Are Newsletters the New LinkedIn?

What if finding a new job didn’t require an existential crisis, a tearful call to your dad for help thinking of a synonym for “motivated,” and a blood sacrifice under a full moon?

That future isn’t as far off as you might think. And that’s for a couple of reasons: 1) LinkedIn shocking the world by sucking the least of all the tech platforms 2) a booming labor market and 3) the rise of the knowledge creator job board. Let’s talk about that last one.

Sweeping declaration: Many knowledge creators are really well suited to launch job products for their audiences—it’s a pairing that makes as much sense as Oreos and peanut butter or management consultants and stating the obvious.

Here’s why:

• Knowledge creators are experts in specific niches, meaning the communities they build often mature into what we in the media biz would call “professional audiences.”

• Those professional audiences get resources and education, both of which feel like gateway drugs to job opportunities. Learn about an industry, find community in that industry, get a job in that industry—all from a knowledge creator who speaks your language.

• There’s a mutual benefit. Community members find (actually good) jobs in their field, and knowledge creators can introduce a new offering. It’s a service that makes sense both for the audience and the creator business.

We’ve got some creators on the Smooth roster who are nailing job offerings in their own unique ways:

The Car Dealership Guy Newsletter. Each weekly edition features highlights from the CDG job board, which we’ve come to appreciate for its range—there are listings for all manner of auto industry jobs, from M&A strategists to mechanics. And CDG monetized the job board early, offering premium placement to certain partners.

The Future Tools Newsletter by Matt Wolfe. Future Tools features AI industry jobs every week. In a big niche like AI, the newsletter becomes an indispensable tool for sifting through tons of not-so-great (or not-so-real) AI jobs to find the gems.

The Publish Press. We feature creator industry jobs in the Press newsletter every Monday, and the response has been wonderful. People email us often saying they found either their next job or next hire through the Press’s Creator Moves section. Bonus points for our pretty seamless partnership with freelance platform Fiverr to sponsor the section!

Bottom line: A mechanism for sharing stellar job opportunities feels really natural to knowledge creators—it doesn’t have to be the biggest revenue driver, but it can be an impactful way to connect with and provide value to your audience.

Oh…and speaking of jobs: We’re hiring again! This time for a full-time writer to cover the energy and utilities industries. If you or someone you love are perfect for this job? You know where to find us 👀

• Tyler Chou (aka The Creators’ Attorney) shares what creators should ask for when offered equity from a brand.

• Rare geomagnetic storms 🤝 The Galactic Gal’s accessible and super interesting space coverage.

• Hot Ones has successfully petitioned to be included in the outstanding talk series category of the Emmys, up against late-night hosts like Jimmy Kimmel, Seth Meyers, and Stephen Colbert.

• Loved Smooth creator Jacklyn Dallas’s breakdown of Gemini vs. ChatGPT (especially after this week’s announcements).