?? Make the Internet Creator-Friendly Again

Issue #347

With the search era ending, what’s next? And, if no one is searching for stuff on Internet pages anymore, why would you create content? These are valid questions. The Internet is evolving and it’s sadly no longer the land of discovery it was 15 to 20 years ago. It got optimised for commercial outcomes and serendipity took a back seat. Now AI Chatbots answer many things you would have Googled previously. Where are the creators? Where the audiences are, on platforms. Social media, streaming platforms and, it seems, even old-fashioned email, with newsletters like this one. Platforms have their own issues, but creators will in general seek an audience, monetisation and, dare I say it, control of their destiny. The Internet isn’t dead, it’s just changing, but if we can change it to favour creators again, maybe it will have a content-led revival too. Happy Thursday, Simon

If you’d like the email version subscribe here.

Creators in a post search world

“The search-driven business model of the internet isn’t going to be the business model of the internet going forward,” said Cloudflare CEO Matthew Prince. Speaking at SXSW, Prince added that while Google has made it easier to find answers, its pioneering search model has made business harder for creators. If their work can’t be found, why will they create original content? And without content, why visit the internet? To save the internet, he proposed a three-part solution involving creating content scarcity, providing creators with control over AI access, and enabling monetisation of content crawling.

Advertising on newsletters

We shouldn’t really talk about the death of any part of the internet. There was a time during the search boom when many “experts” talked about the death of the EDM or newsletter. Today, this old timer of digital communication is enjoying a new lease on life. While creators are using the medium to reach an audience search can’t, they’re also looking at different ways to monetise this content. Newsletter platforms like Beehiiv and Paved have recently introduced marketplaces that facilitate and manage direct deals between creators and advertisers. While some in the industry believe advertising will be more lucrative than subscriptions, Substack is yet to embrace this revenue stream. It all comes down to whether audiences want their clean newsletters riddled with distracting ads.

The silver influencer

The internet isn’t always embracing the new. In fact, there’s a growing trend amongst brands to seek out the more mature creator. Considered a young person’s game, we’re seeing the rise of the silver influencer. Generally from the Gen X and boomer demographic these creators are being hired to target older audiences, who spend just as much time online as their younger counterparts. (So much for being older and wiser.) Older demographics have substantial spending power and watch more than traditional TV, so it’s surprising it took so long to embrace “grandfluencers”.

Cool Tools

Over the years we’ve purchased a few $10,000 high-end Macs only to have them become heavy chunks of redundant aluminium sooner than we would have liked. It’s good to see Apple finally giving us a workhorse machine that is relatively affordable.The M4 Max that is, not the M3 Ultra which as well as being expensive forces you into the cognitive dissonance of paying more for the older chip because it’s actually more powerful. Wrap your head around that one.

Hot Tips

I’m inspired to throw a lot of tips at you today. I started out with how to juice the LinkedIn algorithm in 2025 but this is pretty boring, necessary, but boring. There’s this great explainer on how to tell a story visually, you’d be surprised how many pros don’t know these super simple rules. I often like effects but I don’t know what to call them, so hello dirty half-tone, I’m gonna use you. And printer transition, pretty niche but nice. I’m going to cap it all off with the floating ghost effect. I love a good special effects hack.

Viral Hits

TikTok is back in its comfort zone—dance trends! This time, it’s all about a catchy "Chicken Banana" audio, which features just two words on an endless loop. Think Pen Pineapple Apple Pen but even more nonsensical. The randomness of the lyrics, combined with users' creative and often chaotic dance interpretations, has made this trend an instant meme. It’s simple, it’s weird, and it’s exactly the kind of brainworm that TikTok loves. ??

Stuff from us

Our latest collaboration with Visa and Cybersource once again employs the expertise of our animation team to introduce Visa Acceptance Solutions, a payments solution that combines in-person and digital acceptance onto one platform, as if they could talk to each other! The seamless finish of our video definitely adds one more layer of persuasion to the product, and we couldn’t be happier about that.

Happy Thursday

Thanks! If you like what you read, please tell a friend about Creator Weekly.

Were you forwarded this? Subscribe here.

This week’s newsletter was written by Simon Kearney , Tim Colman and Jeko Iqbal Reza . Edited by Andre Howson . GIF produced by Ilka Tishia D. .