Second Life has been considered as a vehicle for retailing and product promotions. These attempts have had mixed success primarily because no one is yet certain how to do things in virtual worlds. But there is certainly a great interest in trying to use the 3D internet. Among those interested are social, health and political causes and campaigns. Some politicians have already made attempts at reaching supporters through in-world speeches and forums, as well as having campaign headquarters. The American Cancer Society had the Relay for Life in SL. Save the Children has had a presence and is experimenting with ways to get people involved in the cause, and hopefully to also make financial contributions. It seems that of all the causes, Relay for Life has been quite successful, raising over $100,000 in US dollars in SL. I remember the campaign from an in-world perspective. There were many points of contact for getting involved, and it seemed that groups both large and small were active participants, and encouraged their members to get involved and to donate.
Part of what makes these attempts appealing is that those involved in-world have a sense of being somewhere, and with other people. If you are simply messaging or even video conferencing, you are definitely sitting in your chair at home or work, and transmitting images and/or text. In SL, you are immersed in an interactive environment where you can not only review materials, but you can interact not only with other supporters, but often with the celebrities themselves. You loose the sense of I’m here they’re there, and feel like you are actually together sharing the experience.
I think the residents of SL are a somewhat skewed sample of those who are creative, and those who are a little higher on the intellectual curve. I base this on the fact that there is a learning curve to being able to function in-world, and you need to be self-motivated and creative to figure out things to do there. There is no pre-established program to follow, or rules of the game. I think these are people who may care about the world around them, which makes them perfect participants for in-world campaigns.
Some of the techniques for getting people interested and involved in these activities would be similar to those of merchandising of products. Just because you build it doesn’t mean they will come. You have to let people know you are there, what you are doing and what you would like them to do. There can be event listings, classifieds, billboards, t-shirts, and simple word of mouth to spread the interest.
I think SL will be used more often for various campaigns. Other than the sense of presence and involvement there is the distinct advantage of not being geographically limiting. People from all over the world can be involved in synchronous events. It seems a perfect vehicle for political candidates, and even elected politicians to reach their constituents, and have real dialog with them. The dissemination of information for political and social campaigns can be dynamic, and multimedia with information stations available at all times.
The main stumbling block to increased utilization will be the fact that people have to create avatars, and go through at least some of the learning curve to find how to do things and get around in-world. This will not be attractive to many people. It isn’t like turning on the TV and becoming a passive observer. You have to participate at some level. Perhaps the Lindens need to develop a quick entry system with temporary avatars for those who just want to stop in maybe to just hear a speech from the President of the United States. They may have no interest in staying in-world, but want to see that event. This would greatly increase the utility of SL for special events.
