Most big brand sims in Second Life are empty or have little traffic despite massive MSM media coverage, and many events are poorly attended. That’s because brands aren’t creating or joining groups — the most fundamental aspect of the metaverse’s social structure, says Linda Zimmer in Business Communicators of Second Life.
“More importantly for brands, it is also the “opt-in” mechanism in Second Life. Just like an opt-in email list, people join groups to keep up on what’s going on with like-minded people.”
I read that article differently. I thought she meant leveraging groups, as in creating groups for people to join as opposed to joining existing groups.
Big brands are trying to engage in Second Life the same way they would on a website, and it’s just not going to work.
As weird as it may seem, you have to treat Second Life like real life. Open a store — sponsor an event — give out t-shirts — whatever.
You can’t just come in and dump stuff — you have to understand the market. Isn’t that’s why it’s called “marketing?”
Let’s face it, the vast majority of company websites aren’t the least bit engaging. The problem with big companies online, whether in websites, blogs, or in Second Life, is that they are still trying to push a message through.
Looking for groups that may have members who are interested in what you are interested in, or starting your own, the answer is offer something people can relate to.
I couldn’t agree more. Bot marketing is reaching its limits.