Im really curious about this.

[Cerebrix Absolute]

When i started this second life back in 2005.  I did so because a friend of mine from another game told me about it and invited me to try it out.  There were no advertising or promotions for it yet.  But as the years went by I noticed something.  I've never seen an ad or seen any kind of positive promtion for the product.  Not anywhere.  When I do see it in the media.  It's generally a negative connotation.

 

So my question is, does Linden Lab have a marketting team?  If they do, what exactly are they doing to promote the product in a meaningful way?  Because, I've yet to see their work.  Anywhere.

[Peewee Musytari]

I hear about ads but I have never seen one either.

Used to notice a sudden surge of noobs from a particular country & turns out there was some TV item or ad in their country the day before. I guess I watch the wrong programs.

[Peggy Paperdoll]

Linden Lab has always been closed mouthed about their inner workings.  Since I've been in SL (like you, 2005) I've seen very little efforts at marketing (a couple, somewhat sideways, attempts on a few Internet sites and a little noise about an episode on CSI involving some virtual killer hiding in Second Life)..........that's about it though.  Most of their "marketing" (and what got me here in 2005) was/is tiny "human interest" stories on local news networks.......you know, "local man/woman lives an alternate life in a virtual world known as 'Second Life'" (then a 3 minute story with a quick interview of someone who is a resident of SL).  Up until about a year ago LL focused on corporations and educational facilities with the thought of making virtual meetings and classes the way to go for the future.........that was a hard sell with the experimental nature of SL plus all the resident content that would run counter to most corporations interests (not to mention the rather large learning curve just to gain access to SL.  There was also anything goes nature of many activities in SL.........not exactly an image corporations and universities want to be associated with).  Marketing SL was a nightmare, I'm sure.

 

Now, since LL has more or less abandoned the corporate/educational target, it may change a little.  But the difficulty in marketing remains.  For marketing to work the product has to be defined in simple terms, the advantages of using the product have to be clearly stated, and your target audience(s) have to be able to understand how to use the product.  That's not an easy task for a marketing department.  Think to yourself how you would describe SL to someone who never heard of it and how it's useful for that person, how great it is (and all the reasons) and then tell them how easy it is to use.  Remember, you have to cover all the different aspects to get your target audiences addressed...........and be brief about it.

 

I've been here just at 6 years and I know I can't do that.  I think it's "Mission Impossible" myself............but I'm anxious to see what LL comes up with if they do decide to give marketing to the general public a shot.

[Kylie Jaxxon]

I've been here 4 years and I have yet seen anything myself...although I did notice this the other day, they say it's going to be their new promotional campaign

 

http://community.secondlife.com/t5/Featured-News/Casting-Call-Apply-to-Star-in-a-New-Second-Life-Video/ba-p/1090165

[Angelique LaFollette]

The movie "Caligula' was held over in a Vancouver Theatre for nearly 18 months with sold out shows every night.

The best advertising they had was a vocal and tenacious group of religious protestors in press, and outside the theatre, demanding the movie be shut down, and banned from canadian theatres.

For SL, Word-of-mouth does half the job, and the negative press does the rest. Why PAY for advertising when vocal moralists give you all of the best sort of advertising (Suggestive, and titillating) for free,, or better yet, On THEIR dime?

Angel.

 

[Maryanne Solo]

I am sure everyone remembers the furore over the proposition to ban SL in Australia. That was one hell of an advertising bonanza for SL I think. It will be very interesting to see how the Labs fares with a genuine and concentrated marketing campaign. If they get it right it should be amazingly beneficial for all.

I tend to feel that the onus is on users a little bit too to assist new people to stay. The excitement they experience when given tips and advice is infectious. Certainly there are scammers who prey on generous types but that happens in RL too.

SL is just sitting waiting with constant improvements happening. It still has incredible potential for when the second age of SL comes. I wish the labs all the very best with this new campaign and congratulate them for striving to capitalise on their hard work.

[Draco Gumbo]

I joined in something like Jan '07, and I think the reason why was because I read some random blog somewhere about it - actually something about being able to play hockey with people online cuz I was a big hocky player at the time. It didn't turn out to be exactly what I was expecting, but it was cool, so I'm still here.

[Dilbert Dilweg]

I notice Linden Lab relies on YOU to market for them. Getting you to join their face book., getting you into their twitter. Sometimes I come across a website and a Google ad will pop up about being a vampire in SL. . And every time I see that ad it is just about vampires. The strategy they use is weak.

And funny thing I seen the other days that facebook teamed up with Sims Online.. And LL pushes Facebook to everyone

what a slap in the face

[Lyra Blackthorne]

I have never seen a SL ad either.  Several years ago there was a CSI episode that featured SL and drove a large number of newcomers to the world, but if there is a marketing team have seen/heard nothing from them