Myspace… one word, one company, yet so much can be referenced with that one word alone. The downfall of Myspace has been extensively discussed as people look to explain why the top social media website was able to fall so fast, and so permanently. Many people are looking to see whether Myspace’s mistakes are likely to be repeated again with other top websites like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

This week, Paul Armstrong wrote a piece for the Guardian that detailed “Three Warnings From Myspace.” Armstrong came onto the Myspace team right when they were being bought by Newscorp. Although Armstrong details the way in which the two often compared websites, Facebook and Myspace, are inherently different — Myspace was more about media and personal expression than Facebook has ever been — he says there are still some key tips social marketing firms like Facebook can take from what Myspace failed to do. What are they?

1. Don’t Overfocus on Advertising

Armstrong says that, at a certain point, Myspace began ignoring user preference and focusing almost exclusively on advertising. Facebook, on the other hand, is constantly experimenting with crafting advertising that flows well for users and marketers alike. It now generates 60% of its $2.9 billion revenue from mobile advertising alone. Digital marketing firms can be a useful ally for marketing your company.

2. Keep Users in the Loop

Myspace wasn’t always good about making sure users knew how to use its platform, yet was often rolling out new changes. If social media companies don’t invest in making their user base understand how to use their sites, users will become “feature dumb.” This makes it easier for users to navigate away permanently anytime they tire of the site, and find a different site that more easily supplies what they need. Web design training can help ensure better online web design that users can easily navigate.

3. Social Marketing Firms Should Remember the Fundamentals

When Myspace started to lose its way, it started to REALLY lose its way. The site become jumpier than a Mexican jumping bean, going from feature to feature in an effort to keep its users engaged. Instead of fixing core feature issues, they instead jumped into new products like “Myspace Email” that users failed to warm up to. Facebook might potentially be entering this risky territory considering their new acquisition of Oculus Rift.

Today, Facebook has 829 million users, and this number is growing all the time. While it’s far from failing, the company will need to push forward past trust breaches and platform issues in order to remain relevant. What tips would you give to social marketing firms? Helpful sites. Research more here. More like this.