Yesterday I was at a company offsite when I got an email from my paesano David Armano with the subject "Verdino's Evil Twin." The body read, "Verdino, not only did this guy steal your ideas -- he stole your look" and pointed to this article at iMedia Connection. It is a smart look at Second Life marketing principles by Morpheus emerging media guru and blogger Adam Broitman.
But I have to agree with Armano -- the similarities are shocking. Consider:
- My Second Life pieces for MarketingProfs are notable for their tough love approach. I'm an enthusiastic Second Life resident but as a marketer am critical of many of the corporate integrations to date and advise companies to look beyond the hype (which has mostly died down by this point) and instead craft smart marketing approaches that focus less on beautiful sims and more on supporting the indigenous community and providing real value to the residents. Adam's piece takes much the same line and offers lots of good practical advice. I don't agree entirely with his favorable reviews of various marketer sims, but I do think he offers sound recommendations on how to market better in Second Life or, for that matter, the metaverse in general.
- I am bald. Adam is bald. Now, I have the near-obligatory bald guy goatee which makes me look much more "bad-ass" and camouflages my double chin. Adam appears not to have a double chin.
- Adam is Morpheus Media's Director of Emerging Media. I am Digitas's Director of Emerging Channels. It would seem that we are doing more or less the same kind of work.
- Here's where it gets uncanny -- according to his bio Adam worked at Digitas prior to joining Morpheus. I, of course, work at Digitas now. Adam worked on the American Express business. I, among other accounts, now work on the American Express business.
Never mind Second Life; it seems there are two of me in first life. Man, it's really freaking me out.
