When considering commercial entrance into Second Life there are a few query sets that may aid in the decision-making process.

1. Should I be marketing in Second Life (or in any 3D Virtual World) in the first place?
2. How am I going to fully leverage this medium?
3. What makes this medium unique?

If you are a creative, forward-thinking marketer, your answer to question one will invariably be yes, but how does someone who is new to Second Life answer questions two and three?

Here are a few points of differentiation and concepts to think about when planning a Second Life initiative:

1. Second Life is 3D. Take advantage of the extra space-- the Z axis.
2. Second Life can house various forms of communication (video, audio, PowerPoint, chat, 3D graphics and animation, et cetera) in one platform.
3. Second Life is, in a sense, a "meta" social medium. It has the ability to aggregate other social media and social networks.
   
   
   
4. The placement of "the self" in Second Life is unlike any medium before it. To my knowledge there has never been a platform (outside of certain games, and other virtual worlds) where users can see themselves as part of the content (think Andy Warhol’s "15 minutes of fame," only prolonged).
5. Anyone (with programming skills) can learn LSL (linden scripting language) and create and own their content within the world of Second Life. Linden Labs' decision to grant ownership of content to its creator was revolutionary.

Dell Island
Infinite Vision Media’s Dell Island sim is one of the more robust builds in Second Life (it consists of four separate islands). Ordinarily, comprehensive navigation across its four islands could have been very difficult to facilitate. But IVM has created a transport pod that can get you to where you want to go in a hurry. The ability to blend the impossible (i.e., a flying white pod) with real world brands is a great example of how to leverage the unique attributes of Second Life.

Other examples of how IVM takes advantage of the power of Second Life:

• A larger than life virtual computer that you can fly through and explore
• A newsstand where you can read about what is going on at Dell

• The Dell Factory, where you can fully configure a machine that is right for you. You can then clickthrough to the 2D web for purchase

• A Second Life learning center, similar to the one that you reach when you first enter Second Life (the region is called Orientation Island).

By recognizing that many people who wish to effectively experience the Dell Island may not yet be comfortable with the Second Life platform and providing a way to brush up on their skills, Dell is adding value to the experience-- and ultimately adding value to their brand.