A few weeks ago, I was far from the first to speculate pessimism on the viability of virtual reality site Second Life as a marketer's dream. A few recent articles have prompted me to revisit the topic of virtual reality; one which validates my thinking on Second Life, but a couple of others that discuss remarkably exciting and practical uses of 3-D and virtual reality technologies.
For an entertaining look at Second Life through a fellow skeptic's eyes, there's a great read in a little-known magazine called GOOD. The article, Get a Life: The Hollow Promise of The Internet's Next Big Thing had me both laughing and pondering the bizarre motivations of Second Life's most loyal users. One thing's for sure, these people are not likely to be the marketing target of any high profile company anytime soon.
On the more practical side, a recent WSJ article, A Virtual View of the Store Aisle got me very excited about a real world application of virtual reality technology; using it to observe and improve the customer experience and effectively drive sales. Consumer packaged goods companies like Kimberly-Clark and P&G are using virtual reality labs to get consumer and retailer insight on new products, packaging and displays in early stages of development. Replicating how new packaging looks in virtual store aisles, observing how customers find a product on virtual store shelves, and experimenting with the size, color and effectiveness of virtual merchandising displays are all part of the new real world of product development.
Similarly, you'll enjoy an article in Storefront Backtalk called The Strange World of 3-D E-Commerce, about how retail chain Tweeter is working to make 3-D replications of customers' living rooms a practical tool in making home entertainment purchase decisions. The whole process of photographing customers' homes, replicating them in a 3-D technology environment and helping customers select the right products specifically for them not only builds confidence in the selection and purchase process, it builds a highly personalized level of engagement, and likely, loyalty.
One of the key questions I ask myself is this: if I'm such a skeptic, why do I keep reading articles about Second Life? I think the catch is that while the current execution of Second Life and the motivations of it's users are not that interesting to me (other than for pure humor and entertainment), the practical tools that virtual reality technology will eventually bring to us as marketers and creators of customer experience are well worth investigation and testing.
Sally: I absolutely believe that the bad press is the result of a misunderstanding of the technology. In my opinion, virtual worlds technology is ultimately a communications medium. It has the unique ability among communications media of bringing people together in the same "place" (i.e. establishing presence.) A venue in Second Life is not a banner ad. When you're in Second Life, you never stumble upon a venue. You choose where to go and when. It's about community and communication. So, I started a company to use virtual reality in the workplace. As a former IT outsourcing executive, I recognize the power of using virtual reality to bring people (US/India/China) together in the same "place" for meeting, collaborating, socializing, without travel or delay. I believe that's the right use (Second Life or not doesn't matter -- it's the virtual reality.) Companies that wish to use Second Life to market would be well advised to understand the medium and establish a campaign that fits the venue. For example, don't establish a Brand X store or Brand X location. Create a Brand X club, community, series of get togethers, contests -- i.e. get people to gather around Brand X for interaction.
Posted by: Dave Elchoness | October 26, 2007 at 11:43 AM