Company: West Cafe
Social Media Marketing Team: Lisa Peyton from TMMPDX.COM and Carri Bugbee
Campaign Length: Six months, September 2008 - March 2009
Result: Up to a 34% Increase in Overall Restaurant Sales
SoMe Award Finalist 2009 Read the rest of this entry »
3D Virtual World Optimization: Blink 3D and Virtual World Software Creator, Clive Jackson Discusses The New Web 3D
January 8th, 2009
By Lisa Peyton
Clive Jackson, the creator of Blink 3D and inDuality, took some time to answer my questions regarding the release of his new products. He is the founder of Pelican Crossing, a development firm working toward creating a web portal for 3D environments. You can read more about his thoughts on the future of the 3D web in a comprehensive white paper entitled Metaverse 2.0. Read the rest of this entry »
Resume Writing Resources and Tips: Leveraging Keywords to Get Your Resume the Attention it Deserves
January 8th, 2009
By Lisa Peyton, Director of Paid Search Marketing
Unless you’ve been totally off the grid over the past several years, chances are you’ve at least heard the buzz about keywords. With the rapid growth of web technologies, keywords have become more important than ever. The simple fact is that if you want to find something or be found on-line, you have to know what group of words to enter into that search box. The same holds true when it comes to top employers or recruiters coming across your resume. Whether they’re sourcing your information from the web or an off-line database, keyword searches are the primary tool they use to sift through the thousands of resumes available. Read the rest of this entry »
Best Virtual Worlds for Business, Second Life Not Recommended
January 8th, 2009By Lisa Peyton, Publisher and Editor SLENTRE.COM
Nick Wilson from Clever Zebra, a firm that advises companies on emerging 3D technology, discussed “the major players” in the virtual world arena to a Second Life audience.
(Nick Wilson from Clever Zebra presents in Second Life)
The event held at their SL Location (http://slurl.com/secondlife/Zebra%20HQ/127/87/23) was attended by about 20-30 residents and lasted one hour.
During the presentation Nick outlined his picks for the top VW’s for business and outlined the pros and cons of each. A brief outline follows:
1) Active Worlds - http://www.activeworlds.com/
• $6.95 per month fee to become a ‘citizen’
• Healthy group of developers
• Easy building tools
• Firewall available
• No productivity tools, white boards, ppt presentations, etc.
Recommended Uses:
• Rapid proto-typing
• Experiment privately behind a firewall
• IBM and Wells Fargo have worked in the space
2) Proto Sphere, by Protonmedia - http://www.protonmedia.com/
• Free demo
• Learning and knowledge management training
• Integrates blogs, social networking web 2.0 tools
• Search functionality
• Shareable office applications
• Firewall issues
• Content creation controlled by proto sphere
• Steep learning curve for available tools
Recommended Uses:
• Training
• Sales Training
• Insurance adjusters using to view auto accidents in 3D
• Global virtual meetings
3) Qwaq Forums - http://www.qwaq.com/
• 30 day free trial
• Collaboration Application
• Voice issues
• Pre-built content via templates
• Low system requirements
• Easy to set-up, about 10 mins
• Poor graphics, immersion, and avatars
Recommended Uses:
• Remote teams working on regular office documents
• General VW experimentation
4) OLIVE, by Forterra Inc. - http://www.forterrainc.com/
• Contact sales to request a demo
• Government, military, education simulator
• Training and simulation
• Low system requirements
• Functional on mid-range PC
• Easy to use
• Firewall ready
• Bulky install
• No video or ppt presentations yet
Recommended Uses:
• Training and simulation
5) Second Life - http://secondlife.com/
• Free account and download
• Largest social virtual world
• Business to consumer focus
• Highly unstable
• Advanced system requirements needed
• Steep learning curve
Recommended Uses:
• Not recommended for Business use with the exception of possible experimentation
Future Players – VW’s to watch out for
Project Wonderland - https://lg3d-wonderland.dev.java.net/
• Free Download
• Sun Microsoft
• Ugly interface
• Open source
• Java based
• Modular architecture
• API’s available, easy to integrate with almost anything
Vastpark - http://www.vastpark.com/
• Free download
• 5 applications – creator, browser, viewer, publisher and Vast Server Core
• Build your own world
• Firewall ready
• Licensing available for educational and corporate use
Multiverse- http://www.multiverse.net
• Build your own world
• Netscape developers
• 2000 avatars in one place
• No virtual office document sharing
Project Chainsaw, Nortel - http://www.nortel.com/
• Nortel Networks
• Voice emphasis
• Browser based
• Ecommerce capabilities, i.e. – shop in 3d environment, talk with sales staff and other customers