Rob Beeler + Ziv Mishan, VP Revenue, Kueez
From AI-driven zero-click search, to ongoing CPM compression, publishers are navigating a landscape where long-trusted traffic and revenue sources no longer behave the way they once did. The old approach - depend on SEO, optimize for scale, and rely on a handful of major platforms - has become dangerously outdated.
As the open web realigns around new discovery behaviors, content formats, and monetization layers, publishers are under pressure to rebuild their foundation without losing the audience relationships that make them unique.
In our latest Q&A, Rob joins with Ziv Mishan, VP Revenue at Kueez, to unpack that challenge. Together, they explore what happens when a publisher’s “main river” begins to dry, how to identify and activate underutilized assets, and which strategic moves publishers should make before crisis forces their hand.
Specifically, Ziv shares how technology can help publishers multiply revenue per user, diversify traffic sources, and build the next growth engine early - not late.
Rob: In a recent article, you open with the Rome/Nile metaphor: one river, total dependency, inevitable collapse. For publishers who still rely heavily on one revenue source, what’s the modern equivalent of that “dry season,” and how close are they to it based on the shifts you describe?
Ziv: We have a huge river drying up in front of us right now: user drop caused by AI in search results is a great example of a dry season forced on our industry. It’s not just close, it’s already here. Some publishers report a 50% drop in users, depending on how heavily they relied on SEO to attract new users. So even if their ARPU holds, total revenue collapses when the user base shrinks.
Rob: You call out a structural trend publishers feel every day: SEO declines, AI-driven zero-click search, and CPM compression happening at the same time. When all three hit at once, where should publishers look first to stabilize revenue?
Ziv: Not all problems can - or need to - be solved at once. But the most immediate challenge is that SEO isn't delivering the volume of users publishers are used to, which leaves publishers striving to 1. find new user acquisition channels in an SEO-deprived ecosystem, 2. multiply revenue per user, and 3. extend content to new platforms.
As former publishers, we know these pain points well - today we support more than 15,000 partner domains trying to solve them. For example, content syndication can help extend reach to more platforms, which act as a new revenue stream - and savvy publishers can construct their syndicated articles to drive new users back to their site.
Rob: You argue publishers already sit on valuable, underutilized assets: evergreen content, archives, communities, first-party relationships. What’s the most overlooked asset publishers should be monetizing but rarely do?
Ziv: I wouldn’t say publishers rarely use these assets - many do incredible work here and there’s a lot we can learn from their creativity and determination. But one pattern I see consistently is that the best opportunities often hide in plain sight. Back in my 20s, I worked at a bar called, of all things, ‘Publicity.’ When footfall started dropping, we pivoted and opened for lunch to serve local businesses. This doubled our revenue with minimal cost, and introduced us to a new audience, who also started coming back after work hours.
For publishers it can be something like identifying new ways to monetise specific communities/audiences that frequent their domains. Leveraging an engaged community with specific interests and preferences, can be very lucrative, for example in affiliate commerce. Many publishers experiment here, but few invest deeply enough. It’s why building new revenue streams in good times - not only under pressure - matters so much.
Rob: Publishers are under pressure to build stronger first-party data strategies. But most of that still depends on form fills and known users. Where does visitor resolution fit in, and how does it support, not compete with, those efforts?
Ziv: Visitor resolution works in the background. It doesn’t replace first-party data, but it expands the opportunity to generate it. Most first-party data strategies rely on known users who log in, subscribe, or fill out a form. Visitor resolution uses privacy-friendly signals - probabilistic patterns, behavioral cues, device recognition - to provide continuity for anonymous visitors as well. This gives publishers continuity and context even when the user isn’t identified.
Think of first-party data as high-value signals and visitor resolution as the layer of scale. Together, they create a far more resilient strategy.
Rob: You outline a simple framework (identify, apply, diversify) that Kueez uses internally. How does a publisher actually run that process? What does “identify” look like on day one when teams are already stretched thin?
Ziv: You’re right - teams are already stretched. That’s exactly why ‘identify’ must be lightweight and continuous, not a twice-a-year offsite. It can start with something as simple as each team running a quick SWOT on their product area, or a weekly challenge to look beyond technical KPIs and consider strategic opportunities. Small prompts create the space for big insights.
Rob: You say the biggest mistake publishers make is waiting too long to build the next revenue engine: “build the next river before you need it.” What are the early warning signs publishers should act on before a stream dries up?
Ziv: Your last sentence proves the point - publishers shouldn’t wait for warning signs. Our industry is full of them, and yet many still delay major shifts. AI has been signaling massive SEO disruption since 2023. At the same time, the industry spent significant energy limiting paid social traffic - open web’s largest competitor. A more strategic long-term approach can be creating sustainable paths to bring new users from social into the open web without compromising content quality, UX, or advertiser value. I know that this discussion has grown in the past months and I believe it’s a good path to explore.
In general, the (paranoid) default mindset should be: “What I depend on most will disappear at a certain stage”. No need to wait for warning signs.
Rob: If a publisher wanted to pressure-test their business model tomorrow, what’s the single question they should ask to know whether they’re building the next river, or still depending on the old one to survive?
Ziv: If X disappears tomorrow, I will lose more than 30% of my revenue: who or what is X?
This could be a commercial deal, platform, demand partner, or a specific advertiser category. Once identified, see if you can find more Xs for backup, then expand to the Ys and Zs, which are logical extensions of your strengths, assets and expertise. You can build this internally or accelerate it with technology partners that will contribute specific capabilities and expertise to help you achieve goals faster and without losing focus on what you do best.
Ready to build your next river?
Revenue streams that once felt limitless are narrowing, and the publishers who thrive in the next chapter will be the ones who diversify early, invest in overlooked assets, and build new engines before the old ones fail. Whether through smarter data activation, expanded content distribution, stronger community monetization, or new acquisition paths, the opportunity is there for publishers willing to rethink their dependencies.
If you want to explore how Kueez helps publishers turn data, content, and partnerships into durable revenue, chat with Ziv at Zivm@kueez.com.