For my Audience Research class yesterday, we were asked to check out some things in Second Life; mainly, we went to Leo Burnett's area, Paper Couture's shop and a personal area called Kuwaii Ku. After spending some time in each area, I came to the conclusion that, well, I like Second Life in some respects as a place for opening an outlet, and I dislike it in other ways.
When it comes to an ad agency like Leo Burnett, I don't think Second Life is an appropriate place to introduce a client to your company. It's great for showing clients (potential or actual) what your company can do in Second Life, but unless you know some basics about the company, you aren't going to understand much. For example, I didn't quite understand the point of the giant pencil. I had some fun flying with it (well, not really; it kind of slows down the flying process), but it seemed a bit ridiculous. When I went on the Leo Burnett website -- which I only did to write this entry -- I understood the point of the pencil. Although, I guess this may be a moot point; Leo Burnett is well known in the ad industry, so anyone who is in a position to hire the agency and stumbles upon the area in Second Life would already have some background information.
Leo Burnett:
A company like Paper Couture though can certainly benefit from being in Second Life. Their shop is very easy to navigate, looks great, and - surprise, surprise - really looks similar to their online presence, which has avatars modeling the products. Interestingly enough, the shop only has on online presence - clicking on "store locations" on the website takes you to Second Life; the shop exists purely to sell to avatars. Such a.... unique idea. Too bad, as I saw some handbags and earrings I wouldn't mind purchasing for myself. Long story short, they benefit from being in Second Life because they exist because of Second Life.
Paper Couture:
As for Kawaii Ku, I'm not sure where it fits in here. It's anime-meets-commerce. It's... something I don't quite understand, possibly because I'm still iffy on the whole Second Life thing. Kawaii Ku:
If Paper Couture were a real company, it would still benefit from having a location in Second Life. Any similar company would, I think. The Second Life shop has a link to its website, as well as hosting all products. If a company were selling fashion items and set up a shop similar to Paper Couture, it could be great. American Girl Dolls for the adult! Buy a product for yourself and, instead of buying one for your doll, buy one for your..... "self?"
1 comment:
Hi Carrie -
Thanks for checking out Leo Burnett's SL presence. Did you visit the island or just the Idea Lab?
To answer your question about the role of Second Life, it is certainly not meant to be a first point of contact for potential clients. The vast majority of our virtual visitors will know who we are when they seek out our space in the "metaverse."
We're also planning to use our island as a meeting place for our creative staff around the world. It provides a forum for idea sharing and functions more as a work tool than a client prospecting resource.
Tools change, though, and we're excited about the opportunities that new technologies like Second Life offer communications companies.
Best of luck with your studies.
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