The creator economy is maturing. While brand deals are still the No. 1 revenue stream for creators, more are going directly to consumers to monetize.

In the last of five reports in our “Payments Ecosystem” collection, we look at what’s influencing retail sales growth across in-store, online, and social commerce channels—and what it means for payment providers.

Brazil is Latin America’s largest retail ecommerce market by total sales volume and will be this year’s third-fastest-growing digital economy worldwide. Understanding the nuances of how and where Brazil’s diverse consumer base spends its money online is key for brands and retailers to thrive in this highly competitive ecommerce market.

Total media ad spending growth has stabilized, and digital ad spending is set for an extended period of low double-digit annual increases. Amazon, TikTok, and Instagram will be the main growth drivers this year.

Meta’s latest AI advertising rollout reveals a significant shift: Free, broad access to AI creative will help win favor with brands, but ethical quandaries are unresolved.

LinkedIn is at a turning point: Users are more engaged than ever, ad revenues are rising, and creators are inking deals on the platform. And LinkedIn’s appeal among both B2B and B2C marketers is growing.

Social video is getting an additional boost in daily time spent this year. It’s mostly coming from a less expected place—Meta—even as TikTok continues to dominate in total time spent.

“What will happen next?” That’s the big question marketers have following the signing of a potential TikTok ban into law, according to Liz Cole, chief social officer at VML. While marketers don’t know if parent company ByteDance will sell TikTok, shut the platform down in the US, or find a way to fend off the legislation in court, they can prepare now for what’s to come.

US social media ad spending will ride the momentum platforms built in H2 2023 thanks to AI, social video advertising growth, and a fixation on bottom-funnel outcomes.

On today's podcast episode, we discuss what happens now that the TikTok ban bill has been signed into law, whether AI is ready to significantly change search, the likelihood that Threads ads will be a hit, what social commerce's ceiling will be, the WNBA and the sports gender pay gap, and more. Tune into the discussion with analysts Jasmine Enberg, Minda Smiley, and Max Willens.

Meta posted Q1 earnings that beat estimates on Wednesday, but its shares slumped on disappointing Q2 guidance as it outlined plans for heavy AI investments.

Ad spending will rebound in 2024, as mobile formats continue to dominate and areas like connected TV and retail media drive renewed growth.

Recent data suggests that baby boomers, often stereotyped as technologically challenged, are instead simply selective in the digital media they consume.

Since its launch in September 2023, over 11% of US households have purchased items via TikTok Shop, according to data from a recent Earnest Analytics’ report, which analyzed credit card transaction data to learn more about TikTok Shop users.

In 2024, a perfect storm of technology, business, and consumer behavior trends will conspire to intensify the challenges of protecting brands on digital media.

Time spent on social media by US users is set to plateau in 2025. But there are substantial differences in how different age groups spend time on social platforms.

Don’t let the myths get you down, social shopping is alive and well. Gen Z is full of contradictions. And “TikTok-famous” is becoming synonymous with Hollywood famous. Here are three key takeaways from Shoptalk 2024.

US adults will spend 7 more minutes per day with media in 2024 than they did in 2023, confounding expectations of a post-pandemic reduction in screen and audio time.

To reach the overwhelmingly young, diverse, and growing population of Hispanic consumers in the US, advertisers must understand their media preferences.

As Latin America’s digital revolution marches on, advertisers and retailers must keep pace with how and where consumers are spending their time—and money—if they wish to maintain a competitive edge in today’s rapidly evolving business environment.