Friday 26th September | #38 | Join Free
Good Morning and welcome a slightly earlier than normal Friday Beyond the Basket brief. TikTok just dodged the U.S. ban with Trump's backing, but the algorithm control fight isn't over yet. Amazon's facing a $2.5B reality check on subscription dark patterns while ad spend forecasts jump to $1.17T. Add in Pinterest's new search placement tools and Depop's outfit collages, and there's plenty to catch up on over your morning coffee. Let's jump in ☕️
In today’s beyond the basket:
📱TikTok Deal Sealed in U.S.
🚨 Amazon Fined $2.5B Over Prime “Dark Patterns”
📈 WARC Lifts 2025 Ad Spend Forecast
🖼️ Pinterest Unveils New Ad Tools
👗 Depop Launches “Outfits” Collage Tool
+plus three deep reads to get you off to a flying start.
📱TikTok Deal Sealed in U.S. LINK
TL;DR: Trump approved a deal giving U.S. investors majority control of TikTok, keeping the app active in America with Xi Jinping’s blessing.
Why It Matters: TikTok isn’t just a social app, it’s a core discovery and commerce channel. With 43% of under-30s using it for news and TikTok Shop fueling impulse buys, its survival keeps a crucial funnel open for DTC brands. But control of its algorithm, still licensed from ByteDance, remains a geopolitical fault line that could reignite uncertainty.
Your Move: Reassess TikTok ad spend, U.S. investor backing could draw brands back, likely pushing CPMs higher. Keep leaning into TikTok Shop for near-term wins, but balance with owned channels (email, SMS, community) to guard against future policy shocks.
🚨 Amazon Fined $2.5B Over Prime “Dark Patterns” LINK
TL;DR: The FTC secured a $2.5B settlement with Amazon, forcing refunds to 35M customers and requiring Prime sign-up and cancellation flows to be overhauled.
Why It Matters: Subscription models are under regulatory fire. The FTC called Amazon’s tactics “subscription traps”, burying costs, auto-renewals, and creating friction to cancel. With regulators making an example out of Amazon, dark patterns are no longer just bad UX, they’re a billion-dollar liability. Expect wider enforcement across ecommerce and SaaS.
Your Move: Audit every customer-facing flow, from sign-up to cancellation, to ensure disclosures, renewals, and exits are regulator-proof and trust-building.
📈 WARC Lifts 2025 Ad Spend Forecast LINK
TL;DR: Research firm WARC projects global ad spend to rise 7.4% to $1.17T in 2025, revising growth upward on the back of a digital-first surge.
Why It Matters: Nearly 90% of new ad dollars are flowing into digital, with social media (40.6%), non-retail search, and retail media leading the charge. Just three players, Meta, Amazon, and Google, will control over half (55.8%) of global ad spend this year, further concentrating power in the digital triopoly. Retailers in particular drove a Q2 spike on Instagram (+18.8%) and TikTok (+56.8%) ahead of tariff hikes.
Your Move: Recalibrate your ad mix, social CPMs will rise as retailers flood Meta and TikTok especially heading into Q4. Carve out budget for retail media experiments while tightening measurement to prove ROI in a market dominated by platform giants.
🖼️ Pinterest Unveils New Ad Tools LINK
TL;DR: At its Pinterest Presents event, the platform announced upgrades including Top of Search ads, expanded Local Inventory Ads, and new data-sharing tools for targeting.
Why It Matters: Pinterest’s 578M users arrive with high shopping intent, and these updates give brands better ways to reach them at the moment of discovery. Prime placement in search results boosts visibility, Local Inventory Ads drive local conversions with real-time stock data, and “Media Network Connect” opens the door to richer audience matching with partners like Kroger and Instacart.
Our Move: Test Pinterest’s new Top of Search ads early to capture high-intent queries before rivals move in, potentially unlocking more efficient conversions at lower costs than Meta or Google.
👗 Depop Launches “Outfits” Collage Tool LINK
TL;DR: Resale app Depop has rolled out Outfits, a shoppable collage feature that lets users mix-and-match items from any listing, save looks, and share them on social platforms.
Why It Matters: By moving beyond simple resale listings, Depop is positioning itself as a daily style destination, not just a marketplace. Features like collages tap into inspiration-driven commerce, encouraging repeat visits and higher engagement. But competition is heating up, eBay is leaning harder into resale, and Vinted is rapidly scaling in Europe and the U.S., making differentiation through creative tools essential for Depop.
Your Move: If you sell on Depop (or any resale platform), optimize listings with styling potential in mind, clean images, versatile items, and strong keywords increase the chance of being pulled into curated, shoppable “Outfits.”
Wider Context:
eBay Buys Tise to Woo Gen Z – eBay acquires Oslo-based resale app Tise to strengthen its C2C play and appeal to younger, sustainability-driven shoppers. Read More >
📚 The Reading List
Curated deep dives, longer reads and analysis shaping the future of retail and ecommerce.
This Sock Brand Shocked Shark Tank Judges
Inc. (5 min read) Read Here >
How a niche DTC sock brand turned storytelling into a $500K investment win.
Toys “R” Us Bets on Physical Retail Comeback
RetailWire (6 min read) Read Here >
The iconic toy retailer tests a return to brick-and-mortar in a new retail climate.
If Funny Ads Work, Why Are They Fading?
The Drum (7 min read) Read Here >
Despite research showing humor boosts effectiveness, marketers are pulling back from comedic campaigns.
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