Lack of Imagination?

The June 11, 2007 issue of Business Week (the online story) features an article Beyond Second Life which discusses real world businesses, seeking better security against hackers and control over brand messaging and participants as reason’s not to participate in Second Life.

Remember “Stagecoach Island” built by Wells Fargo to attract tech-savvy customers and teach them about banking. Have you noticed it no longer exists? Wells Fargo has chosen to create is own virtual world, a stand alone virtual world that Wells Fargo can monitor and control more closely.

According to Business Week, Starwood Hotels and Resorts is getting ready to leave also. After coming to Second Life, with a highly publicized entrance, Starwood gathered feedback from residents for its new “brand” of hotels and is preparing to bail.

Starwood discovered avatars don’t need to sleep, and so a virtual hotel didn’t make much sense in the long run. Unlike Adidas or General Motors, which sell digital versions of Reeboks and Pontiacs in the online world, Starwood didn’t have goods to sell—and found itself unable to sustain avatars’ interest.

Seems to me Starwood didn’t bring anything to the community, but rather took what they wanted and cares less they will be missing the chance to build a loyal following of customers by branding their name to interesting interactive events. Which seems such a shame; as their largest expenses have already been spent.

So what you can’t rent a room in Second Life? You can sponsor good interactive events which will have people tying your name and good will to the events, and will remember you on their real life business trips. (where they will need to rent a room) Go ahead and wad up all that cash you have already invested in Second Life, and throw it into one of the designer trash receptacles. Personally I would hire someone like Skinny Shepard,Kim Seifert, Sanity Inn, or any one of the many talented performers to draw a crowd and speak “PR” for the chain.

Maybe furnish a venue for live business conferences, where the interaction of real people in close to real time in the 3-D space allows the mind to fill in cognitive details… forming a sense of realism and bonding that can not be achieved with a conference call.

Use a little imagination and find your own niche that will attract people to your property, hire and train people to interact with Second Life residents, provide some fun, relief from stress. I think your Hotels and Resorts would receive huge benefits for pennies on your advertising budget.

With companies such as Wells Fargo, Disney, who has hired the creators of Habbo Hotel to design and build their own Virtual Magic Kingdom virtual world, and MTV Networks creating creating stand alone Virtual worlds attempting to attract and capture a younger market; I agree, then Second Life is not the place to be. Especially if you are going after the pre and teen audience. (I have no experience of the teen grid)

Businesses, looking for tech-savvy customers, that have the imagination and will to provide a value to the community can be rewarded with a growing base of loyal, faithful residents.