SLENTRE.COM

By Compe Lockwood
Molaskey’s is one of the best pubs I’ve never seen. Or should I say, never seen in real life. But in Second Life, the cyber pub is the equivalent to the mythical Cheers bar – “You’ve got to go where everyone knows your name” – and this includes avatars.
This Second Life tavern is the pentacle flag ship of Sue Martin Mahar and husband Jay Mahar. They built it from nothing and want to show the rest of us how to build something meaningful from scratch.

(The virtual crowd outside of Molaskey’s Pub in Second Life – http://slurl.com/secondlife/Wichi/141/198/31).

But this isn’t another ‘Get Rich in Second Life’ scheme: the Mahars practice what they preach in-world at their pub and out-world in their new book – The Unofficial Guide to Building Your Business in the Second Life Virtual World.
The duo offer no pie-in-the-skybox exaggerations of easy living on Linden Street but give advice based on experience in real and cyber commerce. “This is Molaskey’s,” Jay says, as we walk through the doors of a cyber Irish watering hole. It is only the beginning.
They take the pub concept to a higher level at Molaskey’s. There is a website, blog and calendar teeming with events. The pub features live bands, comedy shows, book readings and more.
Accompanying the industrious couple through their pub and expansive surroundings of shops, houses, and other features, I wonder “How do people do this?” Who has the time and expertise to develop pixel property big enough for its own zip code or a Fortune 500 company you can teleport to?  The answer is simple: before you raise chickens, hatch an egg.
“Start small,” said Jay. “Before beginning an SL business, immerse yourself in SL life; learn the culture and tools, script if you can do it.” They did.
“When we started Second Life, our goal was that this would be self-sustaining,” added Sue, “We would put none of our own money into it.” The Mahars worked SL small jobs, making a few lindens here and there – just enough for their first build. After that came rental units, followed by an art gallery, then a pub and now a real world book.
The Unofficial Guide to Building Your Business in the Second Life Virtual World, besides having a title long enough to be the first chapter, is just as it claims: a chronicle of which business practices worked for the Mahars and others. It is chock full of real world advice and ‘how to’ info. The book is for everyone, including Second Life pros and plastic-haired newbies – everyone can benefit.

“We wrote it for the person who has never heard of Second Life,” said Jay.  “But experienced users find it helpful too.”  So does the press. Their book has commanded 4 and 5 star ratings in Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble.
Jay started the in-world adventure in June 2006 as avatar Apple MacKay. A technical expert with little online experience, Jay became absorbed in the cyber frontier. Sue recalls, “I remember my husband saying about his virtual time consuming world, ‘This is the next big thing.’ I wanted to see for myself.” And thus her SL alter ego, Nasus Dumart, was born.
Sue vowed to find intelligent professionals. Unfortunately, Second Life was known as seedy (some say it still is). “There had to be more to Second Life then sex and gambling,” said the co-author. She sought intelligent life and found it.
“I discovered museums, art and live events; real people behind the avatars,” said Mrs. Mahar. “I was amazed that no one knew about this and saw tremendous potential.” The Mahars felt there was a market for above average income people (we know they can afford a computer – that’s how they are here). But like most good things, it’s not as easy as it looks.
Perhaps one of the biggest mistakes newbie entrepreneurs make is assuming virtual world commerce is self-running. “Wrong,” the emphatic pair said in unison. “Virtual business is interactive, not automated.” Jay added, “Whenever we leave the club for a few days and let it run ‘on it’s own,’ our visitor numbers decrease.” All successful businesses are hands on – be they brick and mortar or pixel and rezzed.
“I think to succeed in any business, SL or RL, you must be dedicated to be successful,” says Jay. “Ask yourself: Do I have the desire to spend the time in developing my business? People also need to know it takes more money than is typically realized.”
Sue and Jay are a good fit: Jay does design and building and Sue handles the social and media aspects. They will be at the Second Life Community Convention in San Francisco, August 13 – 16. He will be the event’s music track leader and she the music track chair.
Team Mahar knows and shows all aspects of Second Live business. When it comes to virtual commerce, they wrote the book – literally.