PPA Conference 2025: Email Over Social, Licensing Over Free Content

Community Over Clickbait

Jack Davenport, co-founder of the podcast network Goalhanger, and Tracy De Groose, CEO at William Reed, opened with a sharp critique: algorithms, superficial content, and uniformity dominate the digital media landscape. Goalhanger's success is based on ignoring precisely these trends.

Instead of chasing sensational headlines, the team focuses on shaping narratives. Davenport compared their approach to a James Bond film: every element is strategically placed to captivate the audience until the reveal. Craft matters – every word is intentional, pacing builds anticipation.

The result? A community of 40 million people. Not passive consumers, but active participants. The business model includes podcasts, subscriptions, advertising, video, events, and direct partnerships. But the foundation is ambitious storytelling that drives engagement.

The Traffic Problem and the AI Threat

David Buttle, former head of public policy and platform strategy at the Financial Times, presented the most concerning data. ChatGPT is growing three times faster than the early internet. Google's launch of competing AI features is already reducing publisher traffic.

A B2B publisher reported: "Around 5 to 8 percent of my traffic now comes from ChatGPT, Claude, and Perplexity. These platforms currently do not offer monetisation opportunities and frequently use publisher content without compensation."

These tools no longer supplement Google search – they're replacing it. Lucio Mesquita, Senior Consultant at the Innovation Media Consulting Group, put it bluntly: generative AI is replacing site visits. Traditional search focused on ranking, generative search gives direct answers. That changes everything.

Make Them Pay For It

Mesquita's advice was clear: treat AI companies as you should have treated Google 15 years ago. Don't repeat the same mistakes.

If AI companies use your work, demand compensation, brand credit, and attribution. Make this non-negotiable in every deal.

Concrete steps for publishers:

• Evaluate current licensing agreements: Check whether your content is already being used and how. ‍
• Work collectively: Join with other publishers in licensing groups. Shared bargaining power leads to better terms. ‍
• ‍Create a clear licensing framework: Define terms for payment, attribution, and usage.

The music industry provides the blueprint with its collective model for publishers. Mesquita emphasised: AI needs high-quality training data like edited journalism. Publishers should collaborate and not provide content without licensing.

‍

What AI Can't Do

Despite all AI concerns, speakers repeatedly emphasised what it cannot replace. Machines generate words, but journalists create meaning. Robots don't contact sources. AI cannot gather quotes on the ground or conduct on-the-ground reporting.

This shift requires newsrooms to act as talent agencies, turning journalists into personal brands. Newsletters from named authors have led to up to 15% increases in sign-ups, underlining the value of recognisable journalists within each niche.

Email Beats Social (Finally)

Jessica Crouch, Product Director of Email at Condé Nast, announced a turning point: newsletter traffic now surpasses social media traffic. Titles like The New Yorker, Vogue, Wired, and GQ receive more visits from email than from Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter combined.

Email subscribers exhibit higher long-term engagement and contribute up to 50% more revenue over their lifecycles. Newsletter readers are 4.5 times more likely to subscribe, and 20% of New Yorker trial subscriptions come from editorial newsletters.

Crouch sees newsletters as strategic products, not just marketing tools. Each should have a business goal: driving commerce, encouraging subscriptions, or supporting retention. Wired recently introduced subscriber-only newsletters, directly competing with platforms like Substack.

The 80-20 Model

Justice Williams MBE, co-founder of Black Business Magazine, presented an innovative business model: 80 percent of revenue comes from strategic brand partnerships, with only 20 percent from traditional advertising and subscriptions.

"We chose not to pursue advertisers. Observing influencers, we recognised the importance of relationships. What if 80 percent of revenue could come from just 20 percent of clients?"

Twelve brand partnerships cover all operational costs. Lloyds Bank acts as a strategic ally rather than a traditional advertiser. This shifts the dynamic from vendor-advertiser to true partnership.

Using AI Without Getting Used

The discussion on AI deployment was nuanced. Platforms like the Purple CMS were cited as positive examples: they generate summaries, glossaries, and key takeaways that complement, rather than replace, human-written stories.

This approach enables 'doing more with the same' rather than 'doing the same with less'. These platforms are reported to increase newsroom productivity by up to 20%, allowing journalists to focus on in-depth reporting.

One question crystallised the problem: "Can AI half my newsroom? But then what? You have a newsroom that just does what everybody else does, because everybody will be doing that with AI."

AI should not be used to replace staff for cost savings, but to amplify the unique qualities of your journalism.

What Actually Matters Now

After the sessions, several key points crystallised:

License content aggressively and collectively. AI companies require quality journalism. Publishers gain leverage by acting together.

Build human connection. Develop journalist personalities. Authenticity outperforms algorithm optimisation.

Diversify revenue. Williams' 80-20 model demonstrates that alternatives are effective.

Maintain direct audience relationships. Condé Nast's transition from social to email indicates future trends.

Use AI to enhance, not replace. Deploy it for summaries and efficiency while retaining editorial control.

Test rigorously. Use data extensively, experiment with formats, discontinue ineffective approaches, and scale successful ones.

Conclusion: Stop Playing by Old Rules

The conference did not provide simple solutions, but it did offer clear direction. The mantra "Own the Relationship" serves as the guiding principle. Do not provide content to AI companies without compensation. Build direct audience connections through email and owned channels. Diversify business models beyond traditional advertising.

Most importantly: remember what AI cannot do – gather stories in person, contact sources, ask meaningful questions, and build communities rather than simply pursuing clicks.

One publisher captured the tension: "The problem is there's no way to monetise scraping, so you either fight back or turn it to your advantage. But you can only turn it to your advantage if you're focusing on direct relationships."

Publishers must resist content extraction as they develop new business models. The necessary tools are available, and the conference provided a clear roadmap. Now it comes down to effective implementation. And time is running out.

Want to learn how Purple as an AI-powered, digital-first CMS can support your transformation? Book a demo today.