Plus, RPMs are looking stronger in the second half of the year  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ Raptive News AUGUST 6, 2025 By Cristy Posten Creator Content Editor Hi Raptive, RPMs started strong this year, dipped in April, and are now trending back up. We’re feeling cautiously optimistic about the second half of the year—despite ongoing global factors like tariffs and trade dynamics. And there’s more good news: Google’s June core update is showing promising signs for creators, especially those with smaller or previously impacted sites. See more of our insights below. Our Chief Strategy Officer, Paul Bannister, recently shared his midyear update on our Instagram. Follow us at @weareraptive to hear more from Paul and other leaders, see the latest news and resources, and connect with our amazing community of creators. In this week’s newsletter, you’ll also find: • How traffic sources and data availability affect earnings • A recording of our recent Google Discover webinar • A new Quick tip about bringing on smaller sites What’s new Google’s latest core update brings wins for smaller sites Google rolled out its June 2025 core algorithm update on June 30, wrapping up the rollout in just over two weeks. This update was a positive one for many creators, especially for smaller sites. More wins than losses across the network Momentum is strong: more than 2,000 Raptive creator sites (51%) saw meaningful gains of 5% or more, while another 17% held steady. About 1,300 sites (32%) experienced declines. The large majority of sites in the network that are seeing growth or stability reinforce that investing in high-quality content and a strong overall experience pays off in the long run. Smaller sites are gaining ground Unlike many recent updates that favored large, well-established sites, this one shifted in the other direction. Smaller and less-established sites saw some of the biggest gains. Signs of life for HCU-impacted sites For creators hit hard by the Helpful Content Update (HCU), this is the first time in years we’ve seen even modest improvement. A handful of these sites are showing signs of recovery, though most haven’t returned to pre-HCU levels. Losses don’t always mean you’re doing something wrong. Volatility in the search space is normal. It’s the consistency of your strategy that wins over the long term. “It’s been a tough period for creators over the last few years. It’s especially frustrating that Google admitted its systems went ‘too far’ and many creator sites were unfairly caught up in the algorithm. It’s taken far too long and doesn’t repair the damage, but it’s very encouraging that this update favored smaller sites. It shows some promise and hope for the diverse long tail of the open web.” Tom Critchlow EVP, Audience Growth What’s next We’ll continue to track performance and trends across the network. In the meantime, you should: Create high-quality, helpful content that serves your readers Regularly identify and refresh high-potential posts Track performance stability through August Watch for updates as we continue monitoring the landscape Top resource How traffic sources and data availability affect RPM Traffic quality is just as important as volume. How visitors find your site, and what advertisers can learn about them, has a direct impact on your RPM. This guide explains how to turn those insights into higher revenue, with a breakdown of how different sources perform, what drives engagement, and how to use your dashboard to spot the content that earns more. The traffic sources driving the highest RPM → Quick tip Add sites, earn more revenue—only 30,000 pageviews needed “You can bring your other sites into Raptive—even smaller ones. If your main site meets the 100,000 monthly pageview requirement, additional sites only need 30,000 pageviews (as long as they meet our advertiser requirements).“ Linley Mobley VP, Network Quality & Operations In case you missed it Watch the replay: Discovering more Google traffic In our latest webinar, Eddie Mercado, VP of SEO Solutions, discussed how Discover works and what it takes to get your content featured. Content discovery is evolving beyond traditional search. With Google Discover, readers get personalized content based on their interests, location, browsing history, and device activity—no search required. The webinar covered what kinds of content perform well and shared technical tips to help boost visibility. You’ll also learn how to track what’s working and refine your strategy to improve your chances of appearing in Discover. Start showing up in Discover → What we’re reading The latest articles our team is sharing over Slack These small creators are outselling big influencers (Forbes | Gated) Amazon-NYT deal sets new benchmark as publishers fight AI scraping (TVNewsCheck) Creators are the new touchpoint, but we need to lock arms (The Drum) PodtoBook.ai launches to turn podcast episodes into professionally written books (Podnews) Question of the week How are you feeling after Google’s June core update? 💪 Re-energized Traffic’s up, and I’m feeling motivated 🧠 In problem-solving mode Digging into the data and making a plan 😐 Staying steady Focusing on what I can control 😓 A bit discouraged It’s been tough, but trying to stay positive Was this email helpful? This email was sent to email.clausen@gmail.com. You've received this email because you work with Raptive, and we're excited to help you continue to grow. 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