Its in Your hands!

I'd like to take a minute to talk to all Second Life performers and DJs. 

I've been playing live shows since 2006 and in that time I have been fortunate to have made many friends who are venue owners. These kind people book me to perform for their venue and support the live music community by offering a place for us to perform, many do so without turning any profit, paying for everything out of their own pockets. This isn't news, or at least shouldn't be to the SL performer.

Whether we are paid to perform or play a tips only venue, we must take into account the effort that the venues put forth on behalf of the SL performers. To that I would like to offer a few suggestions that, in my experience, will hopefully benefit both yourselves and the venue.

When it comes to promoting anything, Social Networking is #1 on the list. Facebook, Twitter, Second Friends, G+… all of these are amazing "tools" at our disposal and if you're not making good and regular use of them, well you're honestly missing out on a lot. 



When Brandy and I book a show, one of the first things we ask of the venue owner is "Do you have a note card about your venue?" Why? Because I want to do what I can to help promote the venue. After all they are the ones putting me up. This way, when we create an event on Facebook or Second Friends, we have some good text to use in our promotions and it also lets SL'ers know a bit about the venue, sim, launch, etc. and the event itself. it also allows the performer to talk about something other than themselves. We also provide the venue with a current image and bio for them to use in their own marketing and events listings. 

One other thing, especially with new venues, if you don't see your event listed in Second Life Events, you might want to respectfully remind the owner(s) to do a Second Life Event Listing so your performance shows up in "Search".

 
About 90 minutes before the show, Brandy and I are on Facebook and the web, writing up some copy for the event, using the venue's provided text, including the SLurl and image I've created. This gets posted to about 300,000+ group and network members between all Facebook groups, G+, Second Friends, Twitter, etc. This doesn't mean a guarantee of attendance, but at least we know we are doing our part. At the same time, we are also giving back to the venue by getting their name and brand in front of many of SL members who may not be aware of the venue. This will also possibly garner more attention to your event and might offer you better attendance.
 
I urge you to not rely on the venue's promotions alone, who are hopefully doing their own promotions for their events, but to rely on yourself and your manager (if you have one) to get the word out about your own shows. These are our Second Life careers and personally, I enjoy having SL as a platform to get my music out there. So why not use it to the best of our abilities and at the same time, help the venues who are helping us.


Here is part of the routine that Brandy and I go through before every Second Life show I perform:

• Create an event "promotional image" for each show. It's good to use your picture but even better to consistently add your own logo on EVERY promo.

• Post on all Facebook Groups (using the venue provided text along with your own)
You can easily include a photo (better to use the promotional image as mentioned above) for the event, and the SLurl.

• Create an event on Second Friends (using the venue provided text along with your own and your promo image). Second Friends is FREE! You can register with your Facebook, Twitter, Google, Yahoo, or LinkedIn credentials and start listing your events, create your own fan group, post unlimited pics and videos, etc. You can even send the event with a few clicks to Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, etc. ! http://www.second-friends.com

• Hit G+
Google's community is huge! PERIOD!

• Twitter
Sure Twitter only allows 140 characters but even at that limit, you can write up a short and sweet post about your event, including the SLurl or a link back to a Facebook event.


There are more things you can do, and of course this can apply to other promotions in both SL and RL that you are trying to market, but if you are doing these few things in the least, your chances of higher attendance will increase and you will also be helping the venue who is helping YOU. 

If you'd like to read more on the matter, Brandy has also posted some very useful info on her own blog here - BRANDY'S BLOG

I wish you the very best of luck and success.

Marketing your Second Life: For SL Businesses, Musicians and Managers.

Any business, big or small, regardless of location, target demographic or any other criteria, is IN business. Being in business simply translates to the fact that you have a product and/or service that you are offering for sale or some other form of trade.

In order to find those who are interested in your products or services, a business needs to publicize or do the necessary "marketing" to advertise what it is they are offering.

For Second Life businesses, the same facts hold true.

All businesses in SL, regardless of industry are similarly IN business. They are seeking to sell a product or service in exchange for money or other forms of trade merchandise.

Musicians in both real life and Second Life also have to run their business. They are in the business of providing both product and service. The service being their performances and their product may vary from CD's, clothing or other branded "stuff" and so on.

As a business owner for many years and as a Second Life performer, I understand that it can be a tricky undertaking for performers to get the word out about their offerings. Within SL, we are limited to Group Notices that can only house note cards, textures, or links. This was the underlying reason I created Second Friends. Personally, I wasn't satisfied with not being able to have proper marketing for my businesses in SL.

After creating Second Friends, I decided that it would be a great tool to help others in various businesses and industries within Second Life. I contacted musician friends first and then realized that other industries could also benefit from the great free marketing tools Second Friends offers.

Join Free with your Facebook, Twitter, Google or Yahoo ID!
http://www.second-friends.com

Today we have blown passed the 2000 member mark. I wanted to take a few minutes to share this blog in case you might have missed the  marketing I've been sending to as many SL'ers as I can reach.

One of the most important things you can do for your business is get your brand in front of as many people as possible. Branding. It goes hand in hand with just about every single marketing campaign I've been a part of.

I think one of the most important features you will find on Second Friends is the ability to create your own "Group". This it not limited to musicians, just to be clear. Any business or industry can utilize and benefit from creating a SF Group.

When creating a SF Group, you are creating a mini website of sorts. I own a website/graphic design firm as one of my real life businesses so I'm very clear when I label it this way. What I mean to say is, when considering what a website is, basically it is a blank canvas that you can "decorate" however you like, but more importantly, with components that will express your vision for YOUR business.

Join Free at: http://www.second-friends.com

A SF Group is VERY similar in this regard as it too can house just about anything a website can. This reflects back to the limitations I mentioned above about Second Life Group notices. On your SF Group, you can post links, photos, text, Javascripts, etc. and yes, even video. If you use your SF Group right, it can be quite powerful. Contrarily, SL notices cannot do much more than include text, links and images (or other notecard containing the same limitations).

I'd like to invite all Second Life businesses, regardless of industry, to create your own SF Group. After you have, you are welcome to contact me and I will create a Second Friends banner that you can rez out at your SL business, shows, events, etc. whereby people can click on it and will direct them to your SF Group page.

For example, in the fashion business, there are many places to advertise among the fashion mags, blogs and so on. Second Friends is not a fashion magazine. It is comprised of many different people from many different industries. My point is, why advertise your dresses on a medium where many other designers are also advertising their dresses. What I mean is, why CREATE your own competition?!?!?!

Create a group on Second Friends. If you are serious minded, and although space is limited, you can contact me about placing a specialized Ad on Second Friends. I don't use the word "limited" lightly. I will not have Second Friends become over saturated with ads so yes, space is limited and more will likely not be added. I will gladly extend this invitation to performers as well and for that matter, any business in SL seeking to break free from the mundane that has become the norm.

Second Life business and artists can also create Events that show up right on the Second Friends Home Page. With 20,000+ page views per month and growing, many SL'ers are turning to Second Friends to get more detail about upcoming Events. Whether you are having a fashion show, new venue launch or a live performance or DJ event, SF Events are the place to list  them. Events can also include many web features like video, pictures, links, etc... once again, much more than SL notices or SL Event listings can offer you.

For now, Second Friends remains 100% free (other than paid Advertising) I created it and this is how it is!

I truly care about my SL friends and family and hope you'll take advantage of what could be a really helpful tool for you and your Second Life business endeavors.

Join Free at: http://www.second-friends.com