I had the opportunity to discuss the ins and outs of the upcoming SXSW Interactive panel, Get Ready to Rumble! How WWE is Crushing Social TV, with panel strategist Jason Hoch. Hoch is the senior vice president of Customer Strategy & Product Marketing at social marketing development company Echo, which has a hand in facilitating the WWE’s dominance of social media. Before his current role at Echo, he was the vice president of Digital at WWE.

Hoch currently works for Echo and previously worked with WWE, therefore providing essential insight for those interested in attending the panel discussion, and for those of us diehard wrasslin’ fans that can’t get enough inside information about the WWE.

KF: How did you come to be involved with this panel?
JH: Echo has been a digital innovator with WWE over the last few years across all platforms, beginning with the launch of the WWE.com website in 2012 and extending into the WWE mobile app experience.  I previously was SVP of Digital for WWE and when joining Echo late last year, we had an exciting opportunity to do something big this year at SXSW with our panel presentation.

KF: What initially led you to want to work in the realm of digital media?
JH: I’ve been in the digital space for 18 years, and was lucky enough to begin my career at MCNC, the Microelectronics and Supercomputing Center in North Carolina – an opportunity that afforded me early access to a wealth of digital tools and experiences.  Working for Echo is the culmination of all of this experience, as I now get to work with dozens of brands on their exciting plans for the next generation of digital and social.

KF: When did the relationship between social media and live events start to pique your interest? Did anything specifically trigger that interest?

JH: The ties between sports and social media are natural.  Fans tell the world about their experiences –  being close to the action, taking a photo of the court, and cheering on their favorite player.  But the types of storytelling and deeper fan integration WWE is doing with fans at global events, be it on live tv during Monday Night Raw, or overseas during a Raw world tour event, is simply stunning.  Whether you work for WWE or are a fan at a live event, you can’t help but be excited.

KF: How does the WWE differentiate itself from other prominent companies using social media?
JH: WWE has oriented the entire company – WWE Superstars, TV, Marketing, Live Events and of course, digital, to focus on deep social touch points with fans.   The story never ends at WWE, it’s 24/7 told before, during and after the live TV show.  It extends on platforms like WWE.com, Tout, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and more.

Echo and WWE partnered to weave these social experiences across platforms, with stunning results.   The website has seen massive increases in website page views and engagement, and triggered the launch of new experiences such as the WWE mobile app and the groundbreaking second screen experience offered during every TV show.

KF: What do you hope attendees will take away from this discussion?
JH: Even though WWE has been innovating for years in the digital and social space, I hope the attendees and brands appreciate just how critical this deep integration of digital and social is to their own fan base after hearing the WWE story.

We hope to delight and surprise everyone with the WWE story and also shed some light on how Echo is leading this transformation in building exciting real-time experiences for brands like WWE.

Catch this panel on Saturday, March 9 at 11 a.m. at Sheraton Austin, and keep up with Jason Hoch on Twitter.