Focusing on the Bright Spots - The New MySpace

Note: Image of MySpace's new logo from Mashable article The New MySpace: Screenshots and Videos

Finally, a rebrand that makes sense. This week MySpace relaunched its brand, which will still be a few months until it is completely rolled out.

I'm always hesitant to fully comment on whether I think a rebranding effort was a stroke of genius or not because brands take time to position and to earn the perceptions they are aiming for. This is because through actions they have to deliver on their promise and then they have to do that consistently.

From what I've seen so far, of the new MySpace, I like the direction they are taking it.

MySpace used to position itself as a social networking site, a "Place for Friends", and hit its peak in 2007  with 100 million users. But then Facebook took the lead and offered more relevant features for social networking and its users.  Leaving MySpace alone, irrelevant and frankly not as social.

What did survive on MySpace was entertainment - it became a great place for artists to be discovered and enjoyed.

What I like about this rebrand is that MySpace too a good look at how the market was positioning them, which, inevitably is what they are best at delivering on, and came up with its more focused purpose and brand promise - to be the leading entertainment destination that is socially powered by the passions of fans and curators.

This isn't just a site redesign, nor is this a complete brand overhaul. Rather, they are actively positioning themselves and purposefully delivering on something they have become known for over the years - encouraging users to share and suggest music, film and TV programs, while providing the tools to make this possible.

Note: Image of MySpace's new homepage from Mashable article The New MySpace: Screenshots and Videos

In my opinion, there is a difference between crowd-sourced rebranding initiatives and rebranding based on observing how the brand is used.  Often, consumer have a hard time articulating what they want, which, through a crowd-sourced initiative, would produce a limited repositioning. But, by listening to and observing the elements of the brand consumers find most relevant, a meaningful positioning and brand promise can emerge.

I was once at a marketing conference listening to Chip Heath, the author of Made to Stick and Switch, talk about embracing change, where he noted that to embrace change, we need to focus on the bright spots. These are the areas where the organization performs well in and can be easily maximized and owned.

I think MySpace has done a good job at focusing on the bright spots, which I feel aids a brand repositioning.

However, it seems as though MySpace is positioning itself to compete more directly with YouTube, which is another online social entertainment hub. So I'm interested to see what MySpace will offer that will be significantly different and meaningful to draw in consumers.

So far, the new MySpace brand promise seems to be focused on the curation and discovery of new entertainment content versus YouTube's dedication to user generated content (UGC).  But it will be interesting to see in YouTube will feel threatened and make a move to capture the market MySpace has positioned itself to win.

Lastly, with regards to the logo, I couldn't help but notice it took a similar approach to the Aol. logo, created by Wolff Olins, where the logo is flexible to the content around it, which makes sense considering they are both content providers.  

However, I feel there are subtle differences between the logos. Where the Aol. logo blends into the content forcing the viewer to focus on the content, the MySpace logo emphasizes the content is in your space and is personalized to you - at least that's the vibe I'm getting from it.

Check it out for yourself:

I like the new flexible logos as they seem to reflect the current environment where brands need to be more responsive to the continually changing environment around them, and these logos lend themselves nicely to this.

I look forward to seeing how the new MySpace positioning unfolds and how users respond to it.

What do you think of the relaunch of MySpace? Do you think it's enough to make them relevant once again?