The Risks Brands Take by Neglecting Social Media Marketing

For US retail websites, when shopping is at its peak, social media proves indispensable. A substantial portion of holiday income for retailers, precisely a quarter, originated from interactions on social media or through affiliates, including figures like influencers. This share of revenue attributed to social media marketing surged by 40% over the previous year.

Neglecting investment in social media marketing is a risk brands cannot afford. Around 25% of revenue generated on American retail platforms during the holiday period was due to social media interactions or affiliate marketing through influencers, media outlets, and various partners, based on an analysis by Adobe of digital consumer transactions. Although growing, influencer marketing still trails behind more traditional avenues like search and digital video in yearly US advertising budgets.

Affiliation and partnership marketing, which involves brands paying influencers, publishers, and others for promoting products, made up about 20% of the $258 billion in holiday revenue across US retail sites. This form of marketing saw a 16% increase in revenue share during the 2025 holiday season as opposed to the previous year.

Excluding influencer-generated content, social media promotional activities saw a 40% uptick in November and December compared to the prior year, deemed a significant highlight in Adobe's findings. This category contributed approximately 5% to the revenue of US retail websites. Adobe's calculations were based on user interactions from non-affiliate social media posts that resulted in purchases on retailer websites.

Notably, Adobe’s study focused solely on sales from US retail sites, excluding direct purchases made on social media platforms like TikTok Shop. The latter reportedly facilitated over $500 million in US sales during the Black Friday and Cyber Monday window, as per Business Insider.

In 2025, TikTok Shop emerged as one of the rapidly expanding brands in America, according to a Morning Consult survey about consumer buying behavior. Esteemed brands such as Ralph Lauren and Samsung became part of the platform in the US, following its increasing popularity.

Currently, US consumers are more reliant than ever on social applications to influence their purchasing decisions. There's an observable trend of adopting purchasing patterns akin to those in regions like Asia, where influencers can persuade viewers to spend hefty sums during live streams. Many consider content creators to be both genuine and reliable shopping advisors.

Initially slow in the US due to established giants like Amazon and Walmart setting consumer trends, social commerce is gaining momentum. TikTok Shop, Whatnot, and other platforms are conditioning consumers to make purchases directly via social media.

For Chief Marketing Officers and e-commerce leaders eyeing success in 2026, the lesson is clear: treat your social media strategy with the same rigor as your search and email marketing plans, or risk being left behind.