The Rise of Social Commerce and What It Means for Brands

TL;DR

Social commerce turns social feeds into discovery and purchase channels, changing how brands create demand and convert shoppers.

· Social commerce blends content, creators, product discovery, and purchasing inside or directly from social platforms.

· US social commerce sales are expected to exceed $100 billion in 2026, according to EMARKETER.

· Younger consumers increasingly use social content and creator recommendations to influence what they buy.

· Brands need content built for discovery, rather than product ads placed inside social feeds.

· Measurement, platform dependence, disclosure rules, and trust remain major challenges.

Introduction

Social media used to sit near the top of the marketing funnel. Brands posted content, bought reach, and hoped shoppers eventually reached a product page. Social commerce is compressing that journey. A product can appear in a creator video, collect social proof, and lead directly to purchase within minutes.

Social commerce is buying and selling through social platforms, including purchases completed on-platform or immediately after a social interaction. The shift matters because social networks are becoming places where demand begins, rather than simple campaign distribution channels.

The US market is already large enough to change brand planning. EMARKETER forecast US social commerce sales above $100 billion in 2026, after reaching $87.02 billion in 2025. Every social platform will not become a full storefront. Still, content, creators, commerce operations, and measurement can no longer work as separate teams.

What Is Social Commerce and How Does It Work?

Social commerce connects product discovery and buying activity to a social experience. A shopper can find products through short videos, livestreams, creator recommendations, shoppable posts, or community discussions. The journey can end with an in-app purchase or a direct link to retailer checkout.

The key difference is context. Traditional ecommerce often begins with intent. A shopper searches for a product or visits a retailer because a need already exists. Social commerce can create that need while the shopper is consuming content.

That journey usually includes several connected elements:

· Discovery content: Short videos, posts, livestreams, and recommendations introduce products during normal social browsing.

· Creator influence: Creators explain products, demonstrate use cases, compare options, and answer questions in familiar formats.

· Product tagging: Shoppable tags connect content to product details, pricing, availability, or checkout.

·         Social proof: Comments, reviews, reactions, and community discussion can influence confidence before purchase.

· Faster conversion: Fewer steps between interest and checkout reduce the distance between inspiration and transaction.

TikTok calls this model “discovery e-commerce.” In June 2025, TikTok reported US Shop sales growth of 120% year over year. The platform also said sellers offered over 70 million products across more than 750 categories.

Why Social Commerce Is Growing in 2026

Social commerce is growing as attention, product discovery, and shopping tools meet in the same feed. Platforms are also making commerce easier for creators and brands. Product tagging, affiliate tools, live shopping, and integrated checkout reduce friction between content and purchase.

The broader ecommerce market provides useful context. The US Census Bureau reported $340.2 billion in seasonally adjusted retail ecommerce sales during Q2 2026. Ecommerce represented 17.1% of total US retail sales for that quarter.

Social commerce remains a smaller part of online retail, but its growth rate is faster. EMARKETER estimated US social commerce sales at $87.02 billion in 2025, up 21.5% year over year. The firm forecast another 18% increase in 2026.

Younger consumers are helping drive that momentum. Deloitte found strong purchasing influence from social content among younger respondents in its 2025 survey. Specifically, 63% of Gen Z and 49% of millennials chose social ads or product reviews as most influential. The survey covered 3,595 US consumers.

The result is a different customer journey. Search still matters, and retailer websites still matter. More purchase decisions can now begin before a shopper types a product name into a search box.

Social Commerce vs. Ecommerce: What Is the Difference?

Social commerce and ecommerce both support online purchases, but they often begin with different consumer behaviors. Ecommerce commonly starts with active shopping intent. Social commerce starts with discovery, influence, and interaction that can create buying intent.

The distinction is becoming less rigid. Social platforms are adding commerce tools, while retailers are adding video, creator content, and social proof. Brands need both experiences to connect. Customer data, inventory accuracy, and brand consistency should survive the handoff.

That connection also affects customer ownership. A sale completed inside a platform can leave brands with less first-party information than a direct ecommerce purchase. Teams should understand what order, attribution, and customer data each platform returns before shifting more revenue into the channel.

How Creators Are Reshaping the Social Shopping Journey

Creators turn product education into content people choose to watch. Their role works especially well when products benefit from demonstration, comparison, styling, testing, or explanation. That puts creator content earlier in discovery and closer to purchase.

YouTube provides a current example. In September 2026, YouTube said over 1.3 million creators participated in its Shopping affiliate program. The company also reported 13-fold gross merchandise value growth over the previous two years.

YouTube is widening access to the model. Eligible creators can tag products across Shorts, long-form videos, and livestreams. In August 2026, the platform also added Amazon products to its US affiliate program.

Discovery is part of that value. A 2025 US survey cited by YouTube focused on online Gen Z respondents ages 14 to 24. In that survey, 61% agreed YouTube helped them discover brands or products they did not already know.

The shift changes how brands should view creators. A creator can be an educator, demonstrator, affiliate, community host, and conversion partner within one content program.

What Social Commerce Means for Brands

Social commerce changes more than media buying. Brands need faster creative operations, stronger creator partnerships, connected product data, and clearer team ownership. The opportunity is shortening the gap between attention and action without making every post feel like an ad.

Several implications stand out:

· Content becomes merchandising: Product benefits must work inside videos, livestreams, comments, and creator narratives, rather than only on product pages.

· Creators become distribution: Brands can reach communities through people who understand the audience, format, and platform language.

· Discovery needs measurement: Views and engagement matter less if brands cannot connect social activity to product interest, checkout, or revenue.

· Operations become visible: Poor inventory data, slow fulfillment, weak service, or confusing returns can damage a successful social campaign.

· Creative cycles get shorter: Trends move fast, so approval systems must support timely content without weakening legal or brand controls.

A strong social commerce strategy sits between brand marketing and retail execution. Social teams cannot carry it alone.

Building a Social Commerce Strategy That Converts

A social commerce strategy should start with the customer journey. Platform features come second. Brands need to know where discovery happens, which content earns trust, and where shoppers prefer to buy. The goal is lower friction with credible experiences.

A practical approach looks like this:

1. Map discovery moments: Identify products where social content already influences consideration. Reviews, demonstrations, style inspiration, and tutorials are strong starting points.

2.  Choose platform roles: Decide which platforms fit discovery, creator partnerships, live interaction, retargeting, and conversion. Avoid copying one execution everywhere.

3. Build creator fit: Select creators for audience relevance, content quality, trust, and product knowledge. Follower count alone is a weak decision rule.

4. Connect product data: Keep pricing, availability, product details, and fulfillment information accurate across social and ecommerce systems.

5. Design native creative: Make content that fits how people use the platform. Product education should feel useful before it feels promotional.

6. Measure full-funnel impact: Track assisted discovery, clicks, product views, conversion, acquisition cost, repeat purchase, and creator-level performance.

7. Test and learn: Compare creators, formats, offers, landing experiences, and checkout paths. Scale patterns that improve revenue quality, rather than reach alone.

Social commerce rewards experimentation, but random experimentation wastes budget. A clear test structure makes learning reusable.

The Risks and Challenges Brands Cannot Ignore

Social commerce can shorten the purchase journey, but it also concentrates risk inside third-party platforms. Brands give up some control over algorithms, customer relationships, and transaction environments. Faster growth makes governance more valuable.

Four risks deserve attention:

· Platform dependence: Algorithm changes, policy updates, or feature changes can alter reach and conversion quickly. Avoid building revenue around one platform.

· Disclosure compliance: As of September 2026, the Federal Trade Commission requires clear disclosure when endorsers have a material connection to a brand. Paid or gifted creator content needs proper disclosure.

· Trust and authenticity: Over-scripted creator content can weaken the credibility that made the partnership useful. Guardrails should not remove the creator’s voice.

·  Measurement gaps: Social discovery can influence purchases completed later or elsewhere. Last-click attribution can understate influence, while platform reporting has its own limits.

Operational risk also matters. Viral demand can create stockouts, delivery delays, customer service spikes, and return problems. Attention is not useful if the brand cannot fulfill orders well.

What Comes Next for Social Commerce

Social commerce is moving toward tighter links between discovery, recommendation, assistance, and checkout. The next phase will likely bring more creator monetization and better in-content shopping. Artificial intelligence-assisted product discovery and smoother cross-screen checkout are also developing.

YouTube’s September 2026 updates show the direction. The company is expanding product recommendations, affiliate tools, creator-brand partnerships, and localized shopping links. TikTok has already shown how livestreams and short-form content can turn discovery into transactions.

For brands, the opportunity is bigger than adding buy buttons to social posts. Social commerce requires content that creates demand and systems that capture it. Operations then need to keep the promise after checkout.

Brands that adapt well will treat social commerce as a connected customer journey, rather than another isolated campaign channel.

FAQs

Is Social Commerce the Same as Social Selling?

No. Social commerce focuses on consumer product discovery and purchases through social platforms. Social selling usually describes relationship-building by sales teams, often in business-to-business markets. Both use social networks, but their goals, audiences, and measurement models are different.

Which Products Work Best for Social Commerce?

Products that are easy to demonstrate, compare, style, explain, or recommend often fit social commerce well. Beauty, fashion, accessories, wellness, household items, and consumer electronics are common examples. Strong visual appeal helps, but clear product value and reliable fulfillment matter more than category alone.

Does Social Commerce Require In-App Checkout?

No. Social commerce can include purchases completed inside a social platform or through a linked retailer checkout. The defining feature is direct influence from social discovery, content, or interaction during the shopping journey.

How Should Brands Measure Social Commerce ROI?

Brands should combine platform metrics with commerce outcomes. Useful measures include product views, clicks, conversion, acquisition cost, revenue, average order value, and repeat purchase. Assisted conversions also matter because social discovery may influence purchases completed later.

Can Small Brands Compete in Social Commerce?

Yes. Social commerce can help smaller brands reach specific communities without relying only on large media budgets. Niche creators, useful demonstrations, and responsive service can support discovery. Small brands still need dependable inventory, fulfillment, and measurement before scaling.