MyAds on MySpace...In Review

I’ve just had a chance to review the recently launched beta version of the MyAds product on MySpace. While the tool is designed to appeal to the MySpace membership so that they can "promote their bands or art", I believe that the level of sophistication MySpace has built into the system will soon attract larger advertisers.

Following are some screen shots and comments on the ad building process:

My first thought was that the platform in no uncertain terms, speaks effectively with its audience. The interface is not cluttered with industry jargon and the steps are made quite clear.


Unlike other self-procured platforms, MySpace's works only with display ads. MyAds allows users to upload their own ads or pick from a library of templates. Although the art work feels a bit like clip art, the offering is a good start for consumers starting with nothing.


Advertisers can choose between 728x90 banners or 300x250 boxes. Customization of the templates feels a lot like working with Power Point. A toolbar provides basic formatting options. The font selection is quite slim. There are some file size restrictions making image uploads a bit of a challenge.

The minimum budget is set at $25.00 and the minimum bid rate is $0.25 per click. Because the product is fresh off the shelf, it does not provide any information on the current market prices. I’m assuming that this will be integrated at some point. For now, building a campaign and sending it into the MySpace network is a bit of a crap shoot in terms of how far a budget will stretch.


One of the most interesting features of the product is the targeting tool. There's a tremendous amount of valuable data that is disclosed through the ad building platform. As you drill down to the targeting segments, MyAds offers audience numbers at very specific levels. In the screen shot below, I drilled down to target users between 35-65 that play video games and I could drill further to reach specific video game platforms like Nintendo or Playstation. This type of profile targeting provides national advertisers with a unique approach to reaching their audiences and I'm sure the click rates will reflect this once it's out of beta.



Before launching the campaign, the advertisers can review their ad and the campaign details. Once all is confirmed, the user enters credit card information and the campaign goes live.

I'll be looking into the reporting features so stay tuned...

To illustrate the type of data available, here are some audience numbers on the MySpace network that I jotted down during the exercise:

• 83,895,693 US Profiles
• 37,653,707 male
• 46,241,145 female
• 8,375,619 are 35+
• 16,170,294 are 14-18
• 152,145 US Profiles list Yoga as an interest

It's important to note that these numbers are based on profiles and not on the active user base. It's also important to note that the duplication is also not accounted for in these numbers (one user with multiple identities).

Overall, I think the platform is extremely well executed. I think that it will offer the MySpace membership some oportunities to promote their bands but that the big picture is really targeted towards larger advertisers that will most likely sweep in and eat the inventory for lunch. It will be interesting to see the evolution of advertising and advertisers as the platform goes to full launch.

I'm curious to see how the users will react to larger brands replacing the more grassroots ones.