The metamorphosis is nearly complete as MySpace evolves from a second-rate social network to the one-of-a-kind “social entertainment” hub.

Remember back when you had two profiles? Why did you delete your MySpace account? After being cold-shouldered for Facebook, MySpace decided it was time to take a hard look in the mirror for answers.

What did a little self-reflection reveal?  The executive team realized it had become too broad in its offering. The golden rule of branding is if you try to be everything to everyone, you’re nothin’ to no one…especially if there’s already an alpha dog doing it better.

Luckily, the devoted users who stuck around pointed the way toward a new need in the market. And MySpace listened.

Hence the creation of a new category called social entertainment. This means they’ve articulated their difference for themselves so they can now deliver more of that value and frame the conversation to say, “Here’s the role we play in the market that no one else can play as well as us.” And the funny thing is…they’ve been delivering a certain degree of social entertainment all along, but just weren’t focusing on it. That’s the best thing about good branding—focus creates strength.

Focus is the real reason it’ll work. The entire company is committed and aligned around their new mission of providing personalized social entertainment with leadership from a bold CEO Mike Jones, creativity from their VP of Design Mike Macadaan, a CMO from Redbull David Donegan supplying the creative marketing, a new focus on user interface, partnerships with Hulu and other entertainment goliaths, and a new logo that exemplifies what they’re all about—personalized freedom of expression.

Check out their cool introductory video. To GenY, MySpace is hip again! Wow, that was a lot faster than acid wash jeans coming back.

- Bianca Abate

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According to a new report from Knowledge at Wharton, there is a shake out going on in the social media space. It will continue to happen, but what strikes me as important in all of this is that it is not just going to be about advances in technology. The players that survive and thrive are going to be the ones that differentiate and provide a user experience that people can’t get anywhere else. For instance, if MySpace wants to thrive (not merely survive like it has been), it needs to decide how it wants to be different from Facebook and then deliver that differentiated experience (like it currently does for the music scene).

-Jen Travis

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There’s a lot of talk around the need for a social media strategy, but why and how?  The reason is simple: if you’re not currently in control of your digital identity, the odds are pretty good that others are or soon will be. And if your organization dives into the social media world without a road map, then you could run the risk of appearing narcissistic, like you have ADHD, or even worse… inauthentic.  Creating a social media strategy is akin to creating a blueprint to help your organization hone in on the important stuff, such as figuring out what channels makes sense, how much time you should be spending, and who to engage. Social media should be a piece of your larger integrated branding strategy, because it’s essentially another touch point, or an opportunity to communicate and reinforce your brand promise.

-Bianca Abate

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