Early Stage Startup Founders Should Reconsider Attending SXSW This Year

Completely disagree with OP. While SXSW did not "make" Twitter, it certainly helped get things rolling. To say that Twitter was well on its way with tons of traction is a gross overstatement. What SXSW did was provide a logical testbed for Twitter in an environment that made sense. If anything, SXSW was the first large scale event that helped legitimize Twitter.

What I would agree with is that every startup needs to assess whether SXSW makes sense to attend. Several founders I am close to attended and each come back with at least a few tangible takeaways. Some met and secured investors for their seed rounds, others clicked with potential future hires/co-founders, and then some left with solid biz dev deals that moved the traction needle.

As with any event, you make of it what you put in. If you just go to drink, eat, and party, then chances are you are wasting the opportunity. If however you maximize the networking by setting some objectives, showing something tangible, staying sober, and meeting as many people as you can, then maybe you can have a positive and worthwhile experience that more than covers the cash expense and lost productivity.

Repost of http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5334554