curation as the business model
Three years ago I wrote this article about curation as a business model. The idea is that we are saturated with content - videos, websites, Reels, TikToks. We live in a time where virtually any product is available to us, and ironically it makes it so much difficult for us to make a purchase.
Decision fatigue and decision paralysis is a very real problem - think about the appeal of omakase at a Japanese restaurant. The chef knows what's best, and you defer your choice to their expertise. You get a great meal without having to be an expert on choosing from the myrad of fish options.
Amazon and Netflix discovered this early, and created their own specific tooling to combat decision fatigue. For Amazon, this is what the "Overall Pick" and "Best Seller" tags do - they present the user4 with a good-enough choice if they're too lazy to do the research on all models. With Netflix, they do not give you access to every movie, but rather a rotating selection of things you might like.
My hypothesis is that you can make a business on curation alone. I think Maria Popova of "Brainpickings" (now "The Marginalian") did this the most artfully - she created a brand for herself by posting her interests to a blog that centered on a specific aesthetic, quality, and feel. Simply sorting through old books and finding the things that are relevant to your audience is valuable.
So, I launched an experiment called "Buy Something Fun" (link), which allows users to submit fun online shops in which I review then share in the directory. Users can verify that they purchased from the site, sharing their experiences and highlighting which sites are reputable. Monetization would simply be through affiliate links, sponsored posts, and perhaps advertisements. But, we just launched today, so I am curious to see what people make of it.