蘑菇AV

K-beauty demand is soaring: South Korea outpaced France as the top source of US cosmetics imports in 2024.

And unfortunately for consumers, tariffs are all but guaranteed to result in higher prices, even for products made in the US. Items from South Korea and France鈥攖he two top importers of beauty products to the US鈥攁re currently subject to a 10% universal tariff. That number could rise to 25% for Korean imports and 20% for French goods once the temporary reprieve on reciprocal duties is up in July.

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.

Trump鈥檚 鈥淟iberation Day鈥� provides little clarity: The tariff announcements, while far-ranging and punitive for the 鲍厂鈥� largest trading partners, failed to lift the cloud of uncertainty hanging over businesses and consumers.

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.

On today's podcast episode, we discuss what would happen if TikTok is (or isn鈥檛) banned in America, what marketers get most wrong about consumers, will AI smartphones be impactful right out of the gate, will most companies eventually ask employees to be in the office five days a week, the world's favorite drinks, and more. Tune in to the discussion with our analysts Blake Droesch, Bill Fisher, and Carina Perkins.

Advertisers are stepping back from TikTok: CPMs fell significantly YoY, but advertisers should focus on diversification, not total abandonment, for the best results.

In part two of this two-part podcast episode, we discuss why China and ByteDance might blink and sell TikTok to a US company, why a law around children's online safety will get passed, and what will happen if Dish Network and DirecTV merge. Tune in to the discussion with host Marcus Johnson, and analysts Ross Benes, Evelyn Mitchell, and Max Willens.

Visual demonstration is the main reason TikTok users seek brands on the platform. The content that resonates most with consumers is both relevant and engaging. 58% of US TikTok users say relevance is the most important characteristic of brand recommendation, while 42% say the same about video length.

Zooming out: Substack is continuing its push to broaden its offerings and gain more traffic by recruiting YouTube and TikTok creators with dedicated audiences. Substack launched its TikTok Liberation Prize in January, awarding TikToker Aaron Parnas $25,000 for posting a clip persuading TikTok viewers to join Substack.

Pinterest鈥檚 ad revenues are growing steadily, expected to reach $3.86 billion in the US by 2027. Pinterest is benefiting from uncertainty surrounding a potential TikTok ban in the US. As TikTok鈥檚 CPMs have sharply declined, Pinterest鈥檚 have skyrocketed, growing 120% YoY, per an AdRoll report.

Whether or not TikTok gets banned in the US, Snapchat stands to gain from TikTok鈥檚 volatility. Advertisers are increasingly hesitant about investing in TikTok, with the platform鈥檚 CPMs falling significantly. Creators are diversifying their content and investing in alternatives like Snapchat.

More than 44% of social shoppers had made a beauty purchase via TikTok, per our US Social Commerce survey conducted in March 2024, just six months after TikTok Shop launched. Brands in the beauty space have been among the earliest adopters of TikTok Shop. The platform was already a hub of beauty-related content such as product reviews, tutorials, and 鈥済et ready with me鈥� videos.

Marketers can use this to recognize high growth areas of investment strategies and acknowledge the uncertainty shown in TikTok investments as a potential nudge to diversify their social ad spend.

While TikTok is a dominant force in short-form video advertising, the platform鈥檚 legal status in the US remains unresolved. It looks more likely that TikTok will stay in the US market, but Meta鈥檚 Reels, Snap鈥檚 Spotlight, and Pinterest鈥檚 AI-powered discovery ads are all positioned to capture potential ad spend shifts if TikTok faces more regulatory challenges.

TikTok extends its partnership with MLS: The move is part of a broader trend of brands investing in sports.

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.

Smaller players and TikTok will lead in growth. If TikTok avoids a US ban, it will grow its ad revenues by 32.1% this year, reaching almost $35 billion. However, given that about 44% of TikTok鈥檚 ad revenues come from the US, its final 2025 figures could end up radically different.

But the popularity of TikTok Shop, which is integrated with TikTok Live, has kept growth in consumer adoption of livestream shopping in the double digits. We expect that US livestream buyers will surpass 60 million by 2028. Click here to view our full forecast for US livestreaming retail ecommerce buyers.