Like, comment and buy? The future of shopping is social, according to a new study by professional services company Accenture, which found that global social commerce is expected to reach $1.2 trillion by 2025 – growing about 2.5 times faster than traditional e-commerce.

As might be expected, Gen Z and millennials are the main drivers behind the growth, making up 62% of social commerce spending by 2025.

Social commerce refers to when a consumer’s entire sales journey – from product discovery to check-out – occurs on a social media platform, whether it’s Instagram, TikTok, Facebook or elsewhere. According to Accenture, 64% of social media users surveyed say they’ve made a social commerce purchase in the last year.

“The pandemic showed how much people use social platforms as the entry point for everything they do online – news, entertainment and communication,” said Robin Murdock, global software and platforms lead at Accenture, in a press release. “The steady rise in time spent on social media reflects how essential these platforms are in our daily life. They’re reshaping how people buy and sell, which provides platforms and brands with new opportunities for user experiences and revenue streams.”

Currently, 10% of overall e-commerce sales ($492 billion) are done via social platforms. By 2025, that percentage is expected to grow to 17%, or $1.2 trillion.

The growth of social commerce could serve to level the playing field, bringing more opportunity for smaller businesses, whether in the promotional products industry or beyond. More than half (59%) of social buyers said they were more likely to support small- and medium-sized businesses through social commerce than when shopping e-commerce websites. And 63% said they were more likely to buy from the same seller again.

“Social commerce is a levelling force that is driven by the creativity, ingenuity and power of people,” said Oliver Wright, global consumer goods and services lead at Accenture. “It empowers smaller brands and individuals and makes big brands reevaluate their relevance for a marketplace of millions of individuals.”

A main concern, however, is consumer protection and trust. Half of those surveyed said they’re worried about whether social commerce purchases are protected and if refunds will be properly applied. It’s similar, Wright said, to adoption barriers in the early days of e-commerce: “Trust is an issue that will take time to overcome, but the sellers who focus on these areas will be better positioned to grow market share.”

By 2025, apparel is expected to garner the largest share of social commerce dollars (18% of all purchases), then consumer electronics (13%) and home décor (7%).

Accenture conducted a series of studies on social commerce, fielding an online survey of more than 10,000 social media users in the U.S., U.K., China, India and Brazil. More insights from the firm’s social commerce study are available here.