Tag: SXSW Interactive 2019

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SXSW: Realself // House of Modern Beauty

Charlotte Cutts & Noemie Mwanzuzi

The road to SXSW was different for all of us. Some of us got here Thursday others drove early Friday morning and one of us unfortunately was under the weather.

While the first two days were filled with long walks and  sessions like Designing better ecosystems, Advertising detox, and design thinking in practice we woke up early to finally see what all the hype was about realself/ House of modern beauty.

Upon arriving there was a wait but badges had priority. We signed a disclosure form and entered the house to explore. The RealSelfHouse of Modern Beauty offers consultations and treatments of Dysport, Emsculpt, HydraFacial, Invisalign, Natrelle, Restylane, SkinCeutical, TempSure Envi, and Vivace. Various assistants of the brand, dressed in Millennial Pink, approached us and discussed the benefits of each procedure and service. Surgeons and service providers were readily available to answer any questions. Walking through the house there were displays of success stories from procedures. We saw some travel sized goods and mistakenly thought we could get them. As we progressed through the house into the backyard there is a cute little bar covered in vines and dressed with pink flowers. Very chic and modern. Further into the backyard there were make shift  tents with women getting procedures done as well as a stage for beauty panels through out the day.

Overall, the activation was clean, bright, feminine, and youthful! The procedures appear to be very professional and trustworthy. 10/10 would recommend.

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SXSW: 4 the Win Win

Alex Lily and Rosendo Martinez

The power of social good and corporate consciousness is a rising trend at South by, so much so that it has merited its own track “Social & Global Impact”. Regardless, it has been evident in almost every panel. People want to get behind brands that positively impact the community and the world, and it is important, now more than ever, that brands become beacons of positive change.

Throughout the conference, videos of Elon Musk saying, “you should not just focus on fixing something, work on something that inspires.” This has become a clear motto for SXSW, as people focus on not only acquiring new customers and growth but also making an impactful social and environmental change to the world in which they work; thus, a win win for everyone.

In Rohit Bhargava’s discussion of his book 7 Non-Obvious Trends Changing the Future in 2019, he explored the trend “enterprise empathy”, which positions businesses to showcase their involvement in the community and connect with customers on an emotional level. One example he gave, is that of the supermarket industry in the UK in which grocers like Tesco offer slower lanes and quiet hours so that customers with specific mental and health needs can shop in comfort and at leisure. Thus, they were able to tap into an underserved market and change the daily lives of their communities by making grocery shopping more accessible for all. By tackling the problem emphatically, companies are able to better strengthen their mission, engage with customers, and find new avenues for growth.
In a fireside chat with Christopher Gavigan, the co-founder and chief purpose officer at The Honest Co., and Nina Montgomery, the author of Perspectives on Impact and Perspectives on Purpose, aptly titled, “Moving Beyond the Buzz of Purpose & Impact”, both discussed the struggle of businesses and social enterprises to tackle and hold on to purpose in a meaningful way. Both said that it was evident that social impact as the purpose of a company is great driver of growth and brand engagement but it is critical that companies ingrain this purpose in to the entire culture and strategy of the business. You have to “show up in a meaningful way” in order to create a “global and iconic brand”.


During the Bumble brand activation called the HIVE SXSW in which they took over Jo’s Coffee, each corporate employee passionately referred to the social mission of empowering women. Clearly, this purpose is deeply ingrained to the cultural foundation. It is reaffirmed in each and every way the brand grows, even so that expansion into India challenged the company to culturally adapt by ensuring women’s safety.

When companies have a mission and become champions of social improvements, they strengthen from the inside out. SXSW once again empowers executives, employees, and innovators to gear their companies to become leaders of positive social and global impact, a win win for everyone.

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SXSW: The Bumble Hive

Madison Cansler and Michael Bailey

Starting the weekend off with a bang, SMU Temerlin Advertising students are in Austin for SXSW Interactive!

Day 1 began at the Austin convention center to grab badges and then we let the fun begin!  Students scattered around event in search of seminars that ignite their interests.

Some of the first events attended included Designing a Better Media Ecosystem Without Ads, Spectrum at Thomas, The Spurs Interactive, The Future of Enterprise Marketing, and the Bumble Hive: An Experiential Meetup.

The highlight of the morning was consulting with former SMU student, Chelsea Maclin, VP of Marketing for Bumble. Bumble is rapidly evolving the app to ensure relevance to its growing user base. Maclin also relayed her experience  with Bumble operating in a small apartment, and contrasted that with the 100 plus employees spreading the app to India and Mexico.

Chelsea Maclin, VP Marketing at Bumble

Bumble’s success has come from evaluating all marketing efforts against being: 1) glocal, 2) integrated, 3) sustainable, 4) measurable, and 5) impactful.

Ending the session with a group pic with Maclin, the SMU Temerlin Advertising students are excited to make our school proud and see what else the weekend has in store!