The annual South by Southwest (SXSW) Conference & Festivals features a variety of tracks that focus on the most important breakthroughs in technology, film, culture, and music. Today, the public has the opportunity to vote for the panels they’d like to learn and hear about in the 2022 event programming.  With a focus on digital customer engagement topics, including AI, purpose-driven marketing, and even a meet-up for digital leaders. Here are the Khoros-hosted Panels and Meet Up that you can vote for ahead of the March conference:  URL to IRL: Khoros Meet Up for Digital Leaders: Join Khoros at this meet-up to connect with peers and experts across social media marketing, online communities, digital customer service, and CX. Network with brands from across the globe, share your stories, digital strategy best practices, and more. AI: More Intelligent Humans, Less Artificial Bots: There are many hypotheses surrounding the future of customer service agents -- “blended agent” models (combining voice and email channels, for example) are being piloted to some extent; AI investments are increasing with the promise to offload repetitive processes for agents to take on more meaningful work. This panel aspires to make an informed projection of the Future of the Customer Service Agent Experience, guided by research and a discussion from the people that will shape it -- BPOs who staff and train agents, contact center executives responsible for business outcomes, and agents themselves. Branded Communities: I Want You to Want Me: Branded communities are spaces for customers to connect, ask questions, and share their experiences. They’ve been around for some time, but 2020 brought to light how valuable they can be when there’s an absence of in-person communities, events, and human connection. As the world shifts to a digital-first way of living, communities have become vital to business strategies offering a self-service option for customer support, digital events, a space to connect with peers and fellow brand enthusiasts, and most importantly, a platform to build deeper relationships with customers. This panel will dive into the benefits — as well as challenges — of branded communities, plus, host a lively discussion around why communities are the new future of business. Fight Distraction with the Power of Purpose: Social media continues to evolve, and as a consequence, marketers believe there will be a focus on brands living up to and communicating their mission, values, and purpose-driven actions online. People are looking past the surface-level product and price, basing decisions more on how brands impact the world through their bigger purpose. COVID-19 has further underscored this importance and impacted brand strategy while highlighting the necessity of social responsibility for many brands. This panel explores the challenges of purpose-driven marketing and examines how the pandemic has influenced the resurgence of diversity and inclusion and other pertinent social issues. Along the way, you’ll learn about best practices and get a behind-the-scenes look at how brands navigate crisis moments. Hybrid Commerce: Digital Demand v Human Connection: Experts agree that, in the past 18 months alone, we have witnessed accelerated e-commerce adoption and growth. In 2020, digital sales surged as the pandemic forced global shoppers to rethink how and where they shop. Brands that survived the storm changed the way they marketed with digital-first mentalities and new commerce models. Yet a question arises: Now that we can buy everything from cars to groceries without ever interacting with another soul, is this digital-first model here to stay? Join Khoros, alongside leading global brands, as we present in-depth findings from field research that aims to answer what verticals still require the human touch, what experiences are going touchless, and finally, how hybrid models are changing the way we buy. Listen or Lose: Surfacing Data Diamonds: Data is growing exponentially -- we’re drowning in it. Real-time, behavioral data is superseding “state” data. At the same time, the market and consumer behavior is constantly changing. As these shifts rapidly occur, so does our ability to listen and leverage AI to actually mine data into knowledge and action. Which data sources offer the most value? What are the most practical applications of turning data into action? Explore big data with Khoros as we touch upon the mining opportunities and data ethics in the process. When does voting take place?  Community Voting is open from August 10-August 26.  How do I vote?  Visit https://panelpicker.sxsw.com/ and select “Vote on SXSW Session Proposals” in the blue SXSW 2022 box.  Sign In (if you already have an account) or Create an Account (if you don’t have one — it’s super easy, fast & free!), so you can vote. In the Search bar, type in “Khoros” to easily find our 6 proposals. Alternatively, you can search each full panel name or click the direct links above, once you’re logged in. Click on each entry, and cast your vote by clicking the “VOTE UP” box on the left-hand side. Click your browser’s back button to go back to the list of our 6 proposals, and repeat for each entry.  Thank you for your support and votes! ... View more