My three days in Austin were wonderful–packed with learning experiences, brand activation and fun–but definitely too short. Above all I was incredibly impressed with PepsiCo’s presence at the festival. Both our company and our brands were all over Austin, from logos at the backdrop of every Interactive panel to Pepsi Refresh Project grant competition between two great bands performing at the music festival. These types of details paired with the large brand and company activation (SoBe Lizard Lounge, Pepsi Refresh Café, PepsiCo Podcast Playground) demonstrated how PepsiCo goes beyond usual corporate sponsorship to actual content creation. Instead of just investment in logos and signage, PepsiCo made a huge splash at sxsw with events, employee speakers and presence, and brand spaces that truly added value to the entire conference.

The three days were full of learnings not only from panels and keynote speakers, but from films and tons of conversations. It was so great to discuss our brands and company in the context of digital innovation and evolution with employees and agency teams from all over the country. The music portion also changed the way I think about artists, the music industry and the way our brands can play in this space. I definitely plan on bringing the knowledge and lessons back to my day-to-day in media and entire career in PCNA marketing.

A huge thank you to PepsiCo and Conn3ct for the opportunity to attend sxsw this year and hoping to return in 2011!