The New Shopping Era: How YouTube Influencers Are Transforming Online Shopping

At a Glance: The Stats Behind YouTube’s Culture & Trends Report 2025

• 59% of Gen Z say online content shapes their personal style.
• 43% of Gen Z feel more loyal to brands recommended by YouTube creators.
• 61% of Gen Z discovered new brands or products through YouTube.
• 200K copies of streamer CoryxKenshin’s self-published manga sold in its first week.
• 1 billion views on haul videos, the top shopping format.
• 650 million views on review videos.
• 250 million views on “Faves or Fails.”
• 150 million views on “Buy or Bye.”
• Communities such as FragranceTube and Home ImprovementTube are driving sales of perfumes, tools, and home gear.
• Top-performing keywords include Walmart, Haul, Summer, Best, Makeup, Affordable, and Target.

‍

Creators Are Redefining Influencer Marketing

YouTube creators have become some of the most powerful forces in influencer marketing and online shopping behaviour. They are not just promoting products - they are guiding real purchase decisions.

According to YouTube’s Culture & Trends Report 2025, creators drive the modern discovery journey, converting interest into action through authentic storytelling and expert recommendations.

Creators such as Sara Jane of ChicOnTheCheap have turned budget finds into fully shoppable experiences, while streamer CoryxKenshin’s self-published manga sold 200,000 copies in its first week. This shows how genuine passion and relatable storytelling can drive huge sales conversions on YouTube.

Authenticity and expertise are now the cornerstones of influencer content that sells.

‍

Communities Are Powering the Future of Shoppable Content

The new frontier of shoppable content lies in communities. On YouTube, passion-based groups form powerful ecosystems that shape online shopping trends and turn viewers into buyers.

FragranceTube unites perfume lovers who share expert reviews and detailed insights, while Home ImprovementTube helps viewers solve DIY challenges, converting advice into direct sales of tools and parts.
Creators such as Gents Scents, Sharida M and Ben’s Appliances & Junk illustrate how micro-communities turn shared interests into active commerce.

These digital spaces operate like marketplaces built on trust, expertise and shared curiosity, showing how community-driven content can outperform traditional advertising.

‍

The Content Formats That Drive Sales

Certain video formats dominate YouTube’s shoppable ecosystem, proving that format and specificity are key to conversion.
Hauls, reviews and reaction-style content perform best when titles are clear, timely and focused on a particular retailer or theme.

Videos like “Target Summer Haul” or “Best Affordable Makeup Finds” consistently outperform generic titles, aligning with how users search and shop.

In 2025, haul videos achieved 1 billion views, while reviews and “Faves or Fails” videos generated hundreds of millions more. This data highlights the direct link between content format, search intent, and sales performance.

‍

When Products Become Cultural Moments

YouTube is now one of the most influential platforms for product discovery and brand storytelling.
Take Sarah Cheung’s SACHEU Peel-Off Lip Liner, for example: it started as a viral beauty hack and evolved into a best-selling product after support from YouTube’s beauty community and celebrities like Billie Eilish and Doja Cat.

With 61% of Gen Z saying they have discovered new brands on YouTube, it’s clear that influencer-driven videos don’t just inspire purchases - they shape culture.

The most successful creators blend entertainment, education and authenticity to turn simple products into cultural moments.

‍

What This Means for Brands and Marketers

For brands and marketers, YouTube’s Culture & Trends Report 2025 offers a clear roadmap: success in influencer marketing and shoppable content depends on authenticity, community, and precision.

To connect with modern consumers:

• Collaborate with trusted creators who genuinely fit your brand’s niche and values.
• Engage with established communities where your product already has relevance.
• Develop hyper-specific content that matches search intent, seasonality, and shopper behaviour.
• Prioritise storytelling and education, not just direct promotion.

YouTube shopping represents the convergence of community, culture and commerce. The brands that will thrive are those that move beyond ads and create influencer content that connects, converts and inspires.

‍

Final Thought

YouTube has turned shopping into a shared experience powered by people, not platforms. It is where creativity meets conversion, and where the next generation of influencer marketing and online retail is being written in real time.

However, YouTube does not exist in isolation. Instagram Reels, TikTok Shop, Pinterest, and even emerging retail integrations on streaming platforms are reshaping how audiences browse and buy. Each channel offers different strengths: TikTok for cultural virality, Instagram for visual storytelling, Pinterest for inspiration, and YouTube for depth and trust.

The best strategy for brands is a multiplatform, multichannel campaign that tests and adapts shoppable content across each environment. By experimenting with formats, audiences and calls to action, marketers can learn what truly drives sales for their brand.

The future of social commerce will belong to those who treat every platform as part of an integrated ecosystem - testing, learning and connecting creativity with conversion wherever their audience chooses to shop.