The AdNews end of year Perspectives, looking back at 2025 and forward to next year.
Adam Furness, Managing Director APJ, impact.com
The way we buy has completely changed. The way we market? Not so much.
Today’s consumers scroll past banner ads, skip pre-rolls, and close pop-ups — not only because they distrust advertising, but because they’ve also stopped paying attention. Instead, people are discovering products through TikTok reviews, Reddit threads, YouTube tutorials, Discord servers and, increasingly, generative AI platforms. They trust creators they follow, friends they admire, and the communities they belong to far more than brand slogans or polished campaigns.
And yet, marketing spend tells a very different story.
Globally, brands are expected to pour more than $700 billion into digital marketing this year, with most of that going into paid search, social and programmatic display. But these channels are delivering diminishing returns. Customer acquisition costs have risen 222% in the last decade, while effectiveness has gone the other way.
Marketers are still spending like it’s 2005, but consumers are living in 2025.
Back then, marketing was loud and linear. Whoever had the biggest budget, the longest TV spot or the flashiest billboard usually won. Scale was the strategy, budget was the weapon, and reach was the measure of success.
But the game has changed. With more than seven billion smartphones in use globally, access to information, opinions and influence is instant. The path to purchase is no longer linear or brand-controlled, it’s social, fluid, and shaped by real people.
Consequently, we’re seeing the rise of partner-led performance. Creators, affiliates, advocates and commerce content publishers are fast becoming the new engines of growth. They offer something media spend can’t buy: trust.
Creators, in particular, have become the modern publishers. They’re no longer “just” influencers; they’re product reviewers, storytellers and recommendation engines. Consumers don’t turn to magazines or static review sites anymore. They watch, scroll, share and follow. And increasingly, the same content that drives social discovery also shapes what people ask AI platforms like ChatGPT when deciding what to buy.
This shift means it’s time to rethink how we define “performance.” In a world where ad costs have tripled and conversion rates continue to fall, brands need to ask what really drives ROI.
Partnerships consistently deliver stronger results with lower customer acquisition costs, higher lifetime value and greater brand equity. According to our recent Global State of Affiliate Marketing Report, 71% of Australian marketers plan to increase their investment in partnerships. Some of the world’s biggest brands are already moving in that direction. Unilever, for instance, has announced it will shift half of its media budget into social channels and increase its influencer investment twentyfold.
The brands with the most advanced partnership programs have moved well beyond the old “affiliate equals coupon site” model. Today, they’re co-creating with creators, turning loyal customers into advocates, and building communities that drive long-term growth. They’re not just advertising around culture — they’re part of it.
And it’s paying off. 83% of marketers say partnerships are more cost-effective than other marketing strategies, while 80% report stronger return on ad spend. In Australia, 55% of brands now generate more than 20% of their total revenue through partnerships, and 78% have seen that revenue grow in the past year.
The performance stack is being rebuilt around people.
Consumers have moved on. It’s time marketing caught up.
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