People Inc. has reduced its dependence on Google referrals from 70% to 25% of its traffic over the past two years through partnerships with artificial intelligence companies and building direct digital channels. The company achieved this shift while growing its overall audience traffic by 15% despite losing 50% of its Google sessions during the same period.

Neil Vogel, CEO of People Inc., said in a recent interview that the company has forged deals with AI companies including OpenAI. "We've lost 50% of our Google sessions over the last two years, and we're still growing 15%," Vogel said.

The company has built its presence across multiple platforms including email, TikTok, Instagram and Apple News to connect directly with users and advertisers. People Inc. was acquired by Vogel in 2021 with backing from Barry Diller's IAC, purchasing People magazine and other titles previously owned by Meredith.

"After we bought Meredith, which was Meredith and Time Inc., the knock on us was that 75% of our audience came from Google," Vogel said. The CEO noted different incentives between platforms regarding content partnerships.

"TikTok and Instagram need our content to attract users, more so than Google," Vogel said. "With Google, we wanted them to send people to us. That is not in their interest."

"The best thing is to be there directly," Vogel said. "We are ruthlessly unsentimental about how we do it or how we used to do it."

Vogel acknowledged uncertainty about the strategy. "There is a chance we are a hundred percent wrong on all of this. There's a chance that we're a hundred percent right. The truth is probably somewhere in between," he said.

People Inc. operates 40 brands with 10 main properties. The company has developed varied revenue streams, with Better Homes and Gardens licensing products to Walmart, while Food & Wine focuses primarily on events and Southern Living combines events with publishing.