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Discover Ireland - in Second Life
23-10-2007
by Stephen Errity

Tourism Ireland has announced it will be hosting a series of promotional events in Second Life's 'virtual Dublin' to market Irish tourism to the community's users.

The campaign is the first of its kind to be hosted in the 'virtual world' Second Life by a real-world tourist board, and it will see a series of events take place online in the virtual Dublin between now and St Patrick's Day 2008. A 'Discover Ireland Festival' is set to take place this weekend (26-28 October), comprising live music on a stage located on 'Grafton Street', as well as a fashion show and an exhibition of Irish landscape photographs. Big screens dotted around the 'city' will show Tourism Ireland promotional videos.

The version of Dublin within the online simulation was created by John Mahon of PickSL and is already a well-established Second Life location for live music and DJs -- occasionally making the top ten list of the most popular locations to visit.

Tourism Ireland spokesperson Sinead Grace told ENN that the main motivation for her organisation's Second Life move was the fact that 60 percent of its users are located in the four biggest markets for Irish tourism: the UK, the US, Germany and France. "Because of this, it seemed like a good fit," she said. "It's a unique and different hook for us and something we hope will catch people's attention."

In a statement, Tourism Ireland's director for central marketing, Mark Henry, said: "We are committed to using e-marketing to the best possible effect in promoting the island of Ireland as a holiday destination and our involvement in Second Life is about finding new ways to connect to today's web-savvy consumer."

Tourism Ireland has doubled its digital marketing spend over the past three years. It currently spends a total of 14 percent of its marketing budget online, representing an investment of EUR6.5 million last year. This number is set to increase once again in 2008, with a quarter of the marketing budget has been earmarked for online activities.

Since its establishment in 2003, the so-called virtual community of Second Life, created by Linden Lab, has grown significantly and currently has more than 9 million registered users or 'residents', 1.6 million of whom are considered regular users. Many major brands already have a presence there and, within the tourism industry, Starwood Hotels has used the virtual world to pilot the design of a new series of hotels, while travel agent Thomas Cook is offering virtual package tours to customers.