We make fun about it. We discount it. But mostly overall, we just overlook it and in the process probably miss both traffic to our money site and business that others are smartly utilizing.
That’s right, we are talking about MySpace. You know them (or at least heard of them) They were the FaceBook of their time. But, to be clear, as this excerpt out of Fast Company indicates, MySpace is not dead….
MySpace is still alive, which may not be surprising, but the fact that it’s alive and kicking is a bit of a shock: It’s due to give a sleek revamp to its hideous profile pages, and has bought Threadbox to rejig its social messaging skills.
The news about a revamp to MySpace’s profile pages first came via a tweet from a MySpace executive, but then MySpace confirmed it via a short statement: “We’re testing a new look and feel of our site among users” it noted, adding that clients seemed to like the changes thus far. “As always, we’re interested in hearing feedback from our community as we roll out enhancements to the user experience and look forward to sharing more details with you in the coming weeks” is a much more exciting phrase to read, though, as it points to a more thorough revamp en route.
The new changes seem to simplify and de-clutter the typical MySpace home page style, add in a Flickr gallery connection and some social networking functionality. It’s all extremely welcome to those Netizens who find MySpace’s current pages to be a visual disaster fit to terrify one’s optic nerve into shutting off (I’m among this list) and it both adds a professional sheen, and brings MySpace more into line with Facebook’s and Twitter’s fairly strict control over how your data appears on their social networking systems.
But MySpace’s executive team are trying yet more tricks to inject life into its ailing service–there’s news that MySpace has just acquired Threadbox. This was a novel Net “conversation” aggregator, that tries to pull together email, IM systems, and other software like calendars into a more cohesive whole so that everything gets displayed as an easy-to-follow threaded discussion. Its technology is now going to be wound into MySpace, so we can imagine that MySpace’s somewhat one-dimensional status update/news feed-like powers will be getting a serious redesign that brings them up to Facebook rivaling levels sometime soon.
The question isn’t really “Will these tricks save MySpace?” It’s closer to “Are these tricks a brilliant last-minute save-from-the jaws of death maneuver to bring MySpace back to glory … or merely a last desperate clutching-at-straws effort before it succumbs to death?” We can’t tell, but MySpace is at least struggling and shouting that it’s not dead yet.
What is your takeaway from this post?
MySpace never really went away. And although some see it as a site that is in the death throws, the reality is that depending on who you listen to and read, is still a Top 10 social networking site. When you consider there are literally hundreds of sites and counting, you might want to give it another look.
Believe it or not, not doing social media right can actually harm your business.
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Your article both intrigued and frightened me. Am I the only one feeling completely overwhelmed trying to stay active and current in social media? Although I love the technology and certainly appreciate the potential, my legs are starting to go numb from sitting at the computer for so long these days and I have actually forgotten how lovely summer and sunshine is. I gulped in some fresh air in between tweets yesterday and nearly put my body into shock.
Based on your post, I’m inclined to resurrect a MySpace page. But, first, I would love to know how others are balancing this act…and still keeping their marriages in tact! Suggestions?
How do those song lyrics go? “My mind is telling me yes, but my body, my body, is telling me NO!!!” Somthing like that
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Miss Branded…
There are many tools that can help you manage your social media channels – and save you time. There is also the option of outsourcing some or all of your social media efforts – which is where we come in – shameless plug.
As far as MySpace is concerned – we use it. Some clients are a better fit than others – but I certainly wouldn’t discount it. Resurrecting that MySpace account might not be a bad idea.
Thanks much for visiting the site and posting a comment.