Virtual Identities and Market Segmentation in Marketing in and Through Massively Multiplayer Online Games (MMOGs) more

Services Marketing Quarterly, 31:275–295, 2010 Copyright # Taylor & Francis Group, LLC ISSN: 1533-2969 print=1533-2977 online DOI: 10.1080/15332969.2010.486689 Virtual Identities and Market Segmentation in Marketing in and Through Massively Multiplayer Online Games (MMOGs) PETER ZACKARIASSON School of Business, Economics and Law, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden ˚ NILS WAHLIN and TIMOTHY L. WILSON ˚ ˚ ˚ Umea School of Business, Umea University, Umea, Sweden Downloaded By: [Zackariasson, Peter] At: 07:55 26 June 2010 It has been asserted that the emergence of virtual worlds has changed the ways that business may be conducted. In massively multiplayer online games (MMOGs) a participant is given the opportunity to not only create an identity of how they would like to appear but also select individual activities. Clearly, this opportunity may carry marketing implications because marketers are given the opportunity to consider potential customers as they might like to be. Background in self-identity and buying behavior, the nature of MMOGs, taxonomy of gamers, and the construction of identity is sketched. Five propositions are developed that summarize our observations from this foundation. KEYWORDS identity construction, market segmentation, psychographics, video games, virtual worlds INTRODUCTION The emergence of virtual worlds has changed the ways that business may be conducted (Fetscherin, 2008). That is, virtual worlds are undergoing an evolution similar to that of the Internet in the mid-90s and could impact profoundly the way people cooperate, communicate, collaborate, and conduct business. These considerations are not incidental. There are a total of over 14 million active subscribers to massively multiplayer online games (MMOGs) worldwide that place participants in these virtual worlds (MMOG, Address correspondence to Timothy L. Wilson, 100 Locust Ln., Indiana, PA 15701. E-mail: tim.wilson@usbe.umu.se 275 276 P. Zackariasson et al. 2007).1 Put another way, that number is of the order of the population of The Netherlands with about the same buying power per individual. The recent entrance of companies such as Toyota, American Apparel, Nissan, and Adidas into these games indicates the importance that the upcoming role of this platform for the next generation of conducting electronic business may take. Castonova (2001) has associated the economies in MMOGs with those in the physical2 world. ‘‘The minute you hardwire constraints into a virtual world, the economy emerges. One-trillionth of a second later is when that economy starts interacting with ours’’ (Dibbell, 2006, p. 43). Once economies are established, marketing cannot be far behind. Consequently, a wide range of business and research topics fall within the broad description of activities, challenges, opportunities, applications, innovations, and implications associated with virtual worlds as the emerging new online business landscape (Fetscherin, 2007). It has been suggested, for instance, that MMOGs are services provided for participants, somewhat along the lines of tourism or athletic activities (Zackariasson, Walfisz, & Wilson, 2006; Zackariasson & Wilson, 2004). It would appear, however, that one can go beyond the description of MMOGs as services and focus on the benefits that individuals obtain from participation. One of these benefits is the creation of a virtual identity, i.e., an avatar (Meadows, 2008, p. 15). That is, a participant is given the opportunity to create an identity of how they would like to appear, given the opportunities in the creation process. This reality gives marketers the opportunity to consider potential customers as they might like to be. Clearly this association with identity in the virtual world may carry marketing implications. The relationship between gaming and real life is both socially and economically significant (Castronova, 2005; Taylor, 2006; Turkle, 1995; Zackariasson, 2007, p. 33). In a study of EverQuest, Yee (2001) reported that 47% of participants considered their virtual friends to comparable to their physical-life friends, while 15% of the respondents considered their virtual friends to be better than their physical-life friends. In this article, we explore the implications that virtual identity creation may have on marketing practice in and through these virtual worlds. For this purpose, a background is sketched in self-identity and buying behavior, the nature of MMOGs, taxonomy of gamers, and the construction of identity. Five propositions are developed that summarize extension to this special case and attendant observations. In undertaking this task, some clarification is useful. There are, in general, two types of virtual worlds (Zackariasson, 2007): detention worlds and extension worlds.3 Depending on virtual world type, different possibilities, as well as expectations, are created for participants. Detention worlds are produced to enclose the participant in a virtual world that is separated from the physical world. These situations are mostly considered games, called MMOGs, or massively multiplayer online role-playing games Downloaded By: [Zackariasson, Peter] At: 07:55 26 June 2010 Marketing in and Through MMOGs 277 (MMORPGs). Intrusion of the physical world here tends to detract from player immersion into these virtual worlds. Extension worlds, on the other hand, are developed to extend the physical world into virtual worlds. These worlds are mostly referred to as massively multiplayer online (MMO). MMO opens up real-money trade (RMT) where physical currency can be used for buying virtual goods and real companies can establish themselves in these worlds. Consequently, although MMOGs predated MMOs, the marketing orientation in MMOs is more highly developed (cf. Alter, 2008; Rymaszewski et al., 2008). Although background is sometimes drawn from these MMOs, the focus in this article is thus on potential marketing opportunities and approaches in MMOGs. BACKGROUND Downloaded By: [Zackariasson, Peter] At: 07:55 26 June 2010 Self-Identity and Buying Behavior It has long been known that one has to go beyond demographics to understand the buying behavior of consumers (cf. Kotler, 2000, pp. 160–189). One of the early successes in associating buying behavior with non-demographic factors was the SRI International Values and Lifestyles (VALSTM) study. Put another way, individuals may display different lifestyles, and thus buying behavior, in spite of sharing certain demographic traits such as age, income or gender. In the current version of VALS owned and operated by Strategic Business Insights, segments are defined by unique psychological traits (found to correlate with purchase behavior) and several key demographics. Different VAL segments lead different lifestyles and have different purchasing capacities and patterns. For instance, one segment called the Experiencers is defined as young, vital, enthusiastic, impulsive and rebellious. They spend a relatively high proportion of their income on clothing, fast food, music, movies and videos. Makers, on the other hand, are described as practical, self-sufficient, traditional and familyoriented. They favor products with a practical purpose such as tools, utility vehicles and fishing equipment (which are much more satisfying than movies, videos or video games). The VALS Framework shows all eight U.S. consumer segments and their relationship with each other. See Figure 1. An individual’s self-identity undoubtedly plays a role in buying behavior. For one thing, the purchases of an individual help establish an identity. Anecdotal evidence (Reed & Bolton, 2005) has suggested that this association has played a role in the marketing successes of Harley-Davidson, Japanese automobiles, PalmOne, NASCAR, Cialis, Calvin Klein, and the Boston Red Sox. A basic problem in using identity as an indicator for buying behavior, however, is that one is never sure which self-concept may be coming into play. In other words, it is uncertain whether it is one’s own self-concept or the one projected by others that comes into play. Consequently, this construct has had its problems in application (Sirgy, 1982). 278 P. Zackariasson et al. Downloaded By: [Zackariasson, Peter] At: 07:55 26 June 2010 FIGURE 1 The VALSTM framework. Source: Strategic Business Insights; http://www. strategicbusinessinsights.com In the virtual world, however, confusion over self-identity may be less of a problem. We know, for instance, that the individual is a gamer, which may suggest in itself some things about buying behavior. More importantly, however, we are aware of the role that the individual has elected to play in his or her participation. From that, we know of certain things that these individuals must obtain in the virtual world. It is our suggestion that there is a linkage between those items, that identity, and items purchased in the physical world. The Nature of MMOGs MMOG play is popular. There are upwards of 14 to 28 million people participating in this activity (see Table 1). The MMOG that dominates the market today is World of Warcraft introduced by Blizzard in 2004. In January 2008 the developer of this game announced that it had surpassed 11.5 million subscribers.4 This achievement is by far greater than that of any other MMOG. The previous record was 2.5 million held by NCSoft and Lineage, which was somewhat of an anomaly at the time—it was a Korean development and outlet primarily through online cafes. If the first era of MMOG started in the late 1990s, one can conclude that the second era took over in 2004 and with the Marketing in and Through MMOGs TABLE 1 Subscription Estimates for MMOGs World Ultima Online Lineage EverQuest Anarchy Online Dark Age of Camelot Final Fantasy XI Ragnarok Online Mu Online Star Wars Galaxies Lineage II City of Heroes EverQuest II World of Warcraft Downloaded By: [Zackariasson, Peter] At: 07:55 26 June 2010 a 279 Launch date 1997 1998 1999 2001 2001 2002 2002 2002 2003 2003 2004 2004 2004 Subscriptionsa 220,000 2,500,000 420,000 125,000b 250,000 500,000 300,000 1,500,000 300,000 1,500,000 175,000 200,000 11,500,000 Developer Origin NCSoft Sony Online Entertainment Funcom Mythic Entertainment Square Enix Gravity Corp. WebZen Inc. LucasArt=SOE NCSoft Cryptic Studios SOE Blizzard Entertainment Headquarters U.S. Asia U.S. Europe U.S. Asia Asia Asia U.S. Asia U.S. U.S. U.S. ‘‘Data are approximate, as there is no centralized reporting source. Industry analyst Bruce Sterling Woodcock summarizes population levels drawn from insider reports and press releases at http://pw1. netcom.com/~sirbruce/Subscriptions.html. Consultant Betsy Book maintains an updated review of social virtual worlds at http://www.virtualworldsreview.com. Figures for Asian virtual worlds rely on ‘China Internet Source’, a report by JP Morgan Asia Pacific Equity Research (May 2004)’’ Castronova (2005, p. 53). b Interview with Ole Schreiner, Project Director for Anarchy Online (Funcom, 30 March 2004). launch of World of Warcraft. With this game Blizzard transformed a genre from attracting hard-core gamers to mainstream gamers. There are four things that characterize MMOGs, in relation to other video games: . . . . A persistent, online, virtual world. Massive participation. A focus on the gamer’s digital avatar. Nearly carte blanche ability to select individual activities. Put another way, all MMOG interactions take place in a 3-D graphical world that in some ways is a copy of the physical world. Using an Internet connection, this virtual world is accessible online at all times. There are different geographical areas: forests, mountains, and deserts. There are also a number of cities and villages scattered around this virtual world. This world is also inhabited by different creature and human forms controlled by the game software. Secondly, this virtual world is accessible to massive participation. Whereas other online video games normally support up to 36 gamers, a MMOG is constructed to serve several thousand participants. This feature has the effect that many of the characters one meets in this virtual world are controlled by other gamers (as contrasted to control by the game developer).5 Third, the main focus in a MMOG is to develop the gamer’s digital representation, the avatar. Interaction within the game, with other gamers 280 P. Zackariasson et al. Downloaded By: [Zackariasson, Peter] At: 07:55 26 June 2010 and with the virtual world is made with the avatar. At the outset the appearance of this avatar can be chosen, (i.e., height, weight, facial appearance, gender, and race), class (i.e., warrior, priest, hunter) and profession (i.e., tailor, blacksmith, skinner).6 Because the avatar is the output of the gamer’s selections, an emotional attachment tends to develop between the gamer and their avatar. Finally, a participant is given full authority within game rules to pick the activities in which to participate within these games through a unique, mass customization approach. Focus is on the avatar through the developer, the gamer, and the other participants. In effect, an avatar personality develops that is an extension of the gamer. That is, by participating in a virtual world one develops a virtual identity, a ‘‘virtual self’’ (Meadows, 2008; Filiciak, 2003). This identity might not be very different from one’s physical world identity, but it is a result of an interaction in which an identity has been constructed that was separated from the presence of a physical world body and history. Virtual worlds are, in this sense, playgrounds for identity constructions (Turkle, 1995). As a participant one has the possibility to redefine who they are when interacting in virtual worlds. With the attributes available there, this virtual identity can be shaped as closer or further away from a physical world identity. There is of course a relationship between a physical world and a virtual identity. A virtual identity presupposes a physical world identity; just as the physical world identity forms the base for a virtual identity. Taxonomy of Gamers Bartle (1996, 2003)7 has suggested that participants in multiuser dungeons (MUDs) and MMOGs can be arranged into four categories: socializers, explorers, achievers, and killers. This taxonomy is based on participants’ interaction, and a movement between categories is typical over time. A typical movement in this taxonomy can be the following: many participants start out as killers; these activities are mostly directed toward other players. This activity includes dueling and taking the lives of other participants. As knowledge is acquired about the virtual word, they move from acting on other gamers to interacting with the world, e.g., traveling to all corners of the world and learning its geography. As their knowledge of the world grows, their progress of achievement becomes a focus. Hierarchically, this development is most noticeable in the level the avatar achieves, but over time this consideration is overshadowed by the need for having the best equipment in the form of armor and weaponry. Having achieved this development, many participants spend more time socializing as further progress tends to saturate. Yee (2007, 2002) has attempted to determine the motivation behind gaming. That is, he addressed the question, ‘‘What do people want out of a game?’’ A questionnaire developed from Bartle’s (1996) study was used in online surveys of MMOG players to collect data. Factor analysis was used Marketing in and Through MMOGs 281 to form coherent subsets of players’ motivations in participating in these activities. In a preliminary analysis of the data (Yee, 2002), five significant factors were identified,8 e.g.: 1. Relationships were formed which provided meaningful conversations, learning of oneself, and developing friendships that helped in times of need. 2. Immersion provided opportunities to explore a fantasy world, role-playing experiences, and become part of a story. 3. A grief motivation was supported by taunting, dominating, manipulating, and scamming experiences. 4. Achievement feelings were satisfied by getting equipment, developing power, and doing massive amounts of damage. 5. Leadership qualities were identified by feelings of effectiveness in that position and the experience of soloing—as compared with following in groups. Relationships, achievement, and grief correlated closely with Bartle’s (1996) socializers, achievers, and killers. Exploring was part of immersion, but perhaps leadership was missing as a role some players might pursue. Male players tended to play games for different reasons than females. Males scored higher in achievement and grief; females in relationships and immersion—leadership tendencies were about the same for both genders. In a later paper (Yee, 2007) these motivations were modified to three main components, which were in turn composed of 10 subcomponents. The main components were achievement, social, and immersion. They were described in the following way: 1. Achievement Advancement: Progress, power, accumulation, status. Mechanics: Numbers, optimization, templating, analysis. Competition: Challenging others, provocation, domination. 2. Social Socializing: Casual chat, helping others, making friends. Relationship: Personal, self-disclosure, find and give support. Teamwork: Collaboration, groups, group achievements. 3. Immersion Discovery: Exploration, lore, finding hidden things. Role-playing: Story line, character history, roles, fantasy. Customization: Appearances, accessories, style, color schemes. Escapism: relax, Escape from reality, avoid real problems. It might be noted that the taxonomy employed in this latter paper (Yee, 2007) fed from both the earlier paper and Bartle’s (1996, 2003) MUD categories. Clearly there is an association with Bartle’s achievers, explorers, Downloaded By: [Zackariasson, Peter] At: 07:55 26 June 2010 282 P. Zackariasson et al. and socializers. The absence of killers could be associated with the set of items queried. As Yee (2002) notes, extraction of factors depends on the variables fed into the analysis. If the entire spectrum of variation is limited, then the spectrum of factors will be limited also. In other words, if there were not killer questions, then a killer factor would not result. Likewise if participants in the survey came from nonaction games, then there would be little likelihood of having such motivation present. The Construction of Identity ‘‘An avatar is an interactive, social representation of a user’’ (Meadows, 2008, p. 13). It thus comes as close to a pure, self-representation of an individual as one gets. Given the motivation for participating in games, what can be gleaned from avatar construction? Some indication comes from a ‘‘real world’’ understanding and association. In that regard, the topic of identity construction has both a long history and recent interest that reflects on the historical foundation. Social psychology and organizational theory acknowledge the importance of George Herbert’s Mead’s (1934) symbolic interactionist distinction between ‘‘me’’ and ‘‘I’’ in identity development (cf. Hatch & Schultz, 2004; Pullen & Linstead, 2005; Bartel, Blader, & Wrzesniewski, 2007). Mead noted that it is only after we act or speak that we know what we were going to do or say. People, he argues, are not robots. They do not blindly follow rules. They construct a response on the basis of what they have learned. Taken together, the I and the me form the person or the ‘‘self’’ in Mead’s social philosophy. The self is both social and dynamic, and the me term is the socialized aspect of the person. It is an aspect of identity that is learned in interaction with others and more generally with the environment. This construct includes both knowledge about society, but also about who they are—their ‘‘sense of self.’’ This development occurs because the person learns to see who they are (man or woman, old or young, pensive or outgoing) by observing the responses of others to themselves or their actions. If others respond to the person as, for instance, a caring woman, the person develops a sense of herself indeed as a caring woman. The I term, on the other hand, is the active, dynamic aspect of the person. This identity acts creatively and response to it is capable of altering its community or society. Influenced by these early developments in sociology the concept of social identity emerged. That is, social psychology research examined the causes and consequences of seeing themselves and being seen by others as a part of a social group (Tajfel, 1972; Tajfel & Turner, 1979). Drawing on work by Berger and Luckman on the social construction of reality (1966), Tajfel emphasized the interplay between a social group’s external and internal features. Groups are also internalized so that they contribute Downloaded By: [Zackariasson, Peter] At: 07:55 26 June 2010 Marketing in and Through MMOGs 283 Downloaded By: [Zackariasson, Peter] At: 07:55 26 June 2010 to a person’s sense of self. Members make sense of what is central, enduring, and distinctive in their identity construction. However, this distinctiveness is possessed in a complex interaction between a person’s sense of self (personal identity) and their sense of belonging (social identity). Contemporary research stresses the changing nature of identity construction and emphasizes that the potential identities that people posses are both numerous and fluid. The interactivity between the I and multiple contexts vary over an individual’s lifetime and across situations (Lindgren ˚hlin, 2001). This tendency is now emphasized in a variety of disciplines & Wa as, for example, in studies on technology and self (Turkle, 1995; 2003), marketing (Reed, 2002; Reed & Bolton, 2005), and consumer research (Kleine & Schultz Kleine, 2000). Nevertheless, the multiple identities that a person projects are different in different contexts and during different phases of the life cycle. A variety of attributes and symbols embody aspirational identities that an individual wants to become more like. Such attitudes can be complex and multidimensional but they are entrenched, however, in people’s view of themselves. Identity-based judgments find their way through ‘‘unity by diversity,’’ and the trick is to find the multilayered messages that people find appealing based on complex interactivity. Such interactivity cultivates a special social identity and recognizes a constellation of selfembodied symbols. In virtual worlds these identity construction endeavors can become more complex. In other words, the opportunity to experiment with avatars opens avenues for identity creation beyond constrained attempts in physical life. Nevertheless, they are still built on and relate to similar considerations. In game play, Bartle’s (1996, 2003) development paradigm illustrates a sense of learning of what is expected in development within a game and thus consequent enjoyment, i.e., the me side. On the other hand, in Yee’s (2002) study, in addition to a me side, when respondents replied that they saw themselves as effective group leaders, doing massive amounts of damage, or liking to dominate other characters they are showing their I side. METHODOLOGY This article is part of an ongoing study of the sociology and economics of virtual worlds and MMOGs. Using virtual ethnography (Hine, 2000; Markham, 1998) one of the coauthors has spent more than 4,000 hours in several of these worlds since 2001. Practically, this participation has meant ‘‘living with’’ other participants as one of them. As an attentive participant, the researcher has recorded events, conversations, and personal experiences including text, still-photos, and films. In this respect the approach is closely related to the ethnographic methods used in the physical world (e.g., Van Maanen, 1988; Geertz, 1988). The MMOG selected for actual research=participation in the 284 P. Zackariasson et al. ongoing study and for this article was World of Warcraft, chosen for its size and apparent popularity (See Table 1). A synopsis of its characteristics is given in Appendices A and B. DEVELOPMENT OF PROPOSITIONS P1: This market is worth considering. Downloaded By: [Zackariasson, Peter] At: 07:55 26 June 2010 By ‘‘market’’ we mean the market defined by game players who send their avatars into the virtual worlds of these games. According to subscriptions in Table 1, and other sources (MMOG, 2007; Castronova, 2005), it looks to be 14 to 28 million individuals, which would suggest it is a niche market. Nevertheless, it is growing, is international, and the venue is one that presents an opportunity to access consumers that may not be readily accessible otherwise. Although marketers have focused on promoting online, as evidenced by Microsoft’s overtures toward Yahoo (cf. Wilke, 2008) and to a lesser extent MMOs, they have rather ignored the potential that exists within MMOGs. Yee (2006) has collected demographic data on MMOG participants. The majority are male (85%) and tend to be between 12 and 28 years of age, while female players tend to be between 23 and 40. According to his data the average age of MMORPG players is around 27. In fact, only 25% of MMORPG players are teenagers. About 50% of MMORPG players work full-time. About 36% of players are married, and 22% have children. So the MMORPG demographic is fairly diverse, including high-school students, college students, early professionals, middle-aged home-makers, as well as retirees. In other words, MMORPGs do not only appeal to a youth subculture. The relevant market structure for the situation is shown in Figure 2. It consists of: . . . . monies flowing from the physical world to the virtual world, transactions within the virtual world, influence from the virtual world to the physical world, and relevant transactions within the physical world. FIGURE 2 – Relevant market structure for MMOGs. Marketing in and Through MMOGs 285 Monies flowing from the physical world are normally thought of as subscriptions for participating in the game. The 2009 magnitude of this market is of the order of $10 billion (DCF Intelligence, 2004). To date there has also been a small, but growing market for signature items associated with the virtual worlds (Wingfield, 2008). Further, a newer business plan may be emerging that permits participants to have free access these worlds, but charges them for new outfits and=or gear. A South Korean firm taking this approach is presently earning $1 million per month with this business plan (Schiesel, 2008). There are also transactions within the virtual world. Some developers permit subscribers to buy in-game script at some fixed rate; if not, it can be obtained from an online virtual-currency broker (Dibbell, 2006, p. 12).9 These alternatives complement opportunities to earn the same at some profession. In Appendix B, ‘‘twinks’’ are identified as relative novices who buy their way into superior equipment either at the auction house or other avatars—they would represent a preferred customer for such transactions. Estimates of this market tend to be significant. The seminal work by Castronova (2001) placed the GDP of Norrath, the fantasy world in the MMOG EverQuest at the upper one-third level of world economies. Dibble (2006, p. 12) estimated the 2006 worldwide virtual sales in the $900 million to several billion dollar range. It is the impact that the virtual world may have on physical world sales that could be of greater interest, however, to companies outside the video game or MMOG sector. Hemp (2006) has addressed that issue for Second Life, a MMOG, and recounts some of the experiences of brand-building experiments of McDonalds, Levi Strauss, and Nike. It is this experience that clearly should be given attention in attracting a MMOG gamer segment. Its magnitude of influence is of the order of 15 MM (potential customers) Â $20,000 (estimated avg. income) Â 0.1 (disposable income portion) ¼ $30 billion, which, although spread among a large number of products and services, certainly attracts attention. That is, the opportunity to affect physical purchases in this segment is significant. P2: People who have undertaken to understand the market have been successful in serving it. Downloaded By: [Zackariasson, Peter] At: 07:55 26 June 2010 On the one hand, Meadows (2008, pp. 64–65) lists firms such as Microsoft, NBC, AOL, and IBM that have not done well trying to do business in Second Life, a MMO. Alter (2008), on the other hand, lists seven teenagers who have elected to earn money over the summer working in MMOGs and MMOs. Expected incomes were estimated to be in the $400 to $4,000 range.10 Of course there are magnitudes of difference in gauging success criteria between major firms and teenagers. The point is made, however, that a wellknown name does not assure success—understanding of customer needs can. 286 P. Zackariasson et al. Meadows (2008, p. 65) suggests that major firms did not succeed because they thought they were selling to humans. They were not. Their targets were avatars who wear jet packs, not shirts. The teens, on the other hand, were providing goods and services tailored to avatars—customized houses, weapons, films, wigs, wings, and vehicles. To go one step further, if firms are going to use these games to, for instance, promote to the physical world they must realize that they will be promoting through avatars. Dibble (2006) recounts the story of, ‘‘How I quit my day job and made millions trading in virtual loot,’’ through the understanding of avatar marketing and their needs. P3: Segmentation is the way to go. The bedrock of marketing thought is that organizations that better serve the needs of potential customers are successful in their efforts. Segmentation is the first step taken toward strategically meeting needs. In this article, a psychographic approach appears relevant. That is, considerations of what individuals do in games and their motivation for participating appear appropriate in classifying segments. Although Yee (2002) indicated that his factors were not to be interpreted as player types, they really form a basis of psychographic segmentation. A preference is given to Yee’s latest results (2007) here, although it is noted that it was the Bartle (1996, 2003) taxonomy that was adapted in Yee’s study and also would appear relevant as a segmentation approach. Table 2 represents in part a consolidation of Yee’s motivational factors with Mead’s identity construction. In effect, it is suggested that a two step approach to segmentation is appropriate. That is, participants are primarily interested in game results for some primary reason—achievement, social satisfaction, and realization or immersion. Their ‘‘I’’ or ‘‘me’’ identity then reflects what they may be obtaining from the game—that is, progress or accumulation on the one hand as compared with power or status on the other. The relevant products or services that might be promoted would follow as suggested next. P4: It is likely that identity construction in games overlaps with identity construction in the physical world. Downloaded By: [Zackariasson, Peter] At: 07:55 26 June 2010 In marketing through MMOGs, the heroic assumption is made that what players see or experience in the virtual environment can=will have some effect in their real life activities. It is possible, of course, that participants entirely separate their real identity from their virtual identity. One of Yee’s (2007) subfactors was escapism—individuals participated to get away from the physical world and its troubles. These identities may, or may not, have corresponded with physical world identities as shown in Figure 3A. It is more likely, however, that the identity taken in the virtual world represents an Downloaded By: [Zackariasson, Peter] At: 07:55 26 June 2010 TABLE 2 Consolidation of Yee’s Motivational Factors and Mead’s Identity Construction With Segmentation and Product=Service Positioning ‘‘I’’ identity Progress, accumulation Challenging others, provocation Helping others Giving support Exploration & finding things Roles & fantasy Appearance, accessories Relaxation Game promoters Fashion consultants Resorts & country ads Lore Story line Style & color schemes Escape from reality, avoid real problems Charitable organizations, i.e., United Way Making friends Finding support collaboration, Group achievement Domination Educational & financial services Fitness facilities, self-defense programs Power, status Relevant products or services ‘‘Me’’ identity Relevant products or services Yee’s motivational factors Achievement 287 Support groups, i.e., ALANON Travel agencies Social Self-Help Groups, i.e., Toastmasters Political action & environmental groups, i.e., Green Peace & Sierra Club Mating orgs. Alcoholics anonymous Immersion Social groups, i.e., BSA, GSA, 4H & YM=YWCA History Channel & museums Apparel firms Activity tours 288 P. Zackariasson et al. Downloaded By: [Zackariasson, Peter] At: 07:55 26 June 2010 aspect of the individual as he=she would like to be as shown in Figure 3B. Hemp (2006) identified avatars as incorporating ‘‘public (albeit virtual) expressions of hidden aspects of their (physical world) identity.’’ It is to this persona that one could effectively promote products and services. Put another way, associating products and services with this overlap completes the identity as the participant would want to be. Product and service positioning generally follows segmentation in formulating a marketing strategy. In this regard, a preliminary attempt has been made to associate relevant products and services with each of the two-step subsegments. I is the active aspect of the person. This identity acts creatively and its response is capable of altering community or society. Thus, individuals in the advancement sub segment might be attracted to educational and financial services ads. Me, on the other hand, is the socialized aspect of the person. It is an aspect of identity that is learned in interaction with others and more generally with the environment. As an example, the history channel and=or museums could find benefit in targeting individuals in the discovery sub segment. P5: The Veblenian contribution in and toward ads will be through avatars. Promotion in the virtual has ranged from simple signs inserted in the background to companies actually setting up shops as has been the case in Second Life (Meadows, 2008, pp. 64–65). Meadows suggested that the inability of companies like IBM to succeed in Second Life is because they attempted to market to humans, not avatars. Likewise it would appear that as companies grow more sophisticated in their promotion, in ads tailored to a virtual world populated by avatars, ads based on socialization will reflect the socialization of avatars, not humans. There thus is a double need for creativity in developing MMOG ads—not only must they target sub segments; they must be built around virtual identities. FIGURE 3 – Connection between individual and images. Marketing in and Through MMOGs 289 NOTES 1. The great number of virtual worlds and difficulty in acquiring reliable data makes is hard to present the correct number. According to Castronova (2005) the number could also be as high as 28 million. 2. Throughout the article the term physical will be used instead of real to distinguish from ‘‘virtual.’’ As Rymaszewski et al. (2008) suggest these virtual worlds have become part of the real world. Thus, in contrasting environments in which all products and services are intangible to one in which products at least are tangible, the term physical is used. 3. This categorization is derived from developers’ perspective. That is, when developing a virtual world one has the possibility to create one that belongs to either of these categories. From a gamer perspective, however, this categorization might make less sense since the immersion and participation might be the same in either case. 4. http://eu.blizzard.com/en-gb/company/press/pressreleases.html?081223 5. Depending on the developer there are two different technical solutions to support this many gamers: either each virtual world is operated on different servers, or there are several servers containing mirrors of the same virtual world. These approaches enable the relatively crude technology we have today to support vast numbers of gamers in the same virtual world. 6. The features available are different with each MMOG; this description is generic. It may seem as if class and profession should be the same, but they are not in these games. In World of Warcraft, for instance, there are races (trolls), classes (warriors), and professions (blacksmiths). 7. This taxonomy was constructed in the 1996 paper and further developed in the 2003 book, bringing new dimensions and categories into the model. 8. Factors, of course, are not labeled in analyses. Consequently, the labels noted here are those assigned by Yee. 9. That is not the case if considering strict MMOG, as World of Warcraft or Anarchy Online. MMOGs belong to detention worlds that try to exclude everything that is not part of the game-world. In the words of Funcom, it would ruin the weighting of the game in which only actions within this world count; only actions within the game can, for example, make you wealthy. Currency for these games can only be bought through third-party suppliers. Illicit organizations exist that grind for gold, or steal it from other accounts that have been hacked and sold to gamers. But, there are quite a few Southeast Asian games that sell script for their games. One can either struggle in-game to get an item, or buy it from the developer. MMOs do not have this restriction; they are extension worlds and are all about connecting it to the physical world. Then there are the hybrids, as Project Entropia by MindArk; it is a MMOG, but tried to make connections to the physical world. 10. All the cases cited by Alter (2008) represent legitimate earnings. Downloaded By: [Zackariasson, Peter] At: 07:55 26 June 2010 REFERENCES Alter, A. (2008, May 16). My virtual summer job. The Wall Street Journal, pp. W1, W12. Bartel, C. A., Blader, S., & Wrzesniewski, A. (Eds). (2007). Identity and the modern organization. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Bartle, R. A. (1996). Hearts, clubs, diamonds, spades: Players who suit muds. 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Retrieved from http://www.nickyee. com/daedalus/archives/001539.php Yee, N. (2007). Motivations of play in online games. Journal of Cyber Psychology and Behavior, 9, 772–775. Zackariasson, P. (2007). World builders: A study on the development of a massively ˚ multiplayer online role-playing game (unpublished PhD dissertation). Umea ˚ ˚, School of Business, Umea University, Umea Sweden. Zackariasson, P., Walfisz, M., & Wilson, T. L. (2006). Management of creativity in video game development: A case study. Services Marketing Quarterly, 27(4), 73–97. Zackariasson, P. & Wilson, T. L. (2004, December). MMOG—A 21st century service. Other players—A conference on multiplayer issues. Retrieved from http:// game.itu.dk APPENDIX A The Setting: World of Warcraft Overview: This game belongs to the genre of massively multiplayer online role playing-games (MMORPGs) and today has over 11.5 million users worldwide. The characteristics of this genre are persistency, physicality, and interactivity. The virtual world of the game is persistent in that it is online 24=7 and is build to resemble a physical world in order to immerse the user. Interaction, however, is its key aspect between users and the world. Servers (The environment): The game is run on different servers (realms) for three reasons: (a) the amount of usage is too high to support 292 P. Zackariasson et al. the traffic on a single server; (b) each server can be designed for a different language, and (c) each server can have different modes. The first reason enables Blizzard, its developer, to simply add another server when the number of users increases. This addition is easily done as it is only copies the original. Secondly, there are also Spanish, French, and German servers in addition to U.S. and general European servers. The reason being that these users might not be that comfortable speaking English. Though English is not explicitly the language on the European servers, it is preferred by Blizzard. The third reason makes it possible to create servers that have different modes for interactions. There are: normal, role-playing (RP), and person versus person (PvP) and combinations of these as RPPVP servers. The difference is that on a RP server one is expected to act out their avatar (as a dwarf warrior for example), not using leetspeak (lol, wtf, omw, etc.), but rather normal sentences as one would in spoken language. A normal server basically supports a generic audience. On a PvP server it is possible to attack users from the other faction unprovoked. On the other servers the user must first flag themselves as PvP. Level: The game is based on a traditional hierarchical model. One enters the world as Level 1 and as one works one’s way up, gaining experience points (xp), one can reach Level 80. The original game had a Level 60 cap, but with the expansion Burning Crusade this level was raised to 70. With the expansion of The Wrath of the Lich King this level was raised to 80. Depending on level attained, one can use different equipment, and skills also increase. This advancement means that bigger and bigger monsters can be killed. Even if one reach the level cap the game does not end there—at that point the high-end gaming takes over and gamers form bigger groups of up to 40 to raid dungeons for better gear. Thus, in theory there is no ‘‘game over.’’ Plot: Blizzard’s previous Warcraft games were single- and multiplayer games. For these settings they built a whole universe of land, creatures’ histories, gods, and events that today are the bases for the online game. Thus, the events that occurred have a narrative location and meaning. In general, the plot revolves around a conflict between the Horde and the Alliance. They own different sections of land with their own towns and cities. Walking into a city belonging to the opposite faction will result in being attacked by their guards. There are also neutral cities. Battlegrounds: These are the places where the Horde fights the Alliance, 10 to 40 persons in each team. Basically, these battles can be compared to paintball, or capture the flag. One signs up for these events and they take place on specified areas to which one is teleported. After registration, one will be randomly (from all servers) be teleported to a battle of your choice. After the battle, the winning side gets honor points that can be exchanged for equipment. Fights also occur in smaller teams, two versus two, up to five versus five. These occur in arenas, which are basically a Downloaded By: [Zackariasson, Peter] At: 07:55 26 June 2010 Marketing in and Through MMOGs 293 Downloaded By: [Zackariasson, Peter] At: 07:55 26 June 2010 coliseum setup. These matches tend to be very fast, less than one minute, and the team last standing wins. There is a ranking on all servers on who is the best arena team. As an aside, in order to develop these arena fights as part of the e-game movement Blizzard has recently added a server where there only is arena PvP, where each gamer can choose the same gear—thus the winner will de decided on skill, not gear. Equipment: One of the main features in World of Warcraft is getting good equipment. These acquisitions include getting both good armor and good weapons. This equipment can either be looted or crafted. How equipment can be used is dependent on one’s class. For example, priests can only use cloth armor and in weapons: one-handed maces, daggers, staffs, and wands. Warriors on the other hand can use all types of armor, but in most instances they will use plate as this gives more protection. They can also use all types of weapons (maces, swords, daggers, guns, crossbows, bows, staffs, pole arms, and first weapons). Equipment is categorized depending on its quality: standard, good, superior, epic, and legendary. Standard equipment is readily available and worth very little, while the legendary equipment is very rare. There is, for example, a pair of twin swords that only a handful of users have obtained out of 9.51 million. The difference is the damage one can make, or the amount of protection the item provides. In order to limit the trade of valuable items, Blizzard has also made them to bind to the person who finds them, thus not making them possible for trade between gamers. APPENDIX B Identities and Activities Identities: One starts with race in building an avatar. There are a number of different races one can choose from, depending on what faction is selected. The Horde can choose among: Troll, Tauren, Orc, Undead, or Blood Elf. The Alliance can choose among: Human, Dwarf, Gnome, Night Elf, or Draenei. When choosing among these races one can choose to play female or male. One can also modify the look of the avatar, as in the hair, hair coloring, facial appearance, piercings, etc. After choosing a race one will also choose a class. The classes one can choose are: druid, hunter, mage, paladin, priest, rogue, shaman, warlock, death knight and warrior. Though the classes are dependent on race, individuals in each race can only choose one of 4–6 classes. Each class has its benefits and downsides. In general, a class can be offensive or defensive, but there are some classes that are more versatile then others. A warrior, for example, uses plate armor and can handle most weapons. This advantage makes the class very good leader of a team that keeps taunting the monster to attack that user (tank), or making more damage. A priest can choose to either be a good healer, or making magical shadow damage. 294 P. Zackariasson et al. There are also classes such as the druids who can be good at tanking, inflicting damage per second (DPS), and healing. The role an individual in a class plays depends on the talents to which one is trained. Each class has three different talent trees where the user spends one point for each time a level is gained. For example, if a warrior spends his talent points in the protection talent tree, then they gain talents that are beneficiary for tanking. Thus, each class can either build on one singular tree, or combine the talents as the user see fit. One can also train as a professional in the game where there are primary and secondary professions. The primary professions are: alchemy, blacksmithing, enchanting, engineering, herbalism, leatherworking, jewel crafting, mining, tailoring, inscription, and skinning. Each user can only train in two of these primary professions. The secondary professions are: cooking, first aid, and fishing and one can train for all of these. In order to craft items one needs material that can be gathered, either from veins (mining), from killed beasts (skinning), or picked (herbalism). Often the professions are chosen to support each other: herbalism=alchemy, mining=blacksmithing, etc. or one can choose only gathering to sell the loots to other users. Activities: The user is guided between different activities through quests. These quests are received from a computer generated nonplayer character (NPC) and will tell you to kill another NPC, deliver an item, find an NPC, escort an NPC, etc. The rewards from these quests are points (XP), money, and=or items. Most quests are for a single player, but there are also quests for more people working together. As a team gamers can also do instances. These instances utilize small areas where 5 to 40 players cooperate in killing the NPCs there. These areas are separated from the other world in that one team gets an instance for it alone; no other users can enter. Mostly the instances are where the great equipment drops (swords, armor, etc.); normally there will be a big boss at the end of the instance who drops really good equipment. Because the drop rates are different for different pieces, users may be required to do the same instance repeatedly until a specific piece finally drops. The build of the team is crucial in success as classes fill different roles (those who lead the fight, those who do damage to monsters, those who heal the other players, etc.). Consequently, there has to be a mix of classes in a team for it to be successful. Transactions: The currency in World of Warcraft is in three denominations—copper, silver, and gold (1 g ¼ 100 s ¼ 10,000 c). Currency in the game is obtained either through killing or crafting. For example, when killing a human NPC, one will find a small amount of money they have been carrying. Also NPCs, when killed, will drop items that are worth different amounts of money. The valuable ones are, of course, the rarest. Depending on their value, these items are put in consignment in the auction house. If one kills a monster (beast, demon, etc.) they will drop other things that can be sold to vendors or other gamers. Crafting professions can market what they have Downloaded By: [Zackariasson, Peter] At: 07:55 26 June 2010 Marketing in and Through MMOGs 295 crafted. Gathering professions can, for example, mine copper, smelt it into copper bars, and sell them in the auction house. Here they will be bought by users needing them for crafting. There is also money to be found in chests and rogues can pickpocket (NPC), but these ways are not that common. Twinks: These are characters that have been equipped with gear that is considered too high and valuable for their level of accomplishment. This elevation has been accomplished either by buying the gear from the auction house (instead of earning it), or by a high-level gamer taking the character to a situation where good gear drops. Downloaded By: [Zackariasson, Peter] At: 07:55 26 June 2010