Creators Spur More Spend this Holiday Season, Adobe Forecasts

But increasingly, creators are helping drive more spending. Traffic from affiliates and partners, including social media influencers, will account for a 17.2% share of online spend, and marks the fastest area of growth, (expected to grow between 7% to 10%, versus last year), outpacing retailer traffic from social media, which is expected to grow by 4% to 7%.

In 2024, Adobe’s data shows that influencers are converting shoppers 10 times more than social media overall, and this trend is expected to continue during the holiday season. Additionally, 37% of Gen Z respondents have made a purchase based on an influencer’s recommendation, according to Adobe’s survey.

Bigger discounts + inflation easing = happy consumers

Increasingly, as prices have been rising, shoppers have opted to buy cheaper items online. As inflation starts to ease, people are more willing to consider upgrading high-value items such as electronics, sporting goods, furniture, and more.

Adobe looked at prices in different categories and divided them into four groups, from the most to least expensive. The firm then looked at the percentage of items sold in the most and least expensive groups from April 2019 to August 2024. The company found that the share of the cheapest items increased by 46%, while the share of the most expensive items decreased by 47% during this time.

This season, Adobe predicts there will be significant discounts of up to 30% off listed prices as retailers compete for consumer spending, a similar level to those offered in 2023.

According to Adobe’s data, electronics are expected to have the highest discounts at 30% off the listed price (compared to 31% in 2023), while toys are expected to be discounted by 27% (compared to 28%).

TV discounts are predicted to reach a record high of 24% (compared to 23%) and sporting goods at 20% (compared to 18%). Other categories with notable discounts include apparel at 23% (compared to 24%), computers at 23% (compared to 24%), furniture at 19% (compared to 21%), and appliances at 18% (unchanged from 18% in 2023).