Comments on: Why doing business in Second Life is high risk, low return

By: Sherman

Sherman — Sat, 14 Mar 2009 09:42:54 +0000

I think people are missing the main point about owning a business in second life. It is an international community with a wide range of experience and expertise.

You get free advice 24/7 and the opportunity to make contacts and practise your business skills with virtually no risk. These can be translated into the real world.

For big companies, their presence there is simply that… a presence in an innovative simulator where millions of people log on everyday. Advertising and promotion of their company is the benefit they gain.

Blaming Second Life for business failure is like blaming the technology behind the internet for making businesses fail. Most (probably over 90%) people who set up businesses in Second Life are amatuers who logged in for some fun and got caught up in the idea of making some money…but they are learning slowly and I am sure they will add a great deal to the prosperity of their countries someday in real life.

By: Alicia Stella

Alicia Stella — Wed, 01 Aug 2007 06:15:25 +0000

I earn a very decent living from my business in Second Life. I have been a resident for 1 year now and I work at minimum 50 up to 70 hours every week “in-world.” It’s the most fun I’ve ever had at work, that is for sure! My bills are always paid on time in Real Life and I get to be my own boss and set my own hours.

I create and sell items in Second Life, and I pay my fees to use virtual land to do so. But because I create my products from scratch, which is free, I’ve only spent 10 USD to launch my business a year ago… the rest I earned in the game. In Second Life it doesn’t necessarily take money to earn money.

I used to sell items used for gambling, (simple Raffle Boards.) After the reports many months ago of the FBI investigating gambling in Second Life I stopped selling those items. Soon after that Linden Labs outlawed the advertising of Casinos in their search and classifieds. The warning signs that this change were there for a long time now.

I understand the risks involved in operating a business reliant on another business. And I do my best to pay attention to what is happening around me and move my company in best direction accordingly. Like any business venture, there are risks involved, but also possibility for great success as well. (I guess it’s a gamble I am willing to take.)

By: Paul K

Paul K — Tue, 31 Jul 2007 23:48:32 +0000

There are risk as with any business. But keep in mind most business cost US$50,000 just to start-up. starting up at US$4,000 is by no means that high of a risk. In fact most Second Life’s business are started up for a significantly less amount.

I do think you are absolutely right in that I wouldn’t invest thousands of US$ into Second Life on a business entirely reliant on Second Life. But Second Life can be used (when innovatively) to help small business to reach a larger audience as I have done so with my website that is partly reliant on Second Life.

I also think if one builds a purely Second Life business as a way to pass time instead of watching TV, or playing some other video game, it could actually be done for the cost of a dinner, and generate a bit of extra cash to pay for a few more dinners and your internet connection.