Comments on: The First-Hour Experience http://betatechnologies.info/gwynethllewelyn/2009/12/30/the-first-hour-experience/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=the-first-hour-experience by Gwyneth Llewelyn Fri, 18 Jun 2010 19:21:48 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 By: Gwyneth Llewelyn http://betatechnologies.info/gwynethllewelyn/2009/12/30/the-first-hour-experience/#comment-72 Gwyneth Llewelyn Mon, 04 Jan 2010 22:09:15 +0000 http://blogs.betatechnologies.info/gwynethllewelyn/?p=35#comment-72 @Arcadian, most likely LL is <i>not</i> going to implement <i>any</i> of them ;) ... except perhaps turning the "Dashboard" into something more Facebook-y. They sort of hinted they'd experiment a bit. As for your lack of experience... who can claim to be an "expert"?? :) 5-6 years is really too little time... So your valued opinion is very likely quite good indeed! @Arcadian, most likely LL is not going to implement any of them ;) … except perhaps turning the “Dashboard” into something more Facebook-y. They sort of hinted they’d experiment a bit.

As for your lack of experience… who can claim to be an “expert”?? :) 5-6 years is really too little time… So your valued opinion is very likely quite good indeed!

]]> By: Arcadian Vanalten http://betatechnologies.info/gwynethllewelyn/2009/12/30/the-first-hour-experience/#comment-71 Arcadian Vanalten Mon, 04 Jan 2010 20:07:55 +0000 http://blogs.betatechnologies.info/gwynethllewelyn/?p=35#comment-71 Insightful as ever, but the big question is whether LL will listen to those very well-considered ideas or not. Remains to be seen thus far. I'm still ambivalent at best about the new administration in the Lab. I like the idea of the intro event (concert at Black Sun, etc); bidding is one option to monetize it, but I think there should also be a feedback component where high bidders are also pressed to compete content-wise to ensure that they actually provide interesting experiences for the new folks rather than just being solely based on having been the high bidder. Granted, my knowledge and experience in running an online business is roughly equal to that of your garden variety tree fungus, so take that for what it's worth... Insightful as ever, but the big question is whether LL will listen to those very well-considered ideas or not. Remains to be seen thus far. I’m still ambivalent at best about the new administration in the Lab.

I like the idea of the intro event (concert at Black Sun, etc); bidding is one option to monetize it, but I think there should also be a feedback component where high bidders are also pressed to compete content-wise to ensure that they actually provide interesting experiences for the new folks rather than just being solely based on having been the high bidder. Granted, my knowledge and experience in running an online business is roughly equal to that of your garden variety tree fungus, so take that for what it’s worth…

]]> By: Gwyneth Llewelyn http://betatechnologies.info/gwynethllewelyn/2009/12/30/the-first-hour-experience/#comment-70 Gwyneth Llewelyn Mon, 04 Jan 2010 10:57:27 +0000 http://blogs.betatechnologies.info/gwynethllewelyn/?p=35#comment-70 Very likely, @Neil, all that has to have a big SKIP THIS STEP button on top of it — just like most social networking sites also do. Otherwise, it would simply take too long for the majority of people... but an easy way to get back to this (say, when logging in to one's account section on the SL website) would also be important to have. Very likely, @Neil, all that has to have a big SKIP THIS STEP button on top of it — just like most social networking sites also do. Otherwise, it would simply take too long for the majority of people… but an easy way to get back to this (say, when logging in to one’s account section on the SL website) would also be important to have.

]]> By: Simon Newstead http://betatechnologies.info/gwynethllewelyn/2009/12/30/the-first-hour-experience/#comment-69 Simon Newstead Mon, 04 Jan 2010 08:46:14 +0000 http://blogs.betatechnologies.info/gwynethllewelyn/?p=35#comment-69 Great post, thanks for taking the time together to write it, newbie orientation and retention can be hard in a virtual world :) I agree with your points, especially challenges of things like clothing and shopping which are a lot harder than they ought to be for newbies. Do you think though that more personalization is a good thing at the start in the browser, I wonder what the pros of less bounce at that part of registration flow would be against the cons of building a separate dress-up-doll system and linking it with inventory and equip database.. I think Neils comment is good also, giving people structured tasks to get started can help the whole "what do I do now" problem and probably get them to make their first in world friends in the process. Great post, thanks for taking the time together to write it, newbie orientation and retention can be hard in a virtual world :)

I agree with your points, especially challenges of things like clothing and shopping which are a lot harder than they ought to be for newbies. Do you think though that more personalization is a good thing at the start in the browser, I wonder what the pros of less bounce at that part of registration flow would be against the cons of building a separate dress-up-doll system and linking it with inventory and equip database..

I think Neils comment is good also, giving people structured tasks to get started can help the whole “what do I do now” problem and probably get them to make their first in world friends in the process.

]]> By: Ann Otoole http://betatechnologies.info/gwynethllewelyn/2009/12/30/the-first-hour-experience/#comment-68 Ann Otoole Thu, 31 Dec 2009 14:20:35 +0000 http://blogs.betatechnologies.info/gwynethllewelyn/?p=35#comment-68 Someone was actually bitching on the blorum flog that LL had wiped the anti social disorder affected people out of the waterhead welcome area. Duh lol As for perception the only fix is closing SL and starting over. And that still isn't going to make aunt Bee in the church knitting circle in Mayberry RFD want to touch the internet. But that appears to be who Kingdon wants as residents. Just ain't gonna happen. The future is with the kids growing up smart and with advanced technology. A lot of the smart people that are visionaries and capable of learning SL are already here. LL needs to put a stronger effort into the teen "pipeline" instead of abandoning the teen grid as LL has pretty much done if the comments teens sometimes make on forums and the blog are correct. Who cares if stuck up jerks that stereotype don't want to come around Second Life? Things were great before March 2008. Maybe the needed fix is hiding in changes made in that time frame. Someone was actually bitching on the blorum flog that LL had wiped the anti social disorder affected people out of the waterhead welcome area.

Duh lol

As for perception the only fix is closing SL and starting over. And that still isn’t going to make aunt Bee in the church knitting circle in Mayberry RFD want to touch the internet. But that appears to be who Kingdon wants as residents. Just ain’t gonna happen. The future is with the kids growing up smart and with advanced technology. A lot of the smart people that are visionaries and capable of learning SL are already here. LL needs to put a stronger effort into the teen “pipeline” instead of abandoning the teen grid as LL has pretty much done if the comments teens sometimes make on forums and the blog are correct.

Who cares if stuck up jerks that stereotype don’t want to come around Second Life? Things were great before March 2008. Maybe the needed fix is hiding in changes made in that time frame.

]]> By: Neil Canham http://betatechnologies.info/gwynethllewelyn/2009/12/30/the-first-hour-experience/#comment-67 Neil Canham Thu, 31 Dec 2009 11:43:19 +0000 http://blogs.betatechnologies.info/gwynethllewelyn/?p=35#comment-67 I was having this conversation just yesterday with a RL friend that just signed up. Like many many people her first issue was the lack of goals, just like being dumped in a field or street somewhere in RL, but without even the primitive urges of food and shelter to satisfy. We came up with something you touched on in your 'Give newbies $L' section - the idea of community gateways and orientation areas giving people structured tasks, ranging from practical challanges to learn the basics of movement,inventory, chat through to more complex ones like 'visit a live music event','go to a discussion','attend a class', obviously they could be themed according to the gateway. There is also a potential revenue stream there, since venues might want to bid to be included in the process ("Attend a live music event at the Black Sun"). Clearly designing such things is a lot of effort of course. With regards to the ideas about connecting to friends, making the initial sign up more tied into the idea of social networking, I can see some of that, but I also have reservations - what about those people who are signing up just to attend a meeting, and maybe their only interest is in those meetings, intially anyway. You'd want the ability to skip all the steps of bringing in friends lists and groups and even AV customisation. There is a huge tension here between the synchronous and asynchronous elements here, and also between the various potential uses of SL. Social networking sites are largely asynchronous, with a degree of decoupling that gives you a lot of control. The main, key, over-riding element of SL must be the synchronous sense of being together in one place. This is a totally different beast. Almost like an additional layer on top. I can imagine in FB, along with the new privacy controls - a last layer - allow friends to find me in SL. But all this interconnection to other social networks requires one additional step change - public perception of SL needs to change so that people are happy to let their friends know they are even using SL! I was having this conversation just yesterday with a RL friend that just signed up. Like many many people her first issue was the lack of goals, just like being dumped in a field or street somewhere in RL, but without even the primitive urges of food and shelter to satisfy. We came up with something you touched on in your ‘Give newbies $L’ section – the idea of community gateways and orientation areas giving people structured tasks, ranging from practical challanges to learn the basics of movement,inventory, chat through to more complex ones like ‘visit a live music event’,'go to a discussion’,'attend a class’, obviously they could be themed according to the gateway. There is also a potential revenue stream there, since venues might want to bid to be included in the process (“Attend a live music event at the Black Sun”). Clearly designing such things is a lot of effort of course.
With regards to the ideas about connecting to friends, making the initial sign up more tied into the idea of social networking, I can see some of that, but I also have reservations – what about those people who are signing up just to attend a meeting, and maybe their only interest is in those meetings, intially anyway. You’d want the ability to skip all the steps of bringing in friends lists and groups and even AV customisation. There is a huge tension here between the synchronous and asynchronous elements here, and also between the various potential uses of SL. Social networking sites are largely asynchronous, with a degree of decoupling that gives you a lot of control. The main, key, over-riding element of SL must be the synchronous sense of being together in one place. This is a totally different beast. Almost like an additional layer on top. I can imagine in FB, along with the new privacy controls – a last layer – allow friends to find me in SL. But all this interconnection to other social networks requires one additional step change – public perception of SL needs to change so that people are happy to let their friends know they are even using SL!

]]> By: Gwyneth Llewelyn http://betatechnologies.info/gwynethllewelyn/2009/12/30/the-first-hour-experience/#comment-66 Gwyneth Llewelyn Thu, 31 Dec 2009 09:50:23 +0000 http://blogs.betatechnologies.info/gwynethllewelyn/?p=35#comment-66 @Leonel, *hah* :) Naaah, I give them advise for free... @ArminasX, I truly hope so. M Linden really means to do something about it, and they have been quietly working on "improving the first-hour experience" for over a year... knowing that projects at the 'Lab usually take around 18 months to complete, I'm sure we'll start seeing <i>something</i> soon... @Leonel, *hah* :) Naaah, I give them advise for free…

@ArminasX, I truly hope so. M Linden really means to do something about it, and they have been quietly working on “improving the first-hour experience” for over a year… knowing that projects at the ‘Lab usually take around 18 months to complete, I’m sure we’ll start seeing something soon…

]]> By: ArminasX http://betatechnologies.info/gwynethllewelyn/2009/12/30/the-first-hour-experience/#comment-65 ArminasX Wed, 30 Dec 2009 23:59:33 +0000 http://blogs.betatechnologies.info/gwynethllewelyn/?p=35#comment-65 I echo your points. It's totally astonishing how bad the retention rate is for new arrivals. If LL managed to raise the retention rate even very slightly from 1% to say, 5% there would be massive growth in the SL population. I'm glad they have a focus on this issue, and actively experiment with different aspects of the first hour experience. Hopefully 2010 will see a breakthrough. I echo your points. It’s totally astonishing how bad the retention rate is for new arrivals. If LL managed to raise the retention rate even very slightly from 1% to say, 5% there would be massive growth in the SL population. I’m glad they have a focus on this issue, and actively experiment with different aspects of the first hour experience. Hopefully 2010 will see a breakthrough.

]]> By: Leonel Morgado http://betatechnologies.info/gwynethllewelyn/2009/12/30/the-first-hour-experience/#comment-64 Leonel Morgado Wed, 30 Dec 2009 20:09:16 +0000 http://blogs.betatechnologies.info/gwynethllewelyn/?p=35#comment-64 Great post, Gwyn! LL should hire you as a consultant! Great post, Gwyn! LL should hire you as a consultant!

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