Yesterday TechCrunch held a panel discussion in Austin on the importance and history of grassroot campaigns on the web that featured perspectives from a diverse group of panelists.
I was excited to be an invited member of the panel and more interested to hear the directions a topic like “grassroot campaigns on the web” could travel (politics, social causes, commerce, and entertainment). I was not disappointed. The conversation started with current presidential campaigns, then moving to the music industry, and to business brands. Some key themes I heard were:
- Grass roots starts with an individual, not with a company
- Web is effective to get your messages out in the marketplace, but depending on your market, your objective, web is not always enough
- WOM is alive and well, web 2.0 makes WOM travel faster, farther
- Listening and engaging with your customers truly makes a brand successful
I caught up with Erick Schonfeld the co-editor from TechCrunch who moderated the panel and asked him to share his views on the panel and the event itself.
The Ustream broadcast of the event is no longer active, but Techcrunch will soon post a video of the panel here.
As a proud Austin resident working in the tech sector, I was grateful that Techcrunch orgranzed this panel in our town. Thanks to Austin Ventures and host of sponsors for making this event happen.