2024 in review
As we close out 2024, I’m reflecting on what’s been an extraordinary year for impact.com and the broader partnership economy. This year has been transformative, as we’ve witnessed firsthand how marketing is evolving—shifting away from traditional, brand-driven messaging to a landscape where consumers hold the reins.
At impact.com, we’ve been at the forefront of this change. With a global team of over 1,000 people across 20 offices, our vision remains clear: to be the global standard for managing and scaling all types of commerce partnerships. In 2024, we led the charge in expanding the partnership ecosystem, empowering brands to thrive through meaningful collaborations with creators, publishers, customers, and other businesses. Today, we support over 250,000 active partnerships globally, helping over 4,000 clients connect with communities in authentic and impactful ways.
As 2024 comes to a close, I want to share some of the progress we’ve made this year.
Industry Dynamics:
This year has reinforced a powerful truth: business and marketing have fundamentally changed. Consumers are now in control, and community-based marketing has become the driving force behind brand relevance, loyalty, and growth. Partnerships—with creators, publishers, affiliates, customers, and even other businesses—are central to this transformation. They enable companies to engage authentically, scale with trust, and drive meaningful conversations that influence purchases in ways traditional channels never could.
The shift is seismic. No longer are brands the sole storytellers. Today, consumers aren’t just participants—they’re the directors. They’re informed, empowered, and turning to their communities for guidance. Whether it’s through TikTok reviews, YouTube demonstrations, or direct feedback from peers, consumers are reshaping how brands connect with audiences. More than half of Gen Z now uses TikTok as their primary search engine, highlighting a monumental shift that disrupts traditional marketing and puts the power squarely in the hands of communities.
If 2024 was about recognizing the significance of communities, then 2025 will be about diving deeper—building lasting partnerships with these groups to drive real, sustained growth. Despite global challenges, we’ve stayed committed to our mission of uplifting brands through impactful connections. As social commerce and community-led marketing continue to reshape the marketing landscape, impact.com remains focused on empowering brands to build authentic, long-term relationships with their audiences.
Consider the numbers: customer acquisition costs have soared by over 220% in the last eight years, while traditional advertising is becoming more expensive and less effective. In response, marketing budgets are shifting toward creator marketing and partnerships. The creator economy is set to more than double in the next five years, surpassing $480 billion. This shift highlights a powerful truth: partnerships reach consumers authentically, at the moments that matter most, and are driving the kind of growth brands are seeking.
Why? Because 89% of consumers trust personal recommendations more than any other marketing channel. Brands embracing this new model are seeing an average revenue growth of 29%. We’re witnessing a shift from brands simply selling products to building relationships, starting with the communities that consumers trust. Partnerships are the key to unlocking these authentic connections.
At impact.com, we’ve embraced this shift with open arms. From launching innovative tools that deepen connections between brands and their audiences, to leading thought leadership initiatives on social commerce partnerships, we’re proud to help brands navigate this new era of marketing. The partnerships ecosystem is thriving, and as we look ahead to 2025, we’re more committed than ever to empowering brands to succeed in a community-driven world.
Launch of impact.com/advocate:
One of the most significant milestones of the year was the launch of impact.com/advocate, our customer referral solution. With this platform, brands can tap into the full potential of their most loyal customers, turning them into authentic brand advocates. The launch of /advocate adds another vital layer to our already robust platform, which now supports affiliate marketing through /performance, creator partnerships through /creator, and now customer referrals all under one roof. This holistic approach drives growth in powerful, scalable ways that respond directly to the shifting landscape of consumer behavior.
The growth of customer-led marketing—where consumers are not just participants but key drivers of the conversation—has become central to our clients’ strategies. This is why /advocate is such a game-changer. It allows brands to build and manage referral programs that align with their values while incentivizing customers to share authentic experiences with their networks. And, with the support of impact.com’s advanced tracking and analytics capabilities, brands can measure the true impact of these partnerships.
A year of integrations and product features:
The role of technology in this transformation cannot be overstated. As the relationship between brands and their communities grows more complex, we’ve continued to expand and innovate our platform to support all types of partnerships. In 2024, we introduced a suite of powerful new integrations with platforms like Shopify, Google, Salesforce, HubSpot, Stripe, and Klaviyo, ensuring that brands have more control over their campaigns, more ways to engage their audiences, and more data to optimize their strategies.
We’re also enhancing the tools that foster collaboration between brands and creators. Through Product Gifting, Extended Search, and Social Listening, brands can discover and connect with the most relevant creators, while tracking the performance of those collaborations. These updates, combined with our AI-powered Wrap Reports and Social Monitoring, are designed to make the brand-creator relationship more efficient, transparent, and impactful than ever before.
As we continue to expand and integrate these features, our goal is clear: to provide brands with the tools they need to build authentic, long-lasting relationships with their communities—whether through customer referrals, creator partnerships, or other forms of collaboration. In a world where trust and authenticity are paramount, these partnerships are the key to success.
And this is just the beginning. As we look ahead to 2025, we’re excited to continue evolving our platform to meet the needs of an ever-changing market. Every new feature, integration, and update is a step toward making our platform smarter, faster, and more adaptable to the future of marketing.
Industry Recognition:
And it was gratifying to see that commitment to innovation recognized. This year, impact.com earned over two dozen industry awards, including being named to the 2024 Inc. Best in Business list, “Best Affiliate Marketing Platform” by the Digiday Technology Awards, “Best Overall MarTech Solution” by the MarTech Breakthrough Awards, and recognized with “New Product of the Year” by the BIG Awards for Business for impact.com/advocate. We were also recognized for successful client campaigns and individual achievements, such as CMO Cristy Garcia being named a Top 50 Marketer by OnCon.
Thought Leadership:
In addition to these awards, our thought leadership has garnered widespread recognition. We’ve published key trend reports on topics like customer referral marketing and eCommerce influencer marketing, providing valuable insights for clients navigating the evolving landscape. Our annual Partnerships Experience events in New York, London, Sydney, and China attracted over 1,750 attendees, sparking inspiring discussions on the future of partnerships. Combined with the success of our podcast, “The Partnership Economy,” which has reached 280,000 downloads, these efforts underscore our continued commitment to knowledge-sharing and shaping the future of partnerships.
Wrapping up 2024 and looking ahead:
As the momentum behind commerce partnerships and community-led growth continues to reshape marketing, impact.com remains focused on being at the forefront. Community is no longer just a buzzword—it’s the foundation of how businesses thrive in today’s landscape. Whether through creator marketing, commerce content, or customer referrals, we’re empowering businesses to build connections that matter.
Looking ahead, we’re committed to continuing our investment in innovation, thought leadership, and global collaboration to ensure that every partnership thrives. Together, we’re not just participating in the evolution of marketing—we’re leading it.
Thank you for being part of this extraordinary journey. impact.com will be closing our offices for the final two weeks of the year to allow our teams time to relax and recoup. We appreciate your understanding and assure you we’ll be back in the new year ready and refreshed on January 6.
Here’s to a healthy, joyful, and prosperous 2025, where we continue to foster partnerships and set the global standard in our ever-evolving field.
All the best for the new year!
