Avatar-Based Marketing

hempman writes "This article (which I wrote!) from the current issue of Harvared Business Review offers a new perspective on marketing real-world products in virtual worlds to virtual consumers with the aim of generating real-world revenue. It examines the frontier of marketing. Although companies are beginning to see the potential of marketing in 3D games and virtual worlds, it's important that they think not just about the 'where' of this new market but also about the 'who.' That is, when marketing in virtual worlds, do you target the flesh-and-blood user who controls the real-world wallet? Or do you target the wallet-wielding consumer's avatar, which likely represents a powerful but hidden aspect of his personality and could influence his purchases -- or at least provide a window into his hidden desires and preferences?"

Re:So I Log Onto Warcraft ...

[MrSquirrel]

My sentiments exactly -- I always try to buy the unmarketed (or at least less-marketed) products [unless it's inferior] just because I hate marketing so much. I'm sorry -- I hate marketing METHODS so much. I have no problems with marketing telling me the facts, but marketers seem to be all too geared toward fact/reality-twisting.
Dear marketers: you're going to ruin my game experience to plaster "BEST BUY" or "FedEx" all over?... I already know Best Buy and FedEx exist, throwing it all over my world when I'm trying to frag some zombies or save the princess or whatever I want to do in my own little gaming reality will only upset me; the gaming world has NOTHING to do with your crappy product. please die, kthxbye.

Re:So I Log Onto Warcraft ...

[RingDev]

While your sample is a bit extreme, is it that different then advertising for ingame services ingame? I used to play DAoC, back before housing. I had a LGM weapon smith, I had a huge stock pile of weapons to sell, but no way to inform people. So I had a friend who loved going on raids, I gave him a 5% commission for each person who contacted me and said they heard about it from him. So he would go on raids and advertise (in character, it was a RP server) for my weapon sales.

Like whys for a messaging service, if WoW didn't have a artificial mail service, and some independant group of players created their own ingame mail company (ala Fed-Axe!) would it be wrong of them to advertise in the major cities?

I guess my problem is not with advertisement, it is with advertisement that breaks immersion. I think doing burnouts in a bestbuy parking lot while playing Need for Speed is awesome. I think buying a mana potion at a Rite-Aid is far from ok.

-Rick

Great. ANOTHER medium to be ruined with ads

[Avatar8]

Remember when you went to a movie, you might see a short news reel or a cartoon and then you saw the movie you paid to see.

Now it has gotten so bad that if you show up early to find a good seat, you'll suffer through either a series of slides of local advertisements or a hollywood "behind the scenes" documentary. Then you suffer through 15 minutes of movie advertisements and paid advertisements denouncing movie piracy. I often forget which movie I came to see.

So I've almost completely quit going to movies. Next I began buying DVD's, most often of movies I'd seen before at least once and like, but sometimes I'd risk buying a movie I hadn't seen. Now DVD's are starting to have forced advertising. (Disney is the worst.) I can understand being unable to skip the FBI warning, but why should I have to watch commercials every time I play the DVD?

So I've decreased my DVD purchases as well. I'm currently enjoying the video on demand my Verizon FIOS TV offers. Start, pause, rewind and stop when I want. No commercials at the beginning or within. I'm enjoying my DVR functions, too. I record something and watch it later so I can skip through the commercials.

Gaming is my relaxation. The last thing I want to see in a game I'm paying for is blatant advertising whether it applies to me as a person or my avatar. I barely care if it fits with the theme or not. It's a possible interruption, distraction or reminder of the real world that I don't want. I really enjoy gaming, but if marketers start screwing with my last bastion of peace, I'll be seriously pissed. Not only would I stop paying and playing, not only would I personally boycott the companies pushing the advertising, but I'd also be publically protesting and getting as many others as possible to boycott them, too.

Why can advertisers not understand: we're in a PULL generation now. If you try pushing anything onto me, you'll get nothing but my anger and resentment. If I want something, I know how to go look for it. Why does it take acts of congress to (unsuccessfully) get companies to stop calling us? For spammers to stop sending us their crap? For companies to stop pushing their drivel down our throats everywhere we turn?

I DON'T WANT YOUR PRODUCT!! CAPEESH?!!?