Comments on: Facebook Looms Large, But Crickets Chirp in Second Life http://www.epolitics.com/2007/07/29/facebook-looms-large-but-crickets-chirp-in-second-life/ dissecting the craft of online politics and online advocacy Wed, 08 Feb 2012 17:25:41 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.4 By: John Breyault http://www.epolitics.com/2007/07/29/facebook-looms-large-but-crickets-chirp-in-second-life/#comment-111317 John Breyault Mon, 30 Jul 2007 15:02:32 +0000 http://www.epolitics.com/2007/07/29/facebook-looms-large-but-crickets-chirp-in-second-life/#comment-111317 Thanks for the feedback, Colin. Farther down that comment thread, Wagner Au <a href="http://nwn.blogs.com/nwn/2007/07/unwired.html#comment-77378980" rel="nofollow">replied</a> to Rose's reply with some questions that I'd be interested to hear Rose answer. Re: IDI's take on virtual worlds (SL included) -- We view them as a complement to, not a replacement for, traditional advocacy tools. While we certainly see a value in being active in the space, we also understand the limitations of virtual worlds. Thanks for the feedback, Colin.

Farther down that comment thread, Wagner Au replied to Rose’s reply with some questions that I’d be interested to hear Rose answer.

Re: IDI’s take on virtual worlds (SL included) — We view them as a complement to, not a replacement for, traditional advocacy tools. While we certainly see a value in being active in the space, we also understand the limitations of virtual worlds.

]]> By: cpd http://www.epolitics.com/2007/07/29/facebook-looms-large-but-crickets-chirp-in-second-life/#comment-111315 cpd Mon, 30 Jul 2007 14:34:36 +0000 http://www.epolitics.com/2007/07/29/facebook-looms-large-but-crickets-chirp-in-second-life/#comment-111315 Hi, thanks for the comment. I checked out that article, the author's <a href="http://nwn.blogs.com/nwn/2007/07/unwired.html" rel="nofollow">original critique of the <i>Wired</i> piece</a> and Frank Rose's <a href="http://nwn.blogs.com/nwn/2007/07/unwired.html#comment-77280266" rel="nofollow">fairly devastating reply</a>. I don't see any reason to change my analysis. Virtual worlds may take off one day, but they're still a playground/workspace for a relative handful of enthusiasts, not an effective environment for mass marketing. I know IDI has invested heavily in Second Life, and I frankly question the wisdom of hitching your company's wagon to that star. Though, of course, free advice from somone like me is worth exactly what you pay for it. It's interesting that the most critical comments this site gets come in when I have something unflattering to say about either Second Life or Ron Paul, i.e., generally that I don't see much chance for either of them to build a mass audience. -- cpd Hi, thanks for the comment. I checked out that article, the author’s original critique of the Wired piece and Frank Rose’s fairly devastating reply. I don’t see any reason to change my analysis. Virtual worlds may take off one day, but they’re still a playground/workspace for a relative handful of enthusiasts, not an effective environment for mass marketing. I know IDI has invested heavily in Second Life, and I frankly question the wisdom of hitching your company’s wagon to that star. Though, of course, free advice from somone like me is worth exactly what you pay for it.

It’s interesting that the most critical comments this site gets come in when I have something unflattering to say about either Second Life or Ron Paul, i.e., generally that I don’t see much chance for either of them to build a mass audience.

– cpd

]]> By: John Breyault http://www.epolitics.com/2007/07/29/facebook-looms-large-but-crickets-chirp-in-second-life/#comment-111310 John Breyault Mon, 30 Jul 2007 14:02:30 +0000 http://www.epolitics.com/2007/07/29/facebook-looms-large-but-crickets-chirp-in-second-life/#comment-111310 Before you go writing off SL, I would recommend that you check out Wagner James Au's <a href="http://nwn.blogs.com/nwn/2007/07/the-long-tail-o.html#more" rel="nofollow">critques</a> of the WIRED article you linked to above. He has an interesting example of ROI numbers there, btw. While SL has probably been over-hyped to some degree, I think the failings of marketing efforts there are due more to over-eager marketers trying to shoehorn real-world techniques into SL rather than any inherent shortcomings of the platform itself. Before you go writing off SL, I would recommend that you check out Wagner James Au’s critques of the WIRED article you linked to above. He has an interesting example of ROI numbers there, btw.

While SL has probably been over-hyped to some degree, I think the failings of marketing efforts there are due more to over-eager marketers trying to shoehorn real-world techniques into SL rather than any inherent shortcomings of the platform itself.

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