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A trade war with the US will hinder economic performance in Canada this year. Ad spending overall is expected to lose the momentum gained in 2024. But many digital formats will benefit from the emphasis on return on ad spending.

Canada trails just one country鈥攖he US鈥攊n average daily time spent with media. That means plenty of opportunity for media buyers to reach audiences across a range of devices and services.

Believe it or not, the year is already halfway over. For advertisers, it's been a whirlwind with economic upheaval, massive AI adoption, Google upending search, and working hard to understand Gen Z. Oh, and remember when TikTok went dark for a weekend?

The news: Banks shouldn't use a single marketing strategy for all young people鈥擬illennials (born 1981-1996) and Gen Z (born 1997-2012) have distinct financial behaviors. Millennials, shaped by economic uncertainty, seek stability and pragmatic digital tools, valuing expert advice. Gen Z, digital natives, demand effortless speed, are influencer-driven, and focus on immediate experiences, often skeptical of traditional banks. Our take: Marketing must be tailored. For millennials, emphasize trust, reliability, and security for long-term goals, offering expert education. For Gen Z, highlight speed, flexibility, and convenience through engaging, short-form content on platforms like TikTok, utilizing influencers to build rapport.

Key Stat: In 2025, 53% of B2B marketers in the US will increase their influencer marketing budgets. Executive Summary. B2B influencer marketing is now a core strategy. B2B influencer marketing has evolved into a key pillar of brand growth. B2B brands are investing in long-term influencer partnerships to build credibility, trust, and engagement with target audiences.

Twenty-five percent of respondents don鈥檛 use Instagram, while 28% aren鈥檛 using YouTube and 38% aren鈥檛 using TikTok. Behind the trend: Small businesses are struggling with social media adoption because of a lack of resources, expertise, and knowledge of the right tactics. 32% lack resources like time, budgets, and skills necessary for marketing a business successfully. Expertise is lacking.

TikTok is ByteDance鈥檚 global engine: Despite slowing growth in China, the platform continues to expand monetization and user base worldwide.

Top-line time spent with media will grow very little in the US going forward, making it essential to identify which formats and platforms are winning the newly zero-sum competition for consumer attention.

In our exclusive survey with ESW, data from shoppers in 18 countries reveals new twists in the path to purchase, the rising momentum of marketplaces, and the resilience of age-old fundamentals.

Trump shifts stance on TikTok ban: ByteDance lobbying strategy and younger voter appeal could have swayed the decision, irrespective of national security concerns.

Social platforms vie for attention at NewFronts: Meta, TikTok, and Snap all debuted ad updates designed to remain competitive amid a backdrop of uncertainty.

The biggest ecommerce disruptors face a reckoning: The closing of the de minimis exemption is forcing Shein, Temu, and TikTok Shop to pivot, but it isn鈥檛 clear that shoppers will follow.

Regulators slammed TikTok for failing to protect 175M EU users from potential Chinese access, fueling divestment and ban pressures worldwide.

BeReal launches its US ad business: The platform is looking to capitalize on TikTok鈥檚 uncertain future in the US.

While TikTok pioneered the most recent short-form video trend, YouTube has comfortably overtaken it in terms of user count. This is due to YouTube鈥檚 ability to put its own competing product directly in front of such a large and captive audience. It鈥檚 even pulling away from TikTok, and a US TikTok ban would likely boost these numbers.

US social commerce sales will crack the $100 billion mark in 2026, growing 18.0% YoY, per our forecast. TikTok Shop鈥檚 explosion is the driving force, with other volume growth spread across Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest. Click here to view our full forecast for US retail social commerce sales. Payment gateways will compete for this share of retail sales.

Click here to view our full forecast for US digital buyers, by generation. Gen Z far surpasses the total population in social media buyers in 2025 (56.0% versus 36.5%). Gen Zers already rely heavily on social media (particularly TikTok and Instagram) for evaluating brands and products, according to our 2024 US Consumer Path to Purchase survey.

Nearly three-quarters (71%) of US Gen Zers find new media content on YouTube, per Toluna, compared with 72% on social platforms like TikTok and Instagram and 60% via streaming playlists. In 2025, 50.2% of US marketers will use YouTube for influencer marketing, per our forecast. While that鈥檚 still behind 84.5% for Instagram and 61.2% for TikTok, YouTube is gaining ground.

The trend: Instagram is gaining momentum across Asia-Pacific, fueled by India鈥檚 2020 TikTok ban and a projected 10% user growth in that market for 2025. Japan鈥檚 forecast has also climbed, with 44.4 million users expected next year. Our take: Instagram鈥檚 rise isn鈥檛 just reactive鈥攊t鈥檚 a sign of strong localization and feature depth. With TikTok facing stricter laws in Australia and Southeast Asia, Instagram鈥檚 Reels and group-channel tools position it as the more stable, advertiser-friendly option. Brands targeting APAC should reevaluate platform strategies as Instagram captures more of the region鈥檚 fast-changing digital attention.