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| https://new.myspace.com/ |
Will we finally hear “lift off?”
Can this social media juggernaut learn from past mistakes and finally breakthrough re-entry of the social media cosmos?
It finally looks like it may be all systems go.
Intrigued? Heck, this cynic was. I even downloaded the song (“Heartbeat” by JJAMZ). The design team at MySpace recently announced that the site is being “rebuilt from scratch,” and will soon be re-born as an entertainment-focused community.
Wait, do we really need (or even want) another social media community?
We can already connect with/grow to hate the people we know through Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr, Foursquare and LinkedIn (just to name a few).
And Facebook has the music side of things covered with Spotify.
And you can follow your favorite artists on Twitter.
Here’s why MySpace is better situated for a comeback now than ever before.
They’ve got a cool front man.
To grab attention of the masses, you need a magnetizing leader. Everyone likes J-Timberlake. Ever since “Dick in a Box,” the former N-SYNC lead has won over even the most macho of men. The musician turned actor turned MySpace majority stakeholder is just the ticket MySpace needs to bring sexy back (sorry, I just had to).
To grab attention of the masses, you need a magnetizing leader. Everyone likes J-Timberlake. Ever since “Dick in a Box,” the former N-SYNC lead has won over even the most macho of men. The musician turned actor turned MySpace majority stakeholder is just the ticket MySpace needs to bring sexy back (sorry, I just had to).
Their UI is kick-ass.
Floating tiles, translucent layers that slide, and edgeless video plugins. The MySpace dashboard/home screen is a breath of fresh air for those fatigued with the columnar design of Facebook.
But video of one user in a test environment in one thing; repetitious use in real-world another. If it proves clunky and full of glitches, sophisticated users will tire quickly and abandon.
Most importantly, (we think) they know their place.
If you can’t beat ‘em, wrap around ‘em!
A bit of humility goes a long way. Instead of asking users to open and build out YET ANOTHER social media profile and presence, MySpace lets prospect users “login via Facebook or Twitter” (Or so it seems in the video). Unlike Google+, MySpace isn’t interested in dethroning other platforms.
They’re content just filling holes.
Because we DON’T need (or want) another Social Media site.
The next big thing will be the thing that connects all things (are you following me here?).
Wouldn’t it be cool to access your now disparate social world through one central electronic gateway? Imagine selecting a connection and having a way to open one interactive snapshot of all their social media activity (Facebook albums, Instagram captures, recent check-ins, tweets and posted videos). Imagine mobile extensions that would actually link directly to text and the lost art of placing a phone call.
Instead of simply being a new take on an already heavily saturated, matured and fatigued market; asking users to do all the heavy lifting – why not go back to internet fundamentals? Why not fill in the gaps and make connecting between platforms easy.
Could MySpace be the next big thing….again? :)
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| We're on the list to find out... |
I never had a MySpace 1.0 account, specifically because I refused to use a site with such horrible design and UI. I'm excited to see the new direction that Myspace is taking. Signed up. :)
ReplyDeleteMySpace isn't articulate enough for you, my friend! ;)
DeleteThe cynic in me keeps trying to push it's way through - but I'll remain hopeful. One of the worst things a brand on the brink of failure/rebirth can do is post a teaser and delay release of the actual product. MySpace can't get people energized for nothing. If we aren't on a beta version by the end of the month, I'm afraid it might be too little, too late.