Written on October 2, 2007@ 7:53 am –
Second Life, The Ultimate Social Networking Tool
I remember the day when I first touch a computer network.
The operating system was NOVELL, a close friend of UNIX (see LINUX). There was a line command that when you type something like this you can send a message to someone in the network:
send username messsage
All in text. Black and white. Big blank screen with nothing else besides your message.
It was the very first social networking tool I used.
Time pass. I had a crush with IRC. It was before Yahoo Messenger. IRC is Another text based communication tools. It forms by a network of servers serving thousands of chat rooms. I can connect to one of the server network and join my favorite room to meet people.
I was still facing a screen with text. Only this time, it was colorful. Somethings are automated. I can see other people’s username in my screen. This is the beginning of my social networking on the net.
Fast forward, time brings new communication tools. I became a user of Yahoo Messenger, Windows Messenger, Skype and many other online social networking tools.
The next thing you know, Social Networking Sites are popping up. Friendster, MySpace, Mixi (in Japan) etc.
Now the next generation of social networking tool: Second Life emerged. The concept is still the same with IRC. Provide people a place to communicate.
What makes Second Life new is the fact that it gives you a lot more freeom to express yourself. The platform gives you 3D ways to shine in the system.
Instead of chat rooms, there are islands, buildings, houses, cafes and any place you can imagine. I really meant any.
Instead of a boring username, you can have 3D avatar of yourself. This is not a dead sitting avatar either. You can move it, make it dance or any kind of gestures you want.
Instead of colorful message to express a flower: @>->- You can create your own 3D graphic flower that looks like a real flower.
It’s a whole new dimension of communication online.
How To Make Money With Second Life?
It’s a difficult question. How much money do you want to make?
Currently there are only a few hundreds people making more than $5000 USD, according to the report from the creator of Second Life, Linden Labs.
This statistic data shows that it is difficult to make big money inside Second Life (in-world). However, there are a lot of possibilities that you can bring traffic from in-world to your out-world (internet) store.
The key to success is to create a place where many people would visit and advertise your service there. The more people visit your place, the more eyeballs see your ads.
To get noticed by Second Life resident is not easy. The easiest way to drive traffic to your place probably is by giving Linden Dollars (LD) to people. Who don’t want free money?
$1 USD worth $200 LD today. Some people giving away $1 LD per 20 minute to bring traffic. I projected it should be cheaper than bringing traffic with PPC.
I will post my exploration at Second Life in my forum. If you are interested in this
Resources:
Second Life
Second Life Talk at AskYourGuru.
Second Life economics.
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