MySpace and YouTube Compared

I was sent a link to a blog post talking about the continuing rivalry between MySpace and YouTube. The post compares the two sites in terms of user engagement, and MySpace comes out on top in a big way.

The clear winner, in terms of user engagement is MySpace. A whopping 82% of all MySpace visitors conduct member related activities on the site vs. 25% on YouTube. MySpace has more visitors, more time spent per session, more active members, and a higher percentage of active members relative to total visitors.

The post doesn't say why that's true, just that it is.

This may be comparing apples to oranges a bit. Even though both sites are social networks which allow people to interact in a communal relationship, there is more going on in MySpace than just videos. It just seems stickier to me. Perhaps a fairer comparison would have been to pit MySpace and Facebook against one another.

One of the reasons I bring this up is that social networks and social media are the next big thing in online communications. You've probably already figured that out. Blogging certainly fits the social media mold - for example, MySpace incorporates blogs as part of its feature set - but, blogs are only one part. I believe we'll see more and more and more of these kinds of communities develop, and that includes business as well.

So, how about that! Just as soon as you get this blogging thing under your belt along comes another new technology that you have to master. But, master it you must.

I'll be including more info on the business use of social media and will probably create a new category just for that purpose. In fact, let me do that now.