The 2025 Marketing Playbook

Your weekly dose of growth marketing news & tactics for DTC brands.

Author

The DTC Insider
February 19, 2025

In partnership with

Welcome to this issue of The DTC Insider newsletter. 👋

We strive to deliver the latest growth marketing news and trends in the DTC space straight to your inbox every Wednesday.

Topics we'll cover today:

💠 The 2025 Marketing Playbook
💠 Don't diversify channels (yet)
💠 How to Win at the Affiliate Game in 2025

Increase Your Amazon Position Today

What do brands like Magic Spoon, Unilever, and Farmacy all have in common? They’re using Stack Influence to get to the #1 page positioning on Amazon and increase their monthly revenue. With Stack Influence, you can improve your Amazon search positioning while also:

  • Boosting up review rate

  • Paying influencers with only products (stop negotiating fees)

  • Generating real UGC (full rights image/video)

  • Building brand awareness

  • Completely automating the process

The 2025 Marketing Playbook

Marketing is evolving fast.

Rising costs.

New channels.

Changing strategies.

The question is: How do you balance spend with scale in 2025?

Tatari and Marketing Brew asked 200+ marketing leaders. Here’s what they said.

Brand vs. Performance

For years, performance marketing ruled.

Now, brands are rethinking.

Customer acquisition is key, but so is brand awareness.

⤷ 47% are balancing both.
⤷ 37% focus on acquisition.
⤷ 10% prioritize brand awareness.
⤷ 5% aim for retention.

Strong brands drive long-term growth. The best marketers know it’s not either/or, it’s both.

Metrics That Matter

Every dollar counts. Marketers need proof that spend = results.

⤷ 44% track Return on Ad Spend (ROAS).
⤷ 33% focus on Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC).
⤷ 9% measure Brand Sentiment.
⤷ 8% look at Customer Lifetime Value (CLV).
⤷ 6% use Marketing Efficiency Ratio (MER).

ROAS and CAC lead the way, but relying on the same channels can lead to stagnation.

Growth comes from expansion.

Where the Money’s Going

Marketers are investing where they see results.

⤷ 87% use Paid Social Ads.
⤷ 84% run Paid Search.
⤷ 42% invest in Influencer Marketing.
⤷ 41% tap into TV Advertising.
⤷ 33% try Out-of-Home (OOH).
⤷ 29% explore Podcast Ads.
⤷ 25% use SMS Marketing.

Paid social and search still dominate. But diversification is happening.

Rising ad costs and platform changes are forcing marketers to test new channels.

TV’s Comeback

TV isn’t just for brand awareness anymore. It’s now a full-funnel channel.

⤷ 64% of marketers already advertise on TV.
⤷ TV blends branding + performance, driving site traffic and search lift.
⤷ New tech makes TV measurable, targeting specific audiences just like digital ads.

Challenges remain:

⤷ 58% struggle with ROI measurement.
⤷ 37% find targeting difficult.
⤷ 33% worry about high CPMs.

But tools like AI-powered buying and TV retargeting are changing the game.

And brands are paying attention.

Budgets Are Growing

More than half of marketers are increasing budgets in 2025 (surprised?).

⤷ 46% plan to increase spend by 5%-25%.
⤷ 7% will increase by more than 25%.
⤷ 37% will keep budgets the same.
⤷ Only 10% plan to cut budgets.

Higher budgets = more room to test new strategies. But efficiency is still key.

AI Innovations

AI is reshaping marketing. It’s not just a buzzword, it’s a tool.

These are the 2025 emerging channels:

⤷ 38% use AI-powered chatbots.
⤷ 38% haven’t adopted AI yet.
⤷ 22% are experimenting with TikTok Shop.
⤷ 17% use Instagram Shop.
⤷ 11% leverage Amazon Buy With Prime.

AI is optimizing media buying, ad creation, and performance tracking. Marketers who embrace it will gain an edge.

The Takeaway

Marketing in 2025 is all about balance.

⤷ Performance AND brand-building.
⤷ Tried-and-true channels AND new opportunities.
⤷ Spending wisely AND scaling aggressively.

Want to grow? Stick with what works, but don’t be afraid to test something new.

--
Follow me on LinkedIn for more growth marketing content in the e-commerce space.

Want to Make 2025 Your Brand’s Best Year Yet?

In 2024, we audited over 120 brands, and we found that many of them have been stuck in a revenue plateau for 2, and even 3 years.

So, the question is: will you stay in the same place for yet another year, or will you draw a line in the sand and start a new chapter for your brand?

At BSR Digital, we have just 1 spot left for brands that want to unlock the next level of growth.

Will you be one of them?

Don't diversify channels (yet)

Channel diversification is key in 2025.

But is it the right move for your brand?

I used to debate this with my former business partner all the time:
⤷ He loved to own many "little houses."
⤷ I preferred owning a "big building."

My take? Double down on what’s already working instead of having a small presence everywhere.

So, when is the right time to diversify?

While it depends on each case, I'll illustrate my point with the following example:

There are brands spending 6 and even 7 figures per month on Meta ads alone.

So, if you're spending $50,000/mo on that channel and think you've maxed out... you probably haven't.

Thoughts? When did you know it was time to diversify?

—
If you’re looking for a growth partner that helps you make 2025 your best year yet, let's chat.

How to Win at the Affiliate Game in 2025

Great Influencers = Great affiliates, right?

Wrong!

Says who?

The "king of affiliates".

I'm talking about Noah Tucker, founder & CEO of Social Snowball.

If you're looking to:
⤷ Building an affiliate program
⤷ Or improving your current one

This episode of The DTC Insider podcast is for you.

Check it out 👇

We discussed:

👉 The evolution of affiliate marketing and its impact on brands.
👉 How social media influencers are reshaping the affiliate landscape.
👉 The rise of social commerce and its integration into major platforms.
👉 Why brands should build relationships with creators beyond affiliate platforms.
👉 Leveraging existing customers to kickstart an affiliate program.
👉 What to expect: Affiliate programs can contribute around 5% of revenue.
👉 The importance of finding the right influencers to drive sales.
👉 How gamification can boost affiliate engagement and performance.
👉 Streamlining affiliate management with tools like Social Snowball.
👉 Why offering competitive commissions is essential for affiliate success.

Tune in:

📺 YouTube
🎧 Apple
🎙️ Spotify
🌐 Website

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