Socially|Mundane

Many commercial organizations have ventured into Second Life, many flopping badly. Mostly due to the fire-and-forget attitude of slapping some advertising up and walking away, expecting others to start falling over themselves in droves to their doorsteps in real life.

Other corporations are finding other uses for Second Life. IBM, Cisco and other high-profile technology companies are here, using it as a technology-enhanced way of doing internal business - such a virtual meetings and project management. Educational institutions are here, again for a myriad of reasons.

However, 'main stream' companies are still trying to figure out what to do in world that enhances their business plan and the ultimate goal: gaining new customers.

It seems H & R Block has found a way. Offer tax advice to residents.
There are other companies figuring 'it' out, too. There is a good article that highlights them and what they seem to be doing right.

A quote from the H & R Block portion:

"We think it's fascinating," said Paula Drum, vice president of marketing for digital tax services, who first had the idea to create a presence in Second Life. "But we also think taxes are fascinating, so we may be a little skewed."
"A lot of what led us to Second Life is that the people who play in this virtual world are people we call early adopters, or technology advocates," she said. "They were a prime audience for us to explore."

Virtual Worlds: Taking a Second Look at How Business Is Done

Tags: Secondlife, Socially Impirational, First Life