Where can I find CURRENT info on MoTD (Message of The Day) Advertising Options / Opportunities?

[Rogue Darkheart]

When we log in, we are frequently 'greeted' by a MoTD (Message of The Day).  Today, that message was:

"Windlight Art Gallery's Summer Art Show is running August 12 - 20..."

The latest relevant information I could find on the Wiki is HERE and dated 2010!  A search of the Official LL 'Knowledge Base' for MoTD or 'Message of The Day' returns ZERO results.

Here are my specific questions:

• Who / What generates the MoTD messages that come from 'Second Life?'
• How is the content of Message of The Day messages selected?
• Is the type of MoTD message I  received today (See Above) a 'PAID' Insertion?
• If this message is a 'Paid Insertion,' why isn't it identified as such?
• If this message is a 'Paid Insertion,' where do advertisers go to find out how to purchase this type of SL Advert?
• If this message is NOT a 'Paid Insertion,' why is LL promoting one Business over other similar Businesses?

END:  Thanks in Advance for any Answers / Insights...

[Freya Mokusei]

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Rogue Braveheart wrote:

• Who / What generates the MoTD messages that come from 'Second Life?'

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Your viewer can specify this, or ignore 'official' MoTD messages. In the case of the standard viewer, Linden Lab set these. One year for April Fools, they changed randomised jokes.

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Rogue Braveheart wrote:

• Who / What generates the MoTD messages that come from 'Second Life?'
• How is the content of Message of The Day messages selected?

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In the case of standard viewer (again, third party viewers can override).... this is done internally by LL. No-one here can answer you authoritively.

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Rogue Braveheart wrote:

• Is the type of MoTD message I  received today (
  See Above
  ) a 'PAID' Insertion?
• If this message is a 'Paid Insertion,' why isn't it identified as such?.

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Again, I don't know the answer to this. I don't know why it would need to be identified as paid for. It's possible that this is a Destination Guide thing.

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Rogue Braveheart wrote:

• If this message is a 'Paid Insertion,' where do advertisers go to find out how to purchase this type of SL Advert?
• If this message is NOT a 'Paid Insertion,' why is LL promoting one Business over other similar Businesses?

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Second Life is not an egalitarian environment in practice. Some people and businesses can get away with things that other people/businesses cannot - they know people, have connections. If you have this expectation it's unrealistic. The reasons for this particular choice, as before, are mysterious to us as end users.

[Lindal Kidd]

The Message of the Day comes from the Gods...Linden Lab.  They put things there that they think will be of interest to the community.  They are not paid ads, and you can't do anything to get your business/event/activity mentioned there.  

There is another place where the Whim of Linden rules...the Destinations Guide.  Here, you CAN submit your business, activity, or event to be listed.  However, the decision of what places to put, or not put, into the Destinations Guide is completely up to LL.  Destinations are changed out at intervals for new listings.

There IS a place where you can pay to advertise:  the Classified ads.  The more you pay for your Classified ad, the higher its ranking will be in a Search of the Classifieds (however, this does not affect your ranking in a search on Places or Events.)  I do not recommend paying huge amounts for your Classified ad, however.  Some are paying so much that it's hard to see how their store can possibly be making a profit.

And there is a free place where you can advertise:  The Second Life Marketplace.  There is no charge to list your products for sale, and only a small fee is levied when you actually sell something.

[Nalates Urriah]

Rogue, Freya believes as many do that the Lindens play favorites. There is anecdotal evidence to support Freya’s belief. After 8+ years in SL I tend to disagree and see it another way. 

Your questions are valid ones. I'll try to anwer them in  contextual way.

Those working at the Lab are people. Some are somewhat removed from the users and some deal with us every day, week, or just often throughout the year. Some Lindens know me, many don’t. I know some Lindens, but not all. Anyone that knows members of a group knows who to contact when they have a question or want something. Lindens are used to having people try to use them. So, after a time they learn who to trust, establish friendships, and like anyone will on occasion do favors.

People that have been around longer and done more tend to know how to get things done. They also tend to know more Lindens. So, I understand how it can look like the Lindens play favorites. Some people are getting things done that others seem not to be able to accomplish. It is easier to be a victum than admit ignorance.

The Firestorm group has some well-known people the Lindens are working with and they all have similar goals. So, they help each other. But, the Lindens can’t spend the same amount of time with new people they don’t know and that have not established a relationship with the Lab. The Firestorm people have EARNED the help and attention they receive. This is something many in SL forget when talking about the Lindens.

So, who is doing MoTD? I don’t really know. I actually had stop and think about where it was. It looks like it comes mostly from Events and the Destination Guide. AFAIK, you can’t buy listings in either of those lists. You get your stuff in the lists and hope a Linden picks it. Whoever is picking it is hidding to avoid spam. So, you'll likely see some generic Linden name if you can find one.

There probably isn’t a single person that handles the splash page, Editor’s Picks, Picture of the day, MoTD, and whatever featured this or that… The name that appears most often in connection with these features is Xiola Linden, Community Manager. I suspect she oversees all of these but, Peter Gray (Pete Linden), marketing, may oversee some or all of them.

I suggest you email Xiola directly with the content of your post and a link to it. Add in that there is no entry for MoTD in the newer Knowledgebase. Hopefully she will update the information. The MoTD page in the Wiki is horribly out of date. They have a couple of people (Rand Linden & Jeremy Linden) that work at updating the Wiki and Knowledgebase. The Wiki I think these days is left mostly to users to update, except when new technology comes out. You could also CC Rand and/or Jeremy.

The main splash page has mostly Destinations. If you go all the way to the bottom of the left hand list of destinations on the web site you’ll see a link to suggest a destination. Suggest yours. Have your friends suggest your destination. Numbers and popularity do not guarantee you’ll appear. But, they will get your destination considered.

There are Events and you can add yours to the list. A good thread to read is: Event Promotion.

I believe being in these will get you considered for MoTD. AFAIK, you can’t buy your way in.

What criteria do they use for picking businesses or places to feature? They don't say in any place that I know. In light of what I've said above, we can surmise why the Lindens will pick one over another.

The Linden goal is to present things residents will find enteresting to keep them inerested in SL. So, what is new, where a deal is, what is fun... We can't know what those making the selection think those things are. But, we can make good guesses. Those that get featured have figured out what works or... lucked out and caught the right eye, mood, or criteria.

Be interesting and new is my advice. Persistance is the way getting featured. There is some balance point between persistence and nagging. Avoid crossing that line.

In many ways this is smilar to getting good placement in Google search. Lots of factors.