Over the last few years, MySpace has been loved and hated at the same time. Many users have loved that MySpace allowed their users to have full rein of the HTML coding on their pages and as such, could have custom layouts and change the design of their profile. That same functionality has created a huge traffic jam of slow page loads, over-stimulated flash and tired layouts. While it was very personal, most profiles became a jumbled mess. Beyond that, MySpace’s CRM (content management system) has become known to be somewhat of a nightmare. A while back, personal pages got a new look that streamlined profile pages into a cleaner, faster loading experience. Last week, Myspace rolled out something simpler for it’s music profiles.
Enter The NEW MySpace Music Profile
Think of this new MySpace as a more tightly controlled version of it’s old self. While you might think that is will stifle your creative powers in the land of MySpace, overall this may just be the saving grace of the social network. They absolutely put a lot of careful thought into creating a new platform that would be easy for an average person to create a good looking profile. At the same time, it also has an open framework for a great design firm to create a very dynamic fan experience.
It appears MySpace took a look at most of the popular profile layout customizations and created a clean, module based profile. While it does take away from some of the unique profiles of the past, this streamlined and uniform concept will help bring back some brand awareness for the social network, add some ease of use for the profile owner, and create a more focused interaction with the fan viewing it (think Facebook).
A great way to think of it is that MySpace switched from a PC to a Mac. While you may not be able to tinker with it as much, a lot of the idiotic issues with the system (ie PC) are a thing of the past because of the more tightly controlled, and dare I say beautiful build and design of the new system (ie Mac).
Here is a run down of some of the new features.
• A cleaner and more simple look
• Upload more songs, and feature up to 25 songs on your profile
• Dozens of new themes, including some by Shepard Fairey’s Studio One
• The Ability to create a custom marquee type header (which even allows you to embed a video)
• Easier navigation
• Your design theme carries over to your photos, videos, and other pages
So far the standard on the new profile layout has been set by Lady Antebellum (click on the image to see their page) They have created a clean but feature filled profile including a video in the new expandable “Marquee” section.
As far as the voice of the people goes, it seems that the chatter from blog comments across the web are a mixed bag. Those who have become accustomed to the simple look of Facebook seem to enjoy the new profile design while die hard MySpacers seem to loath the new look, hate that it is “a Facebook wannabe” and generally think it will be the death of the site. The professional design and marketing community generally see the new layout to be a great step in the right direction by MySpace.
The one item generally disliked by most comments on the web is the block ad in the upper right hand corner of the page. While it is a bit intrusive, for the most part this is no worse then Facebook’s ads and while it is ever present on the page, it is somewhat tasteful and better then the alternatives of a large header banner. As long as the ad department keeps itself under control and does not add more of these block ads on the page, it is a happy compromise to fund the site.
Is this a game changer or “too little too late”? We have not had a lot of kind words to say about Myspace in the past couple of years. We told our clients that while it may be a ghost town, don’t jump ship yet. That may have been good advice with this reincarnation. Only time will tell and we will reserve judgment until we have converted a few of our client’s profiles over to the new look and dig deep into the guts of what is offered in this new version.
What do YOU think about the new MySpace?
