Interview with Sarah Nerd - A SecondLife Land Baroness in IPO.

I was lucky enough to catch Sarah Nerd, a land baroness of repute in SecondLife who has recently started her IPO on the World Stock Exchange.

In less than 3 days, her IPO had sold over 6 million shares at 1 Linden dollar per share. That translates to over $21,000 US dollars. This, I think, is cause of being noteworthy.

Nobody Fugazi: Hi Sarah, thanks for the interview. I'm sure there are plenty of people who recognize your name on sight - it seems to be everywhere. Have you always used this sort of branding?

Sarah Nerd: I actually never used any type of formal advertising until a few months ago. When I started in land, I got by on word of mouth advertising. I ran a club so I knew alot of people. As my holdings grew, more of my signs were seen around SecondLife on my parcels. I advertise in a few SecondLife papers and a few websites now, But I owe most of my advertising to good friends who spread the word that I bought land.

Nobody Fugazi: So you have an IPO now with the WSE - it appears to be doing well so far. Almost 6.5 million shares are already sold - did you expect such a quick response?

Sarah Nerd: No, I was worried it would get closer to May 31st - my IPO deadline - and I would be no where near getting my IPO filled. Waking up the morning after it was listed and seeing well over half my shares sold was just amazing. I know this sounds sappy, and I'm not a fussy person- but when I first saw my IPO up on the list it made me cry. It felt like the goals I had been working towards were finally there. Seeing so many of my friends and fellow residents invest and having faith in my company and myself was overwhelming. It is hard to explain how how emotional and good this all makes me feel.

Nobody Fugazi: I'd certainly be overwhelmed by such a response myself, but I'm Nobody. I've read your prospectus, and I was surprised to see that your company has never had to take money out of pocket. That amazing by itself, and that conservative trend seems to bode well for investors. Is this IPO a part of a conservative plan, or are you extending more than usual? if you are extending, why are you doing so?

Sarah Nerd: Right now mainland holdings and sales are my main form of income. I supplement that with 3 island estates and about half a sim of mainland rentals. I plan to expand my mainland holdings a bit, but the main focus will be expanding estate rentals. It's a more steady income with less risk, and where I feel the majority of sl residents are seeking homes.

Nobody Fugazi: What about your competition? Do you think this IPO will give you a distinct advantage?

Sarah Nerd: Well I'd like to think I've built a decent reputation and brand that gives me an advantage over new land dealers. The IPO will allow expansion and more advertising, causing more visibility in the land market.

Nobody Fugazi: The WSE seems rather difficult you use for me - I go to a website, it directs me to go to an area in Friedman that I don't automatically show up at, and then even finding the IPO on the website after you create an IPO can be confusing to people new to stocks or SecondLife. Do you think this has an effect on how many people are investing?

Sarah Nerd: Yes I definitely think the WSE set up needs a little work, and it needs to be a bit easier to learn and get set up on. I'm not sure how it affects me directly sales wise, I did need to walk a few people through the process.

Nobody Fugazi: You've been in SecondLife for some time. What do you think of the present situation with landbots, 16 m advertising and the flooding of the market with land by Linden Lab? Is this a time to be confident, or is it a time to be a little cautious?

Sarah Nerd: Alot has changed since I started dealing land. There are 30 thousand people on at any given time instead of 3 thousand. The market used to be alot more stable. I hadn't seen land crashes until the last few months. Landbots came in and basically took away the ability to find good deals on the list that alot of dealers depended on as rl [real life] income. Now Landbots are being used unethically to take advantage of residents. 16meter ad lots and land cutters are destroying a huge portion of mainland and killing it's look and reputation. The market is definitely changing, and I think no matter how the market is going we need to be cautious with our buying choices, especially now. But change happens no matter what and we can choose to adapt or drop out of the land game. I do my best to adapt because this is what I love doing.

Nobody Fugazi: With all the media attention Anshe Chung Studios has had in the past in your company's field (for better or worse), do you feel that you're working in her shadow?

Sarah Nerd: No. Anshe has her own methods and she got in the game early so it would be very difficult for anyone to reach her level starting now. I just try to do my best and follow my own path. If I were to have shadowed anyone it would have been CP Costello. He always gives me excellent advice and helped me alot along the way.

Nobody Fugazi: Thanks for your time, Sarah. Any parting comments?

Sarah Nerd: Down with land bots and ad spammers! Just a Thank You to everyone who has faith in my company and choose to become a part of it. You've made an Ohio girl's dream come true!

There you have it. Sarah Nerd and her IPO seem in good spirits - you can check out WSE if you're interested in investing - or keeping an eye on how well this IPO does.