Here’s the cheat sheet.

Researchers have determined the best readership comes when readers are involved. Basically, after they have cleaned out their junk mail and right before or after lunch. Logical isn’t it? It should be.

Too many people post at their convenience instead of their readers. Evenings. Weekends. Fringe times.

This is nothing new. Most major news and PR experts know the news cycle runs Monday through Friday for maximum impact.

Absolute worst time to post? Friday afternoons. Might as well head home early and way till Monday.

Current % of American homes with one or more Apple products.

Apple ownership by Household income.

Current concentration of Apple ownership across the USA.

% of households with children that own Apple devices.

Whether it was the the economy or logic, a year of tough business has taken its toll at South By Southwest (SXSW).

Last year, the streets were overflowing with promotions for everything from Fox’s Sons of Tucson TV show (failed) to just about any word you could attach .com, .org or .net. This year was decidedly more reserved. It seems that marketers have determined that accountability pays the bills.

Instead of random awareness, nearly every event required a check-in, Facebook sign-in , email invite or some other tangible data capture.

The rewards were worthwhile- open bars, live music and promo swag- but more importantly, qualified leads and business synergy. As CNBC puts it “For most attendees, the sit-downs, dinners and parties are more important than the event’s programming because of the business relationships they foster.”

The most dynamic places were still the lobby bars at the Four Seasons, the Driskell and the W. Interviews, deals and celebrity-encounters happening from dawn to..well, dawn.

The annual tech pilgrimage to Austin known as SXSW interactive did not turn out to be the launch pad for the next big thing. What it did do was prove what the New York Times calls “The launching pad and testing ground for internet start up companies.” is actually the largest multi-day social event in Interactive.

For the 25,000+ PR pushers, IT staffers and Social media gurus, SXSW is the one time per year where their anonymous keystrokes actually connect with living breathing people.

Its an exciting experience, really. The personalities and brands that only exist in the ether are all represented in tangible reality. Google, bought out an entire neighborhood to create a theme park of Android apps and tech chat rooms. The cottages and bars of Rainey Street each took on a Google product and offered a lounge/storefront for the the normally cloistered techs who often live a solitary life.

That’s the primary takeaway from the event. Whether its reading the placards pasted to the pedicabs for apps like Uberlife, to pick up sports at the Nike space or simply bumping into Highlight’s bull dog on Sixth street, attendees and wanders make physical contact. A rare thing in a primarily pixel and promotion-based world.

Not the tourist joints. If you’re at #sxsw don’t miss these 5 Austin classics:. So. Congress Cafe, Cisco’s Bakery, Dirty Martins Burger Joint, Top Notch, Hoffbrau Steaks.