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The UK ad market is under as much pressure as it鈥檚 ever faced. But while spending growth will hit a historical low, there are some positive signs for advertisers with experimentation away from the duopoly a very real possibility.

In most countries, TikTok bans are currently limited to government devices. But global and international marketers who rely on TikTok need to be ready to pivot their strategies in case a broader US ban causes a ripple effect in other markets.

Key stat: Marketers are actively using emerging social platforms. 82% are either already posting on or planning to build a presence on Bluesky, while 80% of marketers are either posting on or planning to build a presence on Threads, according to a Sprout Social survey of marketers in the US, UK, and Australia.

Note that GWI interviews and represents each country's online population ages 16+ (in Canada, Hong Kong, Japan, Israel, Singapore, the UK, and the US) or ages 16-64 (in other markets)鈥攏ot its total population.

I don't think we're going to see a sudden huge shift to lots of people completing their purchases on social commerce platforms, but I think it is going to become more common, especially as TikTok shop gains additional sales, because they've got that native checkout in the UK. We're actually quite limited in terms of how we can check out via social platforms.

On today's episode, in our "Retail Me This, Retail Me That" segment, we discuss what TikTok's flywheel looks like, its latest efforts to build out its own shopping platform, and what the social network has that Meta doesn't. Then, for "Pop-Up Rankings," we rank our top four existing TikTok copycat apps. Join our analyst Sara Lebow as she hosts analysts Sky Canaves and Jasmine Enberg.

This year, we鈥檙e in a Brat girl summer. The lime green trend used by Vice President Kamala Harris鈥檚 campaign joins a handful of other trends going viral this summer. Marketers may be too late to capitalize with their own content, but there are still important takeaways from these TikTok trends that advertisers can apply long after the trends become outdated.

Social media advertising on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, X, Snapchat, and Pinterest heavily targets mobile devices. This, along with consumption of mobile video (particularly YouTube), is driving the shift to mobile spending. Daily time spent with mobile devices will be 4 hours, 8 minutes (4:08) this year, per our forecast. Click here to view our full forecast on Canada digital ad spending by device.

TikTok鈥檚 rapid ascent in social commerce is drawing comparisons to Amazon鈥檚 flywheel strategy. The platform is taking multiple steps to achieve its goal of quadrupling its global ecommerce business to a potential $20 billion in annual merchandise sales through TikTok Shop. Here鈥檚 what鈥檚 working, what isn鈥檛, and what has yet to be seen.

By 2025, US adults will spend more time on TikTok than on Facebook, according to our June forecast. This marks a major milestone for TikTok, which is on track to become the largest social platform in total daily minutes by the same year.

TikTok, meanwhile, faces a January deadline to divest or be banned鈥攁lthough Trump has expressed a desire to 鈥渟ave 罢颈办罢辞办鈥� in a reversal of his previous stance against the platform. In the EU, the companies have been classified as very large online platforms (VLOPs), which subjects them to stricter scrutiny.

Another US survey, conducted on behalf of VTEX, finds even more striking results, with 45% of respondents participating in a livestream shopping event hosted on marketplaces like Poshmark or Amazon, and 61% shopping on social platforms such as TikTok Shop or YouTube Shopping.

On today's podcast episode, in our "Retail Me This, Retail Me That" segment, we discuss how toy brands are using TikTok as a marketing channel for children and adults alike, and how brands are making their toy stores more experiential to drive sales. Then, for "Pop-Up Rankings," we rank toy brands whose creative marketing strategies are making their toys stand out. Join our analyst Sara Lebow as she hosts analysts Sky Canaves and Carina Perkins.

It also recently launched in key Western European markets including France, Germany, and the UK, where its low prices are likely to find a receptive audience amid high inflation. TikTok won鈥檛 hurry to bring Chinese sellers to the US.

UK retailers are leading the charge on in-store retail media, thanks to their already extensive digital screen networks. Here鈥檚 what brands and retailers worldwide can learn from the digitization of UK stores.

In the UK, 46% of adults use cash more now than a year ago, and 12% credited physical money with cutting spending. The trend is stronger with younger consumers: 69% of US Gen Zers use cash more than a year ago, and 23% say they use it for the majority of purchases. TikTok fads like 鈥渃ash stuffing,鈥� where shoppers put money in envelopes to control spending, could be behind that uptick.

Social media users in select countries (US, UK, Australia, France, and Saudi Arabia) trust brands over influencers when it comes to finance, apparel, and skincare, per an October study from Snap Inc. and IPG Magna. Finance is where this trend is most pronounced.

The US comes in second ($1.251 trillion) with the UK trailing in third, with $220.55 billion in ecommerce sales this year, per our forecast. Use this chart:. Illustrate ecommerce鈥檚 growing share of total retail sales worldwide. Adjust ecommerce strategy to align with future trends. More like this:. What a TikTok ban would mean for ecommerce brands. The top 10 ecommerce sites in the US.

TikTok recently announced a new AI avatar service in the US. However, in recent years, tech companies in China already offered services enabling marketers to deploy AI-generated digital avatars to promote products in ads and even livestreams.

TikTok is battling the Canadian government in court after its offices were ordered to close in November 2024 over national security concerns. The app remains available and widely used, but that could change if TikTok loses the case or faces new regulatory constraints in Canada or beyond.

蘑菇AV 85% of brands in France run campaigns on Instagram, while TikTok and YouTube are utilized by 69% and 58% of brands in France, respectively, per a 2024 report by Kolsquare and NewtonX. Shein exemplifies successful social commerce strategy.