Re-Organizing the World’s Information: Why we need more Boutique Curation and Learning in Public

Re-Organizing the World’s Information: Why we need more Boutique Curation and Learning in Public

In today's world, information is abundant. With the vast amount of content available, it has become increasingly important to draw connections between disparate pieces. However, the current state of platforms that organize this information is overwhelming for consumers. Irrelevant filters, ad-based business models, and unconstrained supply have made it difficult to find signal amidst the noise.

One interesting point to consider is that the protection of privacy is not a compelling enough reason for people to leave platforms like Google. Most individuals are not willing to pay for something they have grown accustomed to receiving for free. Therefore, as the world becomes saturated with information, it is no longer sufficient to merely organize it. The focus should shift towards organizing trustworthy information.

Google, for example, started with the intention of organizing the world's information. However, as time went on, their resources were primarily directed towards monetizing clicks to support advertisers, rather than improving the search experience for users. This shift in priorities has led to ethically dubious design choices and a significant trust gap.

Vertical search aggregators have their place when users know exactly what they are looking for. However, this is often not the starting point for most individuals. There is an opportunity to assist overwhelmed consumers with better discovery and curation along the funnel. The conversation around curation has been too content-focused, neglecting the importance of structure. By moving curated content feeds towards more goal-oriented interfaces, users can find the content they want on their terms, rather than being limited by the curator's publishing schedule.

Ben Evans once said, "All curation grows until it requires search, and all search grows until it requires curation." This statement holds true in today's information-driven age. There is an overwhelming amount of information being created, but only a few resources devoted to filtering, organizing, curating, and indexing that information. Curation sites often fall into the trap of starting with high-quality recommendations but gradually transitioning to mediocre content as they scale. This is when vertical search aggregators like Yelp become more useful.

The downside to ad-driven models is the competition between advertisers and content producers for attention. This often leads to curation sites feeling like marketing blogs. Subscription-based models are not a panacea, especially when the use cases are infrequent. However, nascent token-based business models show promise by giving ownership to stakeholders and allowing subscribers to benefit from future growth.

In parallel to the need for better curated content, there is a growing movement towards learning in public. Our fear of judgment often leads us to build, learn, and think privately. However, seeking validation should not be the goal of learning in public. Instead, the goal should be to tap into the collective intelligence of our networks and create constructive feedback loops.

Learning in public requires working on projects we own and sharing our progress. It is not about saying, "I learned this," but rather, "I built this." Keeping a public log of our building process is an effective way to track our learning progress. As Reid Hoffman famously said, "If you are not embarrassed by the first version of your product, you've launched too late." Learning in public can be scary because it exposes our knowledge gaps and vulnerabilities. However, it is during this vulnerable stage that we can gain the most valuable insights.

In conclusion, the world's abundance of information calls for better boutique curation and learning in public. Platforms need to prioritize organizing trustworthy information and focus on the search experience for users rather than solely monetizing clicks. By providing better discovery and curation along the funnel, overwhelmed consumers can find the content they want on their terms. Additionally, token-based business models show promise in overcoming the limitations of ad-driven and subscription-based models.

Three actionable pieces of advice to take away from this discussion are:

1. Consider the structure of curated content feeds, not just the content itself, to improve the user experience.
2. Embrace learning in public by sharing your progress and tapping into your network's collective intelligence for constructive feedback.
3. Explore nascent token-based business models as a way to give ownership to stakeholders and create a sustainable future for curated platforms.

In a world of unlimited information, it is crucial to find ways to navigate through the noise and discover trustworthy content. By combining the power of boutique curation and learning in public, we can create platforms that prioritize user experience and provide valuable insights to their communities.