Plus, Beat of Hawaii’s growth story, Google Discover webinar, and more  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ Raptive News JULY 23, 2025 By Emily Rose VP, Creator Marketing & Education Hi Raptive, Last week’s Question of the week asked about your focus for Q3. Nearly half of you (46%) said traffic, while 26% chose revenue. No surprises there—they’re the same areas we’re always working to help you grow. Whether that’s sharing the latest best practices, adding new layers of content protection, or helping you brace for the next twist in this roller-coaster industry, our goal is the same as yours. We want to support you in crafting people-first content that expands your audience and unlocks the revenue you deserve. In this week’s newsletter, you’ll find: • Our stance on blocking AI crawlers • Expert tips on enhancing your above-the-fold content • A new creator spotlight on the team behind Beat of Hawaii • Your final call to sign up for our Google Discover webinar What’s new Why we still recommend blocking AI crawlers In a world where AI is blatantly stealing your content, we’re looking for every opportunity to protect it (see more on Terms of Content Use below). That’s why we’ve been blocking AI crawlers through the Raptive Ads WordPress plugin by default since 2024. Still, we hear this question often: does blocking AI crawlers hurt my traffic? The choice is always yours, but our latest data tells us with confidence that blocking AI crawlers does not affect your traffic or search rankings. This new Blog post shares more about our data-driven recommendation, how blocking AI crawlers really works, and why we don’t believe this is a set-it-and-forget-it decision. What the data says about blocking AI crawlers → Terms of Content Use is coming August 1 Last week, we told you about the launch of Terms of Content Use, a new layer of protection for your content that tells platforms and AI companies they cannot copy, republish, or scrape your content without permission. Starting on Friday, August 1, we will automatically add a link to the new Terms of Content Use to your site’s footer unless you choose to opt out. You can do so in your Ad Preference tab. Still have questions? Get direct answers from us in the Help Center. Here’s why we’re taking action → Top resource Give your content the best first impression possible The first view of content your readers see before they start scrolling does a lot of heavy lifting. Strong above-the-fold content helps them get what they came for fast, signals trust to search engines, and increases engagement. In this new Resource Center guide, learn how to make a better first impression above the fold. It includes best practices, examples, and a checklist you can use to evaluate your own pages. Grab attention, build credibility, and make every click count. Upgrade your above-the-fold content → Quick tip Is your brand ready for the future? “The Brand Readiness Scorecard is your gut check for long-term brand health. In just a few minutes, it helps you see how your content, design, and voice stack up with what advertisers and audiences are looking for. You can spot your strengths, surface areas to level up, and make sure your brand is ready for whatever’s next.” Erika Leone EVP, Integrated Marketing Creator spotlight From 37 readers to 10 million: Beat of Hawaii shares its growth story When Jeff Tucker and Rob Kvidt launched Beat of Hawaii in 2007, they had just 37 readers. But leaning into their unique voice and local perspective helped them grow Beat of Hawaii from a humble blog to the trusted news destination it is today. Learn more about their inspiring story on the Blog, including how a nod from Arthur Frommer helped put them on the map, why they avoided ads for years, and how partnering with Raptive gives them the freedom to focus on what they do best—creating timely, high-quality content that could only come from them, and keeps people coming back. How they found their Hawaii beat → In the news Raptive study says suspected AI content hurts reader trust and ad performance A recent Raptive study surveyed 3,000 U.S. adults and found that when people think content is AI-generated—even if it’s not—trust drops by nearly 50%. That skepticism doesn’t just affect the content either. It also spills over to the ads next to it, making people 14% less likely to consider buying the featured product. Our Chief Strategy Officer, Paul Bannister, and our SVP, Data Strategy & Insights, Anna Blender, discussed the research in Adweek, sharing the danger of AI slop and AI stink—a term they coined to describe a “growing sentiment of distrust when content feels AI-generated, even if it’s not.” This study reinforces that human-made content is more valuable than ever—for your audience and your earnings. See the full details of our AI study → Don’t miss Join us for a Google Discover webinar on July 30 Make sure your content is set up to succeed on Google Discover. Join us on Wednesday, July 30, at 1 pm ET for a webinar with Eddie Mercado, our VP of SEO Solutions. He’ll share insider insights from our Google Discover playbook so you can increase your visibility and traffic potential—and get your questions answered live. Register for the session today and come learn: How Discover works and why it’s different from search How to optimize for Discover, including a technical checklist How to measure what’s working and keep innovating Sign up now to reserve your spot → What we’re reading The latest articles our team is sharing over Slack It’s the end of the internet as we know it (Quartz) How AI browsers like Perplexity Comet will reshape the internet—and the media (Fast Company) Google says AI won’t replace the need for SEO (Search Engine Journal) AI is reshaping SEO, and brand is the answer (The Drum) Who’s suing AI and who’s signing: Conde Nast and Hearst join NYT to sign Amazon AI deal (Press Gazette) Question of the week How are you handling AI crawlers on your site right now? 🛑 Fully blocked Nobody’s getting in here 🚧 Still deciding Reading the data and testing my options 👐 Wide open Come one, come all (for now) Was this email helpful? This email was sent to email.clausen@gmail.com. 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