蘑菇AV

The news: ByteDance is closing in on Meta鈥檚 revenues, driven largely by TikTok鈥檚 global expansion. ByteDance expects to generate roughly $186 billion in revenues in 2025, up 20% from 2024, per Bloomberg. That puts it just shy of Meta鈥檚 forecasted $187 billion, underscoring how quickly the Chinese tech firm has become a global force.

That鈥檚 more than four times the number swayed by influencer or celebrity recommendations, suggesting that the price has to be right before would-be shoppers pull the trigger.

US creator revenues from social media sponsored content will reach $10.52 billion this year, marking a 15.0% YoY increase, per our March 2025 forecast.

Podcast ad revenues surpassed $2 billion in 2024: As revenues maintain consistent growth, advertisers must tap in to meet audiences where they鈥檙e at.

Only 12% of creators in the US and UK consider content creation their full-time job, according to Q3 2024 data from Influencer and CrowdDNA. Our take: Being a creator is still one of the most coveted career paths, and the number of people who independently create and monetize content, as well as total creator revenues, will continue to rise.

Netflix remains a revenue leader in the streaming space, however tariff concerns and tightening budgets for both consumers and advertisers have increased the pressure across all providers to stand out.

Many notable data points emerged from this busy week, including Google's search usage, resounding global trust in influencer recommendations, and most Americans don't know they're using AI-enabled products (even though 99% recently have).

Subscription models are gaining momentum: US creator revenues from social media subscriptions are projected to hit $350 million in 2025, a 27.4% increase YoY. Macro-influencers (those with at least 100,000 followers) are already ahead of the curve: 63% cite subscriptions as a top revenue source, far more than the 47% average across all creators.

US social media creators saw a nearly 40% (39.8%) YoY increase in tipping and gifting revenue, according to our March forecast.

YouTube already has its own Partner Program that shares ad revenues with creators and accounts for the majority of platform payout revenues鈥攕omething Spotify wants to duplicate. Our take: The expansion of Spotify鈥檚 Partner Program could give the platform the push it needs to grow revenues and rival YouTube as the preferred podcast platform.

The influencer marketing industry finds itself at an inflection point in more ways than one, and agencies must adapt to stay afloat.

The ad agency ecosystem is vast, complex, and ever-changing. It now faces changes brought on by AI and clients鈥� shifting preferences over how and where to spend their advertising dollars.

Brands are shifting away from traditional influencer marketing to tap into the power of everyday consumers sharing authentic content about products they genuinely use and love.

Likewise, Old Navy was able to deliver some of its highest annual net sales in brand history and gain share due to a product assortment that offered both innovation and style, and strong social and influencer engagement.

Here鈥檚 what healthcare and pharma brands need to know about making social health influencers a bigger part of their marketing strategies in order to sway consumer decisions.

Ad targeting isn鈥檛 traditionally associated with influencer marketing. But sponsoring influencer posts and buying ads on their posts are really just ways for marketers to target their audience. And it continues to attract more ad dollars: We expect influencer marketing spending to cross $10 billion in the US by 2026. GenAI can help brands evaluate where to spend that money. How will it create impact?

With Facebook鈥檚 ad growth slowing, Meta is paying influencers to revive the platform鈥攂ut can cash alone compete with TikTok and Instagram鈥檚 cultural dominance?

Influencer marketing is a core part of many brands鈥� strategies. Sponsored content spend on social media will total $8.14 billion in 2024, nearing the $10 billion mark by 2026, according to 蘑菇AV鈥檚 March 2024 forecast.

Video is key for influencer marketing. Among B2B marketers worldwide, 75% use influencers, and 93% plan to increase their spending on influencers, based on positive results, according to a 2023 Ogilvy report. Over half of all B2B marketers use video for interviews with influencers and subject matter experts, per an August 2023 Content Marketing Institute (CMI) survey.