We have been speaking for a while in regards to the dying of social media. However now, right here in 2025, it looks like issues are actually coming to a head.
You may’t have failed to note it. So many creatives are both leaving social networks altogether or slowing down their posting to a trickle or an absolute cease. And this is not merely about abandoning ship. It is about reclaiming management.
Take author Philippa Moore. “I stop all my private social media platforms, other than LinkedIn, which I take advantage of sometimes, in January 2022, and have hardly ever appeared again,” she explains. “I used to be sleeping higher, my resting coronary heart fee was down, my display screen time dropped by 81% within the first week, and, crucially, I bought my mind again!”
She thought-about becoming a member of Substack (the place many creatives have headed). However she thought, as she already pays for Squarespace internet hosting and her personal area, why not use that? She provides, “I used to be bored with giving my content material, time and inventive vitality to platforms that had been solely making morally doubtful billionaires even wealthier.
“Each time there’s one other Elon or Zuck drama or one other large privateness breach, I sigh with reduction that I am out of it,” she says. “I believe in some unspecified time in the future Substack will go the identical approach. I hope I am incorrect! However historical past is the perfect predictor of the long run, as we’re at present seeing play out.”
Shopping for, not renting
Philippa isn’t alone. Throughout the inventive trade, we’re seeing professionals make a decisive shift away from social media and different ‘rented’ platforms, selecting as a substitute to spend money on areas they really personal.
This motion, brewing for years, has reached a tipping level in 2025, marking what could develop into the top of social media’s golden period. Though some imagine its dying occurred as early as 2016.
So what will we imply by ‘rented’ right here, precisely? As Elizabeth C, progress advertising director at Gembadocs, places it. “Utilizing a social platform is like being on rented land, topic to a landlord’s whim, whereas having your personal web site is like shopping for your personal home with the assistance of a mortgage supplier—i.e., a internet hosting service. In the long term, the mortgaged property will prevail.”
Model strategist Hammad Aslam takes an identical line. “Many creators have constructed empires on rented land, solely to look at the algorithm shift and take all of it away,” he notes.
The return to owned media
Instagram’s prioritising of recommended content material over private connections, X’s lurch towards rewarding moderately than punishing trolls, Meta’s ongoing privateness issues, the broad shift from textual content and pictures to short-form video, and the controversial position social media CEOs are taking part in in Trump’s authorities—all of those points and extra have left creatives questioning their funding in these areas.
However what’s rising as a substitute is one thing very constructive: a renaissance of private web sites, newsletters and blogs. Startup advisor and author Birgitte Rasine is typical when she says: “I’ve determined to construct my very own eternally residence. An area I personal and have full management over, not another person’s platform.”
After all, the transition is not with out its challenges. Kelly Smith, designer and founder at Spelk Studio, raises a typical concern: “Once you publish by yourself platform, you are merely not seen. Until individuals uncover you and care sufficient to examine again recurrently, no person will see your nice content material.”
Many creatives, although, are discovering methods round this. Sometimes, they’re adopting hybrid approaches: sustaining minimal social media presence whereas focusing their vitality on constructing strong, owned platforms. web optimization, e-mail newsletters and real neighborhood constructing are changing the fast hits of social media engagement.
That is just about the method we’re taking right here at Artistic Increase.
We have not cancelled any of our social media accounts but: you do not kiss goodbye to 121K Instagram followers calmly. However we have taken a giant step again from posting. As a substitute, we’re placing all our efforts and energies into constructing our personal bespoke neighborhood, The Studio: a non-public, distraction-free sanctuary for creatives to attach, collaborate and develop. (You could find out extra about that and find out how to be part of right here).
A brand new daybreak
General, it actually does really feel like we’re getting into a brand new period. Susie Carini, director at zed inventive, speaks for a lot of when she says: “The golden period of social media, the place platforms felt like real communities and natural attain was achievable, looks as if a distant reminiscence. It looks like we’re at a crossroads the place creators and companies are reevaluating their dependence on these networks.
“I’ve just lately deleted our enterprise X account and can shortly be deleting our Fb web page too,” she continues. “This shift is perhaps uncomfortable, however it’s additionally a chance to rethink how we join with audiences in a approach that is extra significant and enduring.”
There’s additionally a generational angle to all this that may’t be ignored. “Unsure social will ever totally disappear, however it’s clear it is altering,” says CMO at Corebook. “With Gen Z transferring in the direction of personal Discord servers and closed discussion groups, the shift is fairly apparent. The true kicker? My newest scholar group had zero clue Clubhouse was ever a factor; utterly off their radar. This says quite a bit about the place social media stands of their world: it is simply not on the precedence record. Some even do not recognise Snapchat as a factor any extra.”
The great occasions are coming again
In the end, although, that is about greater than only a change in platform desire; it is a elementary rethinking of how creatives join with their audiences. Bear in mind the glory days of running a blog and proudly owning our personal areas? Whisper it, however it looks like they’re coming again.
And this isn’t simply in our heads: numerous creatives are telling us the identical factor. Creatives like Miro LaFlaga, co-founder of Six Cinquième who says: “Truthfully, it’s a rising motion. I am seeing an increasing number of creators {and professional} creatives depart social platforms. I do really feel we’re slowly transferring in the direction of in-person meetups and closed communities and teams.”
Copywriter and web optimization advisor Kiri Nowak-Smith captures the zeitgeist completely: “I just lately shut down my most important Instagram account, and I really feel like a brand new lady,” she enthuses. “I feel the following 5 years will probably be all about proudly owning your personal areas to talk freely.”
Conclusion
The message is obvious: the way forward for inventive expression on-line is not about renting house on another person’s platform—it is about constructing your personal.
Because the enchantment of social media continues to deteriorate for creatives, those that spend money on owned platforms at the moment are positioning themselves for a extra sustainable and unbiased tomorrow. The query now is not whether or not to make the change however when and the way.
Model author and content material designer Sarah Farley concludes: “When you do not personal or pay to make use of a platform, you are not likely a person. You are the product.” In 2025, creators are selecting to be homeowners as a substitute.
