蘑菇AV

The news: 26.5% of US adults with type 2 diabetes used a GLP-1 injectable drug last year, per CDC data published Thursday. Our take: While type 2 diabetes is still driving most GLP-1 prescribing today, there鈥檚 a healthcare opportunity to address obesity at the same time. Providers need to proactively educate patients with obesity about the risk for type 2 diabetes, while marketers can message GLP-1s as preventive care. Partner with physicians who鈥檝e seen the benefits for their patients and social influencers touting health benefits they鈥檝e gained after starting GLP-1s for weight loss.

Accenture Song has acquired Superdigital, a Florida-based social-first and influencer agency with clients including Microsoft, Welch鈥檚, and Nerf. Founded in 2013, Superdigital specializes in TikTok-driven content, community building, and creator-led campaigns, with activations ranging from Welch鈥檚 pop-ups to Microsoft鈥檚 AI influencer work. The deal reflects a broader wave of M&A as consultancies and holding companies buy into the creator economy. With social and influencer marketing outpacing other formats, the move positions Accenture to win young, digital-first audiences and scale creator-driven growth.

The news: Brands are ramping up influencer investment and creator rates are skyrocketing following Unilever鈥檚 commitment to allocate half of its advertising budget on an 鈥渋苍蹿濒耻别苍肠别谤-first鈥� strategy. Numerous influencer and social agencies 鈥渦nanimously鈥� claimed a notable increase in client spend on influencer marketing since Unilever鈥檚 announcement, per sources cited by The Drum. Our take: Unilever has accelerated a trend that was already in motion, signaling the broader shift among advertisers toward influencer-led strategies that deliver consistent engagement and targeted reach among key demographics.

Backlash over e.l.f. Beauty鈥檚 partnership with controversial creator Matt Rife and debates sparked by Sydney Sweeney鈥檚 American Eagle ad shows that advertisers are facing a moment of heightened scrutiny that requires rigorous vetting of influencer partnerships. As audiences turn to influencers for purchasing decisions and rethink brand loyalty for those who turn their backs on social issues, brands who remain selective and thorough about the creators they work with will win trust.

The news: Weight loss drug prescribing for children and teens increased significantly after the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommended the medications鈥� use, per a new Harvard study. Our take: Word-of-mouth recommendations and testimonials on social media are driving weight loss drugs鈥� popularity with young people. GLP-1 marketers have an opportunity to provide medically responsible, but social friendly and engaging content by partnering with influencers, creating behind-the-science video content, and developing edutainment FAQs for interested young consumers.

The news: Social media is no longer just a branding tool鈥攊t鈥檚 a commerce engine, particularly among Gen Z. Over half (56%) of US Gen Zers have made a purchase because of a social media influencer, per CivicScience鈥檚 2025 Gen Z Media Consumption report. That鈥檚 up from 41% in 2023. 52% of Gen Zers have made a purchase directly on a social media platform, compared with 32% of adults over 30. Our take: Gen Z鈥檚 buying behavior is embedded in social-first platforms, where influence equals transaction. Partnerships with nano-influencers, who often have extremely engaged audiences, can help boost reach. Brands should test direct in-platform checkout integration on social media to boost conversion and capitalize on growing ecommerce options on platforms like TikTok and Instagram.

The news: Here鈥檚 a look back at the most popular stories from January through June 2025. The final word: Gen Z鈥檚 healthcare attitudes, social health influencers, marketing strategies, and how patients use AI drew the most attention from our audience.

The trend: Younger generations continue to prioritize wellness more than older consumers and are purchasing products across a range of health and well-being categories. Our take: Sharing practical tips and advice is helpful, but brands and marketers can further stand out on social platforms by replying to users鈥� comments and questions within a post. Building partnerships with wellness influencers is essential, and it鈥檚 important to find creators who have real-life experiences that are relatable to the targeted audience.

The news: Generative AI (genAI) is taking on a multifaceted role in users鈥� lives, as an influencer, a personal companion, and a consumer proxy. 87% of genAI users would consider asking the technology for social or relationship advice, per Accenture鈥檚 Me, My Brand and AI: The New World of Consumer Engagement survey. Our take: Embedding AI tools like chatbots, agents, and recommendation engines into brand websites can help users shop faster and discover new content. Offering transparency around data use and building opt-out features could help users trust the tools more and give them the peace of mind to hand over personal information in exchange for assistance and recommendations.

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.

Social shoppers find inspiration for their purchases from many different types of content, but none more so than creator, influencer, or celebrity influencer content.

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.

Consumers trust social health 颈苍蹿濒耻别苍肠别谤蝉鈥� medical advice: The influencer opportunity is one that can鈥檛 be ignored by healthcare and pharma brands.

Unilever invests big in social channels: The company plans to spend half of its media budget on a new strategy that puts influencers front and center of its marketing.

Influencer marketing spend will grow15% YoY, outpacing digital and social ad spending, and will reach $10.52 billion in 2025, 蘑菇AV forecasts. Despite its growth, influencer marketing has maintained a core communication issue鈥攏o one knows what to call the people who are doing the work.

The news: YouTube is testing a collaboration option that allows all creators to share credit on individual videos, boosting visibility across channels. MrBeast is among the first to trial the co-author credits. Our take: YouTube is copying an offering that Instagram and TikTok have already rolled out鈥攁 common tactic across social media. It will likely give influencers鈥擸ouTube鈥檚 bread and butter鈥攁 helping hand to increase collaborations and subscriber counts. But it could also decrease production as multiple creators share a single video without producing their own individual content.

The news: WPP has lost the $1.7 billion Mars global media account to Publicis, just months after parting with Coca-Cola鈥檚 North America business. The deal encompasses media, social, production, and commerce, and further weakens WPP鈥檚 hold on major global clients. Our take: WPP鈥檚 loss is both financial and reputational鈥攁nd their aggressive counterattack via a client-facing report signals a deeper crisis. As rivals like Publicis gain ground and agency power consolidates, WPP鈥檚 public posture and CEO transition raise questions about future strategy. Winning back trust will require more than critiques of the competition鈥攊t will demand structural clarity and client-first execution.

The news: Instagram added new limitations to its livestream feature, now requiring creators to have a public account with over 1,000 followers to go live, per TechCrunch. Our take: While it could benefit Meta鈥檚 competitive position in the livestream space, Instagram鈥檚 latest restrictions will harm creators looking to break into the influencer space鈥攏ecessitating rapid adaptation. Smaller creators could shift attention to other platforms with less restrictive livestream requirements鈥攖hink YouTube, which only requires 50 subscribers to go live, and Twitch, which has no livestream minimum.

The news: YouTube, Instagram, Twitch, and TikTok each offer unique advantages and drawbacks for gamer ad reach, per HypeAuditor鈥檚 2025 State of Gaming report. Choosing the right platform depends on what kind of impact marketers want to make. Our take: Marketers should boost campaign performance with influencer partnerships on these platforms since creators often understand their audience better than companies do. Track success platform by platform to help tailor ad strategies, capitalize on UGC, and maximize return on investment.

The news: Pinterest will host high-performing influencer content posted on affiliate shopping platform LTK, automatically bringing popular images from the platform to Pinterest, according to The Verge. Pinterest also hired Chip Jessopp, former Amazon director of global accounts and ad tech sales, as head of programmatic, per Digiday. Jessopp will help Pinterest create new demand channels while scaling its programmatic abilities. Our take: Pinterest鈥檚 moves could better position it as a legitimate competitor in digital advertising and a promising growth area for influencers and marketers鈥攇iving the platform more legs against social commerce giants like Meta and TikTok.

The news: Brands are increasingly engaging with nano-, micro-, and mid-tier influencers鈥攃reators with up to 10,000, 50,000, 500,000 followers, respectively鈥攁nd shifting away from macro- and mega-influencers with larger followings. Nano-influencers maintain the highest engagement rate across influencer categories on Instagram at 6.23%. On Instagram, there鈥檚 a notable trend of engagement rates decreasing as follower count increases. Our take: Partnering with nano-, micro-, and mid-tier influencers enables brands to tap into deeper authenticity and niche audiences, translating to more meaningful engagement and higher ROI than broader, but less personal, macro-influencer campaigns.

The news: Faceless creators and VTubers are gaining momentum as brands look for cost-effective, scalable influencer marketing options. Networks like AffiliateNetwork are growing rapidly, with top earners bringing in $30K鈥�$40K monthly using AI-powered tactics. Creators run multiple accounts, post hundreds of videos, and rely on formats like AI-generated texting stories to deliver results. Our take: This shift marks a new phase in creator marketing鈥攐ne defined less by personality and more by production speed and performance. As AI tools improve and creator skepticism fades, brands will increasingly work with digital personas that deliver value at scale鈥攔egardless of whether there鈥檚 a human on camera.