or something stronger. Remember to stay hydrated even if it's just preparation for the evenings.
35. Parties - there are too many to count. It's not like back home though, people flit between them, don't be surprised if you're bouncing between 3-4 or more every night.
36. Party Venues - Downtown Austin is pretty small, so have a wonder about outside the ACC, 6th Street and the area in general to get your bearings before the mayhem begins.
37. Food - there are lots of great places to go, including the obvious Tex-Mex and BBQ mentioned earlier. Food at the ACC probably won't win any awards, but there are plenty of places nearby which might spark your palette.
38. Cabs - plentiful except during rush hour when it's hard to find one. Also, traffic can be awful during peak periods.
39. Sun Block - for delicate types the sun can be extremely strong. It's easy to forget how quickly you can turn into a lobster, when you've just emerged from an air conditioned conference room.
40. SXSW Recovery - there's a good chance you'll come back with some lurgi (nothing too serious) and a little tired (and possibly emotional). Allow yourself some time to recover, and digest it all, don't rush back to work!
41. The official guide is comprehensive, but it is worth checking the unofficial versions, and there's lots of 'em, check out SXSW Baby, Plancast, and Lanyrd for starters.
42. Networking - the SXsocial tool can be useful to see who is attending, but don't rely on being able to find them, it's a big conference!
43. Serendipity - you're just as likely to make contacts at bars as in conference sessions, so sample plenty of both.
44. Laptop/Phone Charging - batteries aren't what they used to be, remember to charge every night and make full use of the facilities. Geek conferences take their toll on smartphones and laptops, so extra batteries are often a good call.
45. Laptops - lugging them round can be a pain after a while, are you really going to take notes? Or answer those emails? I mean, really?
46. SXSW Buddies - hanging with your countryfolk is a good way to meet people en masse, but don't speak to them exclusively. Mix things up a little, and introduce folks that you know that don't know each other.
47. Linkedin & Follow-up - When they're interested, the Americans tend to be much more efficient than other countries. Don't leave it until you get home, you'll be busy with work by then. Or sleeping.
48. Maps - Yes there's Google, Bing, Ovi & Yahoo, but a paper version doesn't need a battery, and can be easier to read than a screen. GPS doesn't always see eye to eye with Austin's tall buildings.
49. Taking Notes - don't feel under pressure to always be tapping. Sometimes it's good to listen and take it all in. Many sessions are filmed for broadcast, and there's more than a handful of bloggers in town.
50. Press - Lots of them make the journey to Austin. It can be easier to make press contacts with your local press when there's fewer people hitting them up for stories and you have an accent in common. They're srangers in a strange land, too!
Oh, and remember to always have your pass with you - Being shut out of a session or party isn't very rock star!
Photo (cc) Benjamin Ellis.
