I've posted several pieces about the magic of presence in SL. Today, in my daily trawl through news related to SL, I came across this gem from Gavin Keeley, General Manager of Solutions at Suncorp Metway. The basic thesis: whilst meetings have their official uses, and video conferencing serves them, a lot of the real value of a meeting is the informal chatting before and after the meeting - something video conferencing doesn't encourage whilst meeting in SL enables it just like IRL.

Whilst it's a fascinating thought about the value of meetings, it's a fairly insightful piece about one benefit of meeting of meeting in SL. But what do you think? Just Askin'

(Original piece by Simon Sharwood)

In a recent NY Times print article, friend of SLI Eureka Dejavu, known out-world as Rita J. King, gets a nice writeup concerning her gestating business Dancing Ink Productions, L.L.C. DIP concerns itself with helping companies explore the business potential of virtual worlds. Most notably, she's been hired by IBM to chronicle their progress in the realm of virtual worlds.

One passage in particular struck me: "Ideas flow in a different way under palm trees than they do in a stuffy boardroom." I've maintained for years that the rise of the Internet and telecommuting would begin to dissolve the old standards by which businesses have worked for decades. In particular, I'd have thought that the ability to work from home, in a relaxed environment and dressed how one wishes, would create a mindset that encouraged more creativity and openness to new ideas.

Imagine my surprise, then, when I discovered RL businesses clamping down on the attire their employees' avatars wear in SL. Clearly, despite any fostering of the 'new way to do business', some business standards still maintain their grip.

What do you think? Is it important to conduct business in SL as though it were RL?

(Thanks, Rita!)

I think I understand this correctly, but someone give me a reality check if I don't: Depo Consulting, which provides business solutions for RL companies wishing to stake a claim in SL, has announced extended open hours for their business park. The press release gives the credit to 'An increase in interest in Second Life as a business environment ... '

This sort of flies against the reams of articles out there claiming just the opposite; that SL is witnessing an exodus of RL companies who are not getting any benefits from having a SL presence. Perhaps this rise in interest is limited to Depo's business, in which case I apologize for the confusion, but even so, I'd not be surprised that what's really going on has found little traction in the world of sensational media. People just want to bring the giant down, I suppose.

(Via pr-gb.com)

Aside from the title, this post has nothing to do with Bob Marley.

This article is taking some pains to cast doubt on the current media belief that there's a business exodus from SL. That's nice, but I think it's still a matter of flogging a dead horse. Take a step back and consider the matter from a different angle. Regardless of where you set up shop, some businesses succeed, some fail. It happens all the time. There is likely a given amount of time in which a company decides that, by THIS date, if they haven't made x amount of money, they'll abandon ship. This is nothing more than what we've seen with the early days of the Internet, when it seemed like any idea was a good one ("Hey, let's make a website that will remind you not to wear white after Labor Day!").

Similarly, then, it must be reiterated: You have to understand the platform if you want to succeed. In this case, simply plunking down a building on a private island is no kind of business plan. You have to engage the in-place community somehow. If RL companies are finding this difficult, it's nothing more than social Darwinism; the companies that remain and evolve will succeed in the end.

(Via computerworld.com)

I'm getting a little tired of reading about how empty SL is, and how that's worrying RL businesses. I have to ask: Does SL even need RL businesses? Clearly, the businesses that do well in SL are the ones that offer more than just a product. Services seem to be a good choice -- recruiters, job placement, etc. Businesses that make it a priority to connect with another human, rather than just a place to review a menu of buying options.

RL inundates us with adware and commercials all the time; who are these businesses reaching in SL that they haven't already in RL? Myself, I can count on the digits of one paw the number of times I saw an ad that made me want to buy a product, and half of those times I was informed of those ads by friends.

The media seems to be saying 'because RL business doesn't seem to do well in SL, SL itself is overvalued'. Ask yourselves, residents, if you came in-world and stayed on the strength of any RL business. If they all disappeared tomorrow, not only would you not miss them, but SL itself would continue to grow. We don't need RL companies, and we never will.

The Eduserve Foundation have published a rather weighty report about the use of SL by UK academic institutions. The PDF is a nice gentle 26 pages, and covers a range of topics, including level of involvement, problems and benefits that are being reported.

Unless, like me, you're a Brit, and/or an academic, parts of this might be dull. That said, there are some nice commentaries about design decisions - should you recreate your campus or not? - and about both unexpected problems and unexpected benefits that may help you in your argument with your university administration, and may also help if you are pitching the idea of SL as a business environment.

Well worth a read for anyone involved in development work, in education or in business I'd say.

(Thanks to Jeremy Kemp for the initial lead)

If you missed last week's sampling of menswear and fashions, you can find it here.

Both of the stores we looked at this week came to us highly recommended by the discerning readers of SLI. We're still looking for places to review, so if you have a favorite men's store which has clothing, accessories, shoes, skins, hair, gadgets, or anything else you can think of, let us know. If our test audience buys something, we'll write it up the store here.

It seems the business model of having a virtual space in which to hold business meetings and engage customers at all hours is starting to catch on, as witness the emergence of a new company called Virtual 3D Marketing -- an ironically-horrible name, given that for a marketing company it's really bland and bare-bones. Kind of like brushing your teeth with Tooth Cleaning Toothpaste, or choosing to drive around town in your new Automobile Car.

At any rate, what this company does is provides its customers with, according to the article: " ... interactive exhibit areas and 3-D products on display, online automation, and tech sessions and workshops using live, pre-recorded or archived learning tools." This describes SL pretty well, and Our Intellagirl even makes an appearance in the article saying words to that effect. She even goes farther, saying that without certain technologies, such as customization, services like these won't be able to compete. What do you all think? Is there room for business competition?

(Via indystar.com)

At this point, I'm ready to call Mitch Wagner SLI's honorary member, I link to him so much. But he consistently provides engaging, non-condescending, embedded coverage of SL, so I'm likely to continue to link to him. To wit: some thoughts and observations on what constitutes proper business attire in SL.

I have to admit that while I have seen some outrageous and amazingly detailed avatars, I'm always slightly more impressed by those which attempt to mirror the resident's RL self. I once tried for an hour to make my human avatar look like myself, and finally had to give up; I later cozened Morrisa Aleixandre to do it for me, and she did a fabulous job. But I digress.

I've just received word that the registration site for SLCC 2007, taking place in Chicago from August 24th-26th, is now open! The cost of the full weekend will be $185 USD, or 50,000L. The event will be held at the Chicago Hilton where there will be four tracks: Business, Education, Social, and Machinima.

There will also be an optional Masquerade Ball, sponsored by Strokerz Toyz, for an additional $5 USD, or 1500L. The registration caps at around 850 or 900 residents, so if you would like to attend, it's advised that you register now! For more details, please visit the official blog for SLCC 2007.

I'll admit, when I first read about this, I thought it was a prank. A strategy guide, in the vein of similar fare for games like World of Warcraft, or Guild Wars, but for making money in SL? I took my eyeballs to their website anyway, and sure enough, there it is!

This publication claims to teach even the rawest newbie how to create a successful business venture in SL. Not only that, there are tutorials for building, animation, and scripting as well! If it's what it claims to be, this sounds like a must-have for anyone interested in SL as anything more than a social arena. If someone decides to pick this up, drop us a comment and let us know what you think of it? Or, alternatively, simply apply its teachings to your second life, and we'll be reporting on you soon!

(Via theopenpress.com)

While that may look like a typo, I believe it stands for Second Life Developer University. This is to be two separate three-hour seminars, hosted by Linden Lab, on the topic "How to Position Second Life to Your Clients".

This event seems like a clear indication of where LL would like to see SL end up, with more businesses buying space and developing greater interactivity between RL and SL. On a positive note, the description of the events (one to take place in Boston, the other in London) mention ' ... an appreciation for community ... ', which I hope that LL will emphasize -- namely, the betrayal some residents might feel at a seeming co-opt of their heretofore pristine living space into a monetized area suitable for business.

Is anyone planning on attending this?

"Chairman and Chief Executive Sam Palmisano is set to visit Second Life on Tuesday, following a "town hall" meeting with some 7,000 employees in China, and speak with the more than 250 IBM employees on one of the company's virtual islands." - IBM accelerates push into 3D virtual worlds, Reuters.

That's got to be one heck of an island that they've got going on there, I must say. 250 on an island is quite a stretch. 250 on a four-sim corner is still a stretch. Either IBM is getting much better toys, or they're planning to do this in shifts.

" The company said it is already holding meetings and conducting development inside virtual worlds with about 20 major clients, including telecommunications and aerospace firms, a petroleum company that wants to use virtual worlds for training and "a major grocer in the UK" that wants to build a virtual storefront that will allow consumers to buy real-world groceries online."

Nice to see they're not claiming to be first, either. IBM is definitely one that bears watching. The company had a very shaky transition into computing originally, with a reputation for second-rate business machines, but the best marketing team in the then corporate world.

That tarnished reputation has long since departed. IBM's there, working quietly in the background, soaking up talent, spending bundles on research, and making yet more bundles in the bargain. No longer the in-your-face edifice they once were, IBM works steadily in the background, finding niches, widening them, and making them their own. Not always with the greatest success, but IBM's quiet, ongoing, sober presence in Second Life is the biggest news you never hear residents talking about.

Linden Lab can be said to be in the virtual world business. Or they can be said to be in the e-commerce business. Both of them are valid points of view. Who runs Second Life? Who operates it? Who makes it what it is?

It might be trite, but it really is us; the residents. Linden Lab try their best to keep up with us, but most of the time that seems to be a losing race. If it can be broken, by golly we'll break it. If it can be built, we'll make it. If there's a deficiency, we'll jump right in and find a way to profit from filling the gap, while simultaneously complaining long and loud that that deficiency should be fixed.

There's no manual anywhere that says "This is how you run something like Second Life." or "This is what something like Second Life should/shouldn't have." That's because there isn't anything out there like Second Life.

What we can say is that whatever Second Life is, it isn't what Linden Lab expected it to be – and it won't be like what any of us expect it to become. Second Life is the very definition of the bleeding-edge, and it's evolution is something none of us can sanely claim to predict.

Our sister/umbrella site Joystiq (much love, y'all) has posted a story referencing a recent Economist article. It summarizes something Philip has said about RL commerce coming into SL: "Another economic difference, says Mr Rosedale, is the lack of economies of scale in Second Life. In real life, a shoemaker, say, can reduce the average cost of making a pair by producing huge amounts, and the average cost of marketing by buying advertising in bulk. In Second Life, however, scale means nothing. There is no manufacturing cost to minimise. Gimmicks, such as giving away free shoes, are useless because nobody actually needs shoes at all."

Joystiq, however, argues differently: "Second Life's denizens are concerned that the entrance of big business into the world will drive them out. They're right to be concerned. Their businesses are as at risk as the local bookseller's business before Barnes & Noble comes to town."

I'd like to point out something that neither source has. In Philip's case, giving away free shoes does work if you give them to a newbie, who 1) May be unable to afford the cost of even cheap shoes, and who then 2) Proudly displays them to all her newbie friends, who now clamor for them, and possibly even save up for them, or find ways to make money to buy them. People may not need shoes in SL, but they want them.

In Joystiq's case, there are a number of reasons for residents not to fear Big Business. First, many residents, particularly Immersionists, don't want their carefully crafted spaces to be tainted by commercialism from RL. Second, because of instantaneous travel between sims, it's as easy to get to, say, Preen, as it is to go to American Apparel. Third, all creators go through the same process to create their wares, whether it's done by a team or by a single user. It's entirely possible that a preexisting SL store could create or emulate a style of clothing designed by a RL store. Therefore there is no material difference between a white t-shirt made by The Gap and one made by Mistress Midnight. What matters then is which one costs less; that is the one the average user will buy.

SL is just different, and RL businesses hoping to make a profit from its residents need to take the time to consider how it's different, and how to turn that to their advantage. The old ways will fall by the wayside. Simply building a store and hoping your brand will bring everyone running just won't work anymore.