How I Networked at SXSW with Some (tiny) Helping Hands
I went to my first SXSW after being laid off. Here’s how I networked without a QR code and some (tiny) helping hands. ✋
March 1st 2023 - here I was just barely 6 months in a new city that I had moved to for a job I had worked the last 15 years to get. Due to restructuring and a likely need to get my salary off the books before an April 1 fiscal year start, I was without the job.
With my new found time I jumped into the Discord communities that have been where I find support, inspiration, knowledge and learning and so much more. I found a post in Water & Music, the main research group I am in, promoting a SXSW meet up.
Oh - that’s in less than 2 weeks!
A quick dive into the conference’s programming in music tech, music careers, design and marketing tracks got me excited. For the first time in 15 years I would have the freedom to attend the legendary conference and music festival on my terms. There were talks and panels that featured companies and individuals I was researching for new positions, there were meet ups and networking opportunities that were specific to the kind of work I do, and there were featured topics I wanted to learn more about.
I got a music badge, flights, an AirBnB, RSVP’d to as many relevant networking events I could find, and made my schedule for talks and panels.
Now here was the real dilemma. How do I stand out at a conference with over 40,000 attendees, panels and talks in huge conference rooms that hold hundreds, networking events at bars and concerts where… there’s plenty of free alcohol? Odds were not good for being remembered. Most folks who attend SXSW are representing their startup or job. The objectives of their networking are to get their contact info out en masse, analog with business cards or the QR code has been the digitally more direct route as of late, or a business card with a QR code on it.
But a pocketed business card doesn’t help jog a conference goer’s memory around who handed over the card, and a QR code scan might send you to a linktree with all of your socials, website, etc. but leaves little memory about a conversation.
On top of these issues with the typical networking devices I was looking for new job opportunities. Me asking a potential employer to scan MY QR code didn’t feel right when I was the one who’d need to reach back out to them post-conference and stand out beyond the other hundreds of people they met over the long conference days. I needed to GIVE them something to remember me by.
I have worked at many music festivals and conferences over the last 10 years, from volunteering at TEDx talks, to stage managing at a 15,000+ person crypto conference, to producing music festivals and multi-night concerts at the legendary Red Rocks Amphitheater in Colorado. One of the most important things I do before the event where we’re typically working 15-18 hour days is go to Party City and buy a grab bag of funny hats and glasses, bubbles, and even makeshift marshmallow guns. Because by hour 13 of a long day you need something to lighten the mood and remind you why you’re there.
This was the inspiration behind the 50+ tiny hands I bought on Amazon a week before leaving for Austin. (If you ever need a good mood boost know that there are hundreds of reviews of tiny hands on Amazon). I’d seen these miniature finger toys at music festivals before, 2-inch long orange plastic molded into the shape of left and right hands with a convenient hole in the bottom to fit your own digit into. These tiny plastic hands would be my “calling card” for SXSW.
The tiny hands were the perfect conversation starter: “Hi I’m Chrissy, and you look like you could use a hand” or “Nice to meet you let me know if I can lend you a hand”. We could then shake tiny hands with grins and a good disruption from the sameness of conference days.
Putting the tiny hand on your finger is so tactile and looks so funny that I was often met with a tossed back head with a giant smile. They are small enough to fit in a pocket and forget about until you reach in pull it out and hopefully have another good laugh. Moreover, after the conference when we get back to our daily lives, I can reach out to the contact on LinkedIn and say “I’m the one that gave you the tiny hand, I’m looking for my next opportunity and would love to connect here”.
It was a little awkward at first, figuring out the best way to hand off the hands. The timing and delivery needed to be finessed beyond how I pictured it going prior to the conference. I warmed up by giving out one to every SXSW conference volunteer I interacted with. I started at the registration booth where I picked up my badge, it was late, and the gentleman behind the table beckoned me to his booth, before getting out my ID I reached over and said “you look like you can use an extra hand” his face lit up and he immediately put the hand on his finger. The positive feedback was immediate and encouraging.
I tried it the next day after the first talk I watched, I went up to the speaker and introduced myself, mentioned I was looking for work in his field and while reaching out with the tiny hand “I’d love the opportunity to lend a hand in the future, can I reach out to you on LinkedIn?” Another big smile and a tiny hand on finger.
The rest of the week went similarly. The tiny hands were conversation starters, icebreakers, and distractions when conversation started to wane. Getting them around a networking event and seeing people talking while holding a beer can with an orange tiny hand extending their finger was rewarding.
Since I’ve been back I’ve followed up my IRL conversations URL in Discord, on LinkedIn, and via Email. Mentioning the tiny hand and reiterating my availability to “lend a hand” should the contact have a need. Responses have been positive and memories jogged. ✋