Virtual Worlds Forum

There was a sparky panel debate this morning on the subject of 'Consumers or community - what's the direction for brands?', featuring representatives from There.com, BBH, Rivers Run Red and IGA, as well as moderator Wagner James Au of New World Notes. The overriding trend was summed up by Rivers Run Red's Justin Bovington: "We've gone through the early adopter market for brands. Some were successful, some weren't. We're now coming to the second wave, where brands are using Second Life as part of their overall communications mixture." Mark Boyd of BBH confirmed that ad agencies and their clients are "very interested" in virtual worlds, but agreed that it's not seen as a silo of its own, but rather part of a wider marketing strategy. "We're over the hump where people would say 'get me a Second Life site tomorrow'," he said. "Brands and agencies are thinking strategically about this. For us, it's about the importance of great ideas, wherever they exist." There was an entertaining diversion into smut - apparently BBH bigwigs were concerned after opening a virtual office in Second Life, only to be greeted by five visitors wearing strap-on dildos - before looking at the way worlds like Second Life are making it easier for brands to engage with their communities, via initiatives like the Second Life Grid. Not every brand is getting it right though: Armani was held up as an example of the "classic 2006 model" where a brand just opens an in-world store and expects people to come. Bovington suggested that Philips' recent activities offer a better example, getting people engaged as co-designers, taking a more creative role within the company's Second Life presence. How about brands building their own virtual worlds, rather than partnering with the likes of Linden Lab? Betsy Book from There.com was on the panel, and her company's done just that with MTV's stable of virtual worlds. "We're all for it. It was very important for MTV to have their own world that could build and grow over time, with a very specific look and feel that accurately represented their brand." MTV now has over a million active users for its worlds, although Book admitted that very few brands have the scale to sustain their own virtual world. BBH's Boyd agreed. "For some big soap powder brands, I can see us having the conversation, but I'm not sure it's the right thing to do. Media brands and mobile operators might be the kind of brands that get involved in that space, as they have the ability to cross-promote on a regular basis."