I went to the Blogs, Buzz and Buddy Lists panel at SXSWi and liveblogged it. Here are my notes:

50% of audience have blogs
Most use social network sites
30% filmmakers

How do you live off your blogs?

Longworth: Blogging creates windows into world of You. Build emotional attachment to people interacting with me. Difficult to measure how much. Tantamount to launching a film.

Longworth: Got to stage of getting paid by spreading herself around a lot.

What are IFC and Spout aiming at with blogs?
Personal voice. Building trust.
Vehicle for trendspotting. “She’s cool so stuff she likes must be cool.”

How much time spent on blog?
Longworth. Only lives and works around filmblog.
Willmore: More than a full time job. Little bit all consuming.
Pineiro: Balance time when working on film. Interesting days, no time to blog. Boring days, no time to blog.
Longworth: No guilt or pity.

Film blog community is more about community than competition.
Yields respect and loyalty.

Different audience for blog and professional site.

Tips for filmmakers to approach bloggers:
If not available in some way for readers to see (screeners, online, etc) then not inclination to blog about.
Be personal. No form letters.

How to use networks.

Provide potential audience with as many “touch points” as possible. Blog, social networks created where audience most likely to be. Apply general marketing ideas to SNetworks. Frequent polling. Be an active listener. Take suggestions to heart and act on them.

Product sampling. Flight of Conchords. HBO premiered on MySpace with embed code. Give them a taste and option to get more. Listened to audience – they want t-shirt iron-ons, so made them available. Became most popular piece of download and now sold as tshirt. Informed merch.

With film. Tell story of development. Don’t oversaturate blogs you’re sending stuff to. Catalogue blogs where you’ve been featured. Send links, not attachments, etc.

Questions! Twitter me if you have any.

Is “blog” a good term outside out circle.
Blog used perjoratively. Cranky old man-ism.
Used to draw line between those who are journalists and are not.
Mom and dad index: blog means journal with photos of babies. Not what these sites do.
Ever used other term when describing self? Yes. Used “website”. “Can’t have interview with director but can post our trailer.”

How to distinguish my blog from others?
Scale of things.

Actor blogs would help casting.
Acting is a weird world. Sometimes want them to just act, sometimes want them to be activists.
What want to get out of it. Fanbase or getting work.
Useful for certain genres as can reach niche audience. eg low budget horror films. Director has built in audience if can measure readers on blog.

Dealing with NDAs, etc. CoIs between company and blog. No problem with self-censoring. Problem with being censored. Company will have opinions, though. Agency can be a thought leader.
Category on blog called “self promotion”.
Avoid films from sister company.

Games with PR people, but true with all news outlets.

Analytics and stats. Look for:
Time spent on site. 15 seconds is worthless.
Number of pages per session.
Uniques, where they come from geographically and organically. What search terms.
Where people are going afterwards.

Making decision – what do I want to write about? Important to ensure not spending too much time on. Harrill ditched reviewing screeners unless in some theme (ie post SXSW) as no-one was reading them.

Turn on comments and respond to them. Tells you what’s resonating. Then make a forum. (Personal note. Hmm……)

SEO: Talk about things that others are talking about, but relate it to what you’re doing.

Video blogging.
Amazingly helpful during SXSW, but not so much when not doing anything interesting.
Mention of the instant upload and post to blog stuff that’s been buzzing around here.
Create unique stuff quickly.

Name filmaker, site, whatever, that has gotten it right, convergeance between film making and internet.

Pineiro: 4 Eyed Monsters promo for film.
Longworth: Also 4 Eyed Monsters. AA Schnock? All These Wonderful Things blog.
Willmore: Lance Whiler – Head Trauma film. Workbookproject.com
Schafer: Victor Pineiro. Check his site. Connection with film and film makers.

Links here

And we’re done! Tidy up to come much later!