We’re seeing signs of the Curation Renaissance, a direct reaction to the millions of pounds and hours flooding out of the Creator Economy, every single, second.
Over the last few years, we’ve seen the conversation shift to curation, a desire for less but better. A desire for less noise, less information overload, less distraction.
But we can’t help ourselves, we still want content. We’ll always want ‘more’ content. So how is more going to become better?
Every time we log on, tune in and consume, we’re delivered algorithmically filtered digital lives.
But in the Curation Renaissance, we might want something else, our content to be curated for our tastes with a human touch.
Why are we calling it the ‘Curation Renaissance’?
Our first wave of digital curation came with the everyday filtering of the content we all choose to show on social media, from perfect coffees to perfect holidays. We started to self-curate our identities.
This worked for a while…
Then we saw the pendulum swing the other way, We were already masters of curation through finsters, reels, and Meme culture. We were bored of it. So we saw the rise of the raw and the authentic.
This is messy floors, quick edits, and no manicured nails of millennials in sight. It wasn’t so much #nofilter, but more #nofucks given.
We want instant, we want real and we want live streamed. Highly curated came second to authentic.
So this is where we are, drowning in a sea of content, this is why we’re seeing the signs of the Curator Renissance… or the Curator Economy.
In this Curator Renaissance, Curation is an art form, it will be shaped not by how much you consume, or consuming the most popular or viral content, but instead about knowing what to consume at all. Where to look, who to watch, it will be about curating the world for others, rather than curating ourselves for others.
This is what we’re already seeing in the bundling of newsletters like on every.to and stacks created by thought leaders in specific areas. We’ll begin to see Curation-as-a-Service, ‘CaaS’ where curation pickers choose content for consumers based on certain learning goals, moods, needs, or wants.
And innovations are already monetizing the Curation Renaissance turning it into a ‘Curation Economy’ — Read.Base is a platform launching in Beta where you can monetise your bookmarks for others on various subjects, constantly updating them as you go.
In social, Yup.io which describes itself as a ‘Social Network for Curators’ has just launched ‘collections’ where you can display your curation from across the web.
Then there’s DAO’s (Decentralised Autonomous Organisations) powering the curation economy, with the rise of Curation DAO’s like $WHALE and FlamingoDAO capturing and supporting value with expertise and shared resource.
Of course, we won’t just stop at that human touch, we’ll see a blending of Ai and Human Curation to create truly powerful results. Finesse.us describes itself as ‘Zara meets Netflix’, it constantly searches the internet for cutting edge fashion, and then creates outfits based on what it finds. The last stage is to get its community to vote on which garments to actually produce.
Finesse actually turns Curators into investors in the product, creating desire, a feeling of ownership, demand, and the perfect drop for its community in the process. We’ve already seen the Creator Economy turn fans into investors, so this isn’t a stretch of the imagination.
These are just examples of how the Curation Renaissance will lead the future of consumption. Curation isn’t passive, it’s a powerhouse of value.
The next wave is coming.
