Understanding How WeeWorld Functions

During economic downturns, what’s a guaranteed way to make money? Several recession-resistant industries, like movies, weddings, and cosmetics, tend to thrive, but one unexpected contender is social media. Web users are flocking to sites that offer escape and fun, especially those emphasizing gaming and self-expression.

One notable website, WeeWorld, has proven that teens — and possibly their parents — are willing to invest in online goods. While other businesses have faced challenges during the recession, WeeWorld’s numbers continue to climb. The site reports over 26 million unique visitors, and that number keeps rising [source: Virtual World News].

What exactly is WeeWorld? It's a dynamic online community that serves multiple purposes. Primarily, it's a social networking platform where users create digital avatars of themselves, explore a virtual world, make and chat with friends, shop for virtual gifts and personal items, play online games, and collect points. These avatars can also be used across other websites that support WeeWorld, from email signatures to social networking sites like MySpace, with status updates reflected across platforms.

WeeWorld originally started as a simple avatar creation service. Users designed cartoon characters called WeeMees, with the goal of crafting an avatar that resembled themselves or anyone else they desired. If you've ever created a personal character in apps like 'The Simpsons Movie' character maker, you’ll find the concept of WeeWorld similar. In fact, many say the WeeMees resemble the animated characters from 'South Park' on Comedy Central.

How exactly does WeeWorld operate?

How to Use WeeWorld

To begin your journey in WeeWorld, head over to the site’s homepage. Right there, you can start crafting your very own WeeMee avatar by clicking a prominent blue button labeled 'Create a WeeMee.' You can personalize your avatar's gender, skin tone, and eye color. While avatars start out bald, the setup page offers a variety of hairstyles to choose from. You’ll also have the option to pick a facial expression: stick with the default happy face or select from emotions like sad, angry, confused, surprised, neutral, and more. If you’d like to dress your WeeMee, browse through clothing options such as T-shirts, polo shirts, jeans, and sneakers for a perfect outfit.

The initial choices aren’t set in stone — users have the freedom to change their WeeMee’s appearance anytime based on how they feel. For instance, if you’re having a down day, a sad face might be fitting, while a cheeky mood could call for a sly grin.

Once you’ve finalized your avatar’s physical attributes, you’ll proceed to create your official profile. The site will ask for basic information like your first and last name, username, password, email address, birthday, country, and ZIP code.

After completing your profile, it’s time to explore. You’re free to update your WeeMee’s look at any time, design and personalize their room, search for friends, or roam around the virtual WeeMee world. In its beta version, WeeWorld shares similarities with other online platforms like Second Life and Zwinky. You control your avatar in a video game-like environment, engaging with other users through chat and interaction.

WeeWorld offers a variety of locations to visit, each serving its own purpose. We’ll explore them further on the next page.

Perks of Using WeeWorld

A key advantage of WeeWorld is that, at first, it’s entirely free to use. If you’re simply interested in chatting with friends and playing games, there’s no charge. Many items, including clothes, room decor, and furnishings, are also free, allowing users to create their avatar and socialize without spending money.

Some premium items in WeeWorld, like stylish clothes and elaborate hairstyles, require points. There are two types of points: green points and gold points. These points are displayed in a diamond shape at the top of your WeeMee's page. Green points are earned by engaging with the site, such as playing games or simply exploring. For example, navigating from page to page can earn you one point at a time. Gold points, however, are purchased with real money. They offer a quicker way to acquire points if you want to deck out your WeeMee with premium items sooner. A subscription service is available for purchasing gold points.

WeeWorld offers an 'Export' feature that lets users share their WeeMee avatars on various websites and services, especially social networks. You can export images of your WeeMee to blogs, instant messaging platforms, email signatures, and even mobile phones. To do so, members simply click the 'Export' button in the top navigation bar, and the site will generate a code for easy copying and pasting onto compatible sites. Well-known platforms like AOL Instant Messaging (AIM), Windows Live Messenger, Skype, MySpace, and Vringo support WeeWorld exports. Users can also display their WeeMee avatar on physical items such as T-shirts, buttons, and badges. Thanks to an application programming interface (API), WeeWorld seamlessly integrates with other services. Any changes made to your avatar will automatically update across all platforms where it’s been exported. For example, if you add a moustache to your avatar, it will quickly appear on your MySpace page if that’s where you’ve shared it.