Shopify just upped its ad game by expanding its ad product, Shop Campaigns, to every merchant in the U.S. and Canada.

Once an exclusive perk for Shopify Plus users, the company’s enterprise-tier platform, this expansion now puts its ad network within reach of smaller businesses.

With more than two million merchants on board, ADWEEK reports Shopify is sharpening its focus on marketing services to compete in the e-commerce ad space dominated by Amazon.

While Shopify’s ad presence isn’t even close to being on Amazon’s level yet, industry experts are taking notice.

How Shop Campaigns work

Shopify Campaigns buy ads on behalf of merchants, targeting new customers on Meta, Google and its own Shop app and site.

Brands can sweeten the deal with cashback offers, which are then promoted through these platforms.

Shopify says these campaigns can drive up to 25% of a brand's new customers.

How to run a campaign

• Merchants set a budget and only pay Shopify if a sale happens through an ad.

• Merchants, however, must set a minimum budget equivalent to one order per day.

• For instance, if a brand's customer acquisition cost (CAC) is $50, the daily budget must be at least $50.

Is it worth it?

Mike Ryan, head of e-commerce insights at Smarter Ecommerce, notes that his team started spotting Shop Campaign ads on Google in September, though their volume remains low.

The Top Three 🥉

The industry’s most important stories today.

🥇 RECORD SALES, MEET RECORD RETURNS

Shoppers are expected to return $890B in merchandise this year, making up nearly 17% of retailers' annual sales. more

• 3 out of 4 consumers say free returns influence their buying decisions, while 2 out of 3 would be deterred by a bad returns experience.

• Gen Z’s "bracketing" habit is on the rise, with more than half buying multiple items with plans to return some.

🥈 CHEERS OR TEARS FOR FACEBOOK?

Facebook’s global ad revenue is set to surpass $100 billion in 2024, which would make it the second media brand after Google to hit that mark. more

• In the U.S., ad spend on the platform is projected to hit $39.5 billion in 2024, up 11.5% year-over-year.

• 🍾 But don’t break out the bubbly just yet, Zuck: Facebook’s global market share is still shrinking and is expected to fall from 89% in 2013 to 38% by 2025.

🥉 YOUTUBE KILLS CLICKS FOR CASH

Well, this is annoying af: YouTube has quietly made some of its embeds worse. Users can't click the title in an embed to open a video on YouTube anymore. more

• 🤔 Why would YouTube make it harder for people to click over to its app? Simple... money.

• YouTube's downgraded the embedded player, forcing publishers like Vox Media to use a different one that pays publishers less and YouTube more.

Today’s Other News ☑︎

Everything else that matters.

Advertising 📢

• Google is testing a new "Video" asset type, letting advertisers add video to search campaigns and other Google Ads. more

• Microsoft is rolling out updates focused on household attribution, which tracks ad engagement across devices in the same household, alongside new regulatory compliance features. more

Social Media 📱

• 🫠 Is anyone surprised? YouTube's new AI-generated comment replies are a hot mess. Instead of simple, relevant responses, users are reporting getting bizarre, misleading, or oddly intimate suggestions. more

• Snapchat has some festive updates, including new app themes like seasonal backgrounds and buttons for paying Snapchat+ users. Non-paying users get holiday-themed Lenses, plus the option to save messages in chats for 7 days. more

• 💸 TikTok’s lawyers been getting PAID this year: TikTok is now fighting back against Canada's order to cease operations, arguing it could cost hundreds of jobs. The company recently filed documents in Vancouver Federal Court, claiming the decision was "unreasonable" and "driven by improper purposes." more

• Facebook is testing a “No Edit” tag for Stories, letting brands and creators highlight when an image is untouched. more

Commerce 🛒

• 🔥 Despite the U.S. ban buzz, TikTok’s still thriving. TikTok Shop racked up more than $100M in single-day sales on Black Friday—triple last year's numbers. Between Black Friday and Cyber Monday, shoppers spiked 165% year-over-year. more

• TikTok's REALLY pushing in-stream shopping with a new rewards program, which is being promoted as a "Limited Time Offer." U.S. users can earn credits by inviting friends and shopping themselves, potentially earning hundreds of dollars a day. more

• Shoppers aren't feeling AI in retail. More than half say AI-driven personalization does nothing for their shopping experience, with just 8% seeing real value. While 3 out of 4 would rather get recommendations from humans. more

Search 🔍

• Google rolled out Gemini 2.0, its "new AI model," and it's already powering AI Overviews in Search. Google's CEO claims it handles more complex topics, advanced math, and coding. more

  • 🤦 Maybe now it’ll stop recommending eating rocks. 

Video and Streaming 📺

• Roku is teaming up with cross-platform ad firm Spaceback to offer advertisers a free tool that turns existing social media content into CTV-ready ads. more

• YouTube is adding more management features directly to the Channel page in the app, reducing the need for YouTube Studio. New creators will start with a simplified setup. Plus, you can now view your public subscriber list, all videos, and “Data Stories” insights on your Channel page. more

• YouTube is capitalizing on growing CTV viewership with new features. more

  • “Watch With” will let creators offer live commentary during games.

  • “Parent Code” will give parents control over kids' access.

  • A new "Subscribe" button will be added directly to the CTV video player.

• Twitch saw 9.5M new streamers hit "Go Live" on its platform for the first time in 2024, with an average of 7.3M individual streamers broadcasting each month throughout the year. more

  • 🎮️ Sure, not all first-timers stuck around, but it highlights Twitch’s dominance and its steady stream of new creators.

• Spotter, a startup that offers upfront financing to YouTubers, laid off staff just after securing a deal with Amazon. It’s not clear how big Amazon’s investment was or how many people lost their jobs. more

Policy and Regulation ⚖️

• Australia has created a new tax targeting big tech, forcing Meta and Google to either compensate local media for sharing news links that drive traffic to their platforms or face hefty fines. more

• Trump's FTC pick, Andrew Ferguson, may tighten data rules. Though he's supported ad targeting, Ferguson has slammed companies' data-collection practices and pushed for limits on how businesses gather data for personalized ads. more

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