How to Rock SXSW PanelPicker Voting

The Forrest Four-Cast: August 29, 2016

The 2017 SXSW PanelPicker closes at the end of the day on Friday, September 2. So this is the final week for you to leverage the full functionality of this community-focused interface. Full functionality? Follow these four easy steps to become an unstoppable PanelPicker power-user!

1) Browse. With more than 5000 speaking proposals in this year’s interface, you are unlikely to have the bandwidth to view all the ideas. Instead, use the search button at the top right corner to find the topics that most interest you. Or, use the “Track” dropdown menu at the top right corner to filter ideas according to the categories that you are most intrigued by.

2) Watch. Many of the PanelPicker proposals include YouTube videos that either give more information on the speaking idea — or reveal more context on the presentation style of one or more of the speakers. Viewing these videos is the best way to gain a better understanding if the given proposal is a good fit for SXSW 2017.

3) Vote. Find a proposal that you find particularly captivating. Then give a thumbs up vote for the proposal. You must have a PanelPicker account to cast your vote — but signing up for an account takes no more then two minutes. Once you have an account, then you can also down-vote ideas that you don’t think make sense for March 2017 in Austin.

4) Comment. If you really really like a proposal, then be sure to leave a comment telling other voters why you find this idea so exciting and so compelling. To leave a comment, you will need to log in to your Disqus account (or create a new account if you don’t already have one). As with the PanelPicker, creating a Disqus account is quick and easy process.

Don’t delay, because all this functionality goes away after Friday, September 2. Other upcoming important dates for SXSW include Tuesday, September 6 (when we announce more 2017 speakers) and Friday September 9 (the last day to buy your badge at the early-bird price).