Determining Avatar Consumers Shopping Behavior in Second Life

Öz

Virtual shopping allows users to build economic relationships, leading to the development of virtual businesses and the appreciation of virtual currencies. It also allows users to express their creativity, which adds a new dimension to the design and marketing of virtual products. Second Life is a platform where individuals create their digital identities with the unlimited possibilities offered by the virtual world. In this environment, the virtual shopping experience is an important element that enriches users’ social interactions, offers economic opportunities, and allows them to express their creativity. Users have access to a wide range of products from clothes to jewelry, from household goods to artworks through virtual stores. Research was conducted with researcher avatars in the Second Life universe, one of the most popular virtual world platforms. The snowball sampling method was used to reach 26 consumers with purchasing experience in the virtual world. Summarizing the results of the research, it is seen that the participants have been in SL for a long time and the majority of them belong to Generation X and Y. It was revealed that they mostly shopped from the Second Life virtual market, and clothes ranked first among the products they frequently purchased. They also expressed their opinions on the need for more varieties and types of this frequently purchased product type.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• virtual worlds
• metaverse
• second life
• consumer behavior

Second Life’ta Avatar Tüketicilerin Alışveriş Davranışlarının Belirlenmesi

Öz

Sanal alışveriş, kullanıcıların ekonomik ilişki kurmalarına olanak sağlamakta ve bu da sanal ticaretin gelişmesine, sanal para birimlerinin ise değerlenmesine yol açmaktadır. Ayrıca, kullanıcıların kendi yaratıcılıklarını ifade etmelerine yardımcı olmakla birlikte sanal ürünlerin tasarlanmasında ve pazarlanmasında yeni bir boyut açmaktadır. Second Life, kullanıcılarının sanal dünya içinde kendilerine sunduğu sınırsız olanaklar ile dijital kişiliklerini yarattıkları bir platformdur. Bu platformda sanal alışveriş deneyimi, kullanıcıların sosyal etkileşimlerini geliştiren, ekonomik imkanlar sağlayan ve kendi yaratıcılıklarını ortaya çıkarttıkları önemli bir unsurdur. Kullanıcıların sanal mağazalar aracılığı ile kıyafetlerden mücevherlere, ev eşyalarından sanat eserlerine kadar geniş bir yelpazeye erişimleri bulunmaktadır. Bu araştırma en popüler sanal dünyalardan biri olan Second Life’ta araştırmacı avatarlar tarafından yürütülmüştür. Satın alma deneyimine sahip 26 tüketiciye ulaşmak için kartopu örnekleme yöntemi kullanılmıştır. Araştırmanın sonucunu özetlemek gerekirse, katılımcıların uzun zamandır Second Life’ta oldukları ve çoğunluğunun X ve Y jenerasyonlarından oldukları gözlemlenmiştir. Çoğunlukla Second Life sanal marketten alışveriş yaptıkları ve diğer ürünlere kıyasla kıyafetin en çok satın alınan ürün olduğu tespit edilmiştir. Aynı zamanda, bu tür sıkça satın alınan ürünler için daha fazla çeşit ve seçenek olması gerektiğine dair fikirlerini ifade etmişlerdir.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• sanal dünyalar
• metaverse
• second life
• tüketici davranışı

Kaynakça

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