MappingTheWeb //

It is becoming more and more apparent that a media-oriented website (music, videos, photos) needs to, number one, focus on content. Everything else can come later. The interface, user experience, support, blah blah are all secondary to the content itself.

This is nothing new, but something often overlooked and in many cases ignored. The companies who are able to reward publishers of good content will succeed. Those who fail to do so will crumble in their dust.

Why does everyone go to YouTube? Their experience is great? It may be, but that’s not the reason. People go to YouTube because they know they can find any video they want. At least in my experiences, 99% of the time I searched for a video on YouTube, I found it. The other 1% was mostly due to copyright infringement, in which case the site had to take down the content.

Flickr is a great site too, in terms of user experience and interface. But yet again, it is not the real reason why so many flock to this photo sharing mecca. The quality photos and beautiful stills are the reason.

I’m going to be really honest here. MySpace is ugly as sh*t. It’s the new GeoCities. I’m sick of the flashing text, tiled backgrounds, and completely customizable layouts. I nearly had a seizure the other day checking out a profile. Nonetheless, bands and singers have populated the site with millions upon millions of songs, mixes, and tracks - and this community continues to grow at an astonishing rate. Why? The music, of course.

Even sites not focused on media, such as Craigslist and Wikipedia, are great examples. They’re both not overly attractive, eye-catching sites. But people use them because of the content, whether it be a job posting or an encyclopedia entry.

The moral of the story is to focus content above all else. I know that this has been mentioned over and over in the blogosphere, but I don’t think it can be downplayed one bit. Anyone who overlooks this concept will be flattened in no time. Mark my word.