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The news: LinkedIn has introduced updates to its Conversions API (CAPI) and Revenue Attribution Report (RAR) to help marketers improve data integration, optimize campaigns, and measure return on ad spend (RoAS) more effectively.

One in five US retail media ad dollars spent this year will go to off-site formats, per our November 2024 forecast, which include social media along with connected TV and other publisher platforms. Best Buy Ads has been a pioneer in off-site retail media partnerships, working with CNET last year to share content and advertising across both Best Buy鈥檚 and CNET鈥檚 platforms.

Because of this, they鈥檙e expected to take off among advertisers: We forecast FMN ad spending will jump up 103.11% YoY in 2025 to hit around $710 million. Our take: 2024 was expected to be a transition year for PayPal as it looked for new ways to accelerate profitable growth, but early results haven鈥檛 reflected as much of a turnaround as some investors would have liked.

By 2027, more ad dollars will be directed to CTV than linear TV, according to our estimates. As advertisers attempt to optimize spending across TV and CTV鈥攁nd the networks that span both鈥攖he ecosystem is slowly coalescing around tactics that facilitate cross-platform visibility into incremental reach and outcomes.

YouTube has plenty of emerging challengers and will have to fight to keep its spot at the top of the digital video world, but its ability to skirt regulatory penalties and attract a hefty flow of advertising spending has it set up to remain the dominant video platform for years to come.

BeReal hired Ben Moore as its US managing director to support ad growth. Moore previously led global media buying partnerships for TikTok. The app claims to have 40 million monthly users worldwide, with 5 million located in the US. What ads will be like: BeReal has two ad formats鈥攊n-feed ads that look like organic content, and homepage takeover ads when users open the app.

In March, Meta rolled out new carousel ads that drive both ecommerce and in-store purchases, with early tests showing a 21% higher incremental return on ad spend compared to ecommerce-only formats, Meta鈥檚 group lead for retail and ecommerce Karin Tracy told Adweek. Why it matters: Meta is chasing retail media, a fast-growing category with US spending projected to rise 18% in 2025 and 16.8% in 2026.

Why it matters: Media companies are especially exposed to shifts in consumer behavior and ad spend鈥攁nd both are now under pressure. Ad budgets face new headwinds. As costs rise, consumer brands in retail, tech, and CPG may scale back marketing鈥攂ad news for platforms like Netflix, Disney+, and Roku, which increasingly depend on advertising. Content spending will tighten.

Our take: The tariff escalation is more than a headline鈥攊t鈥檚 a structural shock that could reshape global consumer demand and ad spending for the remainder of 2025 and for years to come. While there鈥檚 still room for negotiation, our forecasting team believes the psychological toll on consumer and business sentiment could be just as impactful as the tariffs themselves.

A potential US ban on TikTok remains a wildcard鈥攊f implemented, Snap could capture a larger share of short-form video users and ad spend. However, competition from YouTube Shorts and Instagram Reels means that a TikTok ban wouldn't guarantee an automatic win for Snap.

While Reddit鈥檚 advertising growth is slowing compared with 2024, it鈥檚 still positioning itself as a serious player for SMBs who want alternatives to traditional social platforms. These updates are meant to lower the barrier to entry by reducing campaign setup time and improving signal quality鈥攂oth key for advertisers working with limited budgets.

US ad spending is projected to grow 6.8% next year, surpassing $400 billion, according to 蘑菇AV鈥檚 forecast. Despite robust ad spending growth, AI tools, advancements in attribution, and cautious consumer behavior will add complexity for the latter half of 2024.

A jarring deceleration in ad spending growth has shaken the advertising industry in many parts of the world. However, this softness is not universal, and it is likely to be short-lived.

In-Game Ad Spending Benchmarks: Q4 2024 (蘑菇AV subscription required). Methodology: Estimates are based on the analysis of survey and traffic data from research firms and regulatory agencies; the growth trajectory of major gaming sites; historical trends; internet and mobile adoption trends; and demographic adoption trends.

Ad spending is looking shaky for many of the legacy formats across digital and traditional. New channels have arrived, however, and there are bright spots. This year could be rough, but 2024 is looking better.

But they also indicate that advertisers investing heavily in SVOD and ad-supported video-on-demand platforms like Netflix and Hulu might need to rethink their ad spend. Our take: The shift represents the need to restructure how advertisers reach their target audiences.

Brands making the calculation that political favor is worth more than proven ad dollar ROI鈥擷鈥檚 ad revenue struggles go back to when it was still Twitter鈥攕hould remain cautious about advertising on the platform and understand that this decision might do more harm than good.

In fact, brands are increasingly putting advertising spend behind influencer content via tactics like boosting and paid ad formats. So it鈥檚 likely that social ad spend is absorbing influencer budgets as well. Marketers are tapping influencers for campaigns outside of social media. They鈥檙e incorporating them into aspects of their campaigns like connected TV (CTV) and out-of-home (OOH).

Hubspot鈥檚 head of brand paid media, Jonathon McKenzie, said that OOH accounts for about 40% of the company鈥檚 ad spend in North America. 鈥淥utdoor is really a barometer for where culture is at,鈥� said Pat LaCroix, executive vice president of media and growth at MissionOne Media. Billboards build brand legitimacy. OOH has faced challenges due to difficulty with measurement.

Much of this ad spend comes from Chinese ecommerce brands marketing directly to US consumers, especially in categories like apparel, home goods, and electronics. Higher import costs may reduce these brands' US ambitions鈥攁nd their reliance on Meta鈥檚 performance-driven ad tools. Our take: Legal risks and shifting economics could weaken Meta鈥檚 influence.

Our outlook for social ad spending in 2022 has deteriorated significantly since March. This report breaks down what went wrong in the past nine months, and what鈥檚 ahead in the next two years.

US Retail Industry Ad Spending 2024 (蘑菇AV subscription required). Methodology: Data is from a February 2025 Civicscience survey. 4,000+ US adults ages 18+ were surveyed online during February 3-4, 2025. The survey was weighted by the U.S. Census.