The closing data of this year’s US mid-year promotion has pushed many merchants to rethink their operational strategies. Overall business volume doubled year-on-year, live stream transaction value jumped 3.4 times, and content-driven transaction value also doubled. These figures represent far more than a temporary promotion boom ; they mark a long-discussed trend finally solidifying—content marketing is replacing traditional product listings as the core driver of sales.

Yet a new question emerges. Top brands can easily grow via content, but what about small and medium merchants? Professional shooting crews, frequent script production, and live streaming all come with heavy costs.

This promotion delivers a clear answer: AI tools are smashing the barriers to content creation.

Shopping Habits Have Fully Shifted

Years ago, online shopping in the US followed a fixed “buyer searches for goods” logic. Consumers with clear demands searched for keywords, compared specs and prices, then placed orders.

This logic still exists today, yet it no longer fuels most market growth.

Most new sales now stem from short videos and live streams. Shoppers browse casually without pre-set purchase plans, get drawn to real product usage clips or function demos, and buy instantly. The decision-making flow shifts from “search-compare-purchase” to “interest spark-immediate checkout.”

This narrows the room for optimizing static product pages. No matter how refined your copy and images are, they only deliver fixed information. In contrast, content marketing delivers dynamic, emotional experiences that build trust. A genuine usage clip convinces buyers far better than dozens of polished product shots.

The doubled content sales during the promotion sent a clear signal: traffic growth has moved from static listings to content streams. Merchants who retain audiences through content grab more orders from competitors.

However, most people overlook a hidden cost behind this shift.

Content Creation Barriers Create New Market Inequality

Nearly all merchants recognize content value, yet most get stuck on one question: how to afford consistent content output.

High-quality short videos require scriptwriting, shooting, and editing. Stable live streams require hosts, on-site coordinators, operators, and equipment. These expenses barely trouble top brands, but act as rigid barriers for merchants with solid products and supply chains but no content teams.

This creates a new “content resource gap.” Merchants with in-house content teams churn out steady materials to earn free organic traffic and build positive growth cycles. Those without content capabilities get buried in massive information streams, even with superior product pricing.

Worse, content performance carries heavy uncertainty. No single piece of material guarantees success. Under interest-based recommendation algorithms, the only proven tactic is frequent testing, iteration, and diverse content to offset algorithm randomness.

Frequent testing inflates costs under traditional workflows, trapping small merchants in a dead end. AI tools completely reverse this predicament.

How AI Eliminates Creation Barriers

Merchants leveraging AI creation tools nearly doubled sales during the promotion. Content creation for overseas markets relies heavily on stable internet; many operators use dedicated network services like NovProxy to ensure smooth material generation and focus more on content planning and product selection.

The core logic is straightforward: AI cannot produce cinema-level premium footage, yet it generates large volumes of usable materials at minimal cost.

Creating one short video once took an entire day from drafting to final cut. Now, by inputting selling points and basic assets into AI tools, dozens of clips with distinct styles are generated within minutes. While not perfectly polished, these clips work well for algorithm testing.

This transforms content production from a handcrafted craft model to an industrial assembly line. Creators no longer chase perfection for every clip, but rely on volume to counter algorithm unpredictability. Even a handful of viral clips out of a hundred cover all production costs and generate profits.

More importantly, AI slashes trial-and-error costs. Merchants hesitated to test new styles before due to high shooting expenses. Now they generate materials with varied angles and pitches rapidly for market testing, and pour extra resources into high-performing formats. This fast, data-driven iteration was once exclusive to large corporate teams.

AI does not replace human creativity; it lowers creation requirements from professional to accessible. Merchants without filming crews or professional editors can still consistently produce a variety of content.

At its core, AI’s greatest strength lies not in cost reduction, but in market equalization.

Two Distinct Business Strategies

AI lowers entry barriers for content creation, yet uniform competition strategies do not fit all merchants. Two clear development paths will take shape in the future market.

Strategy 1: Brand-Focused Operations

This suits long-term operators with solid management teams. Their core advantage lies in user trust and brand identity. Prioritize live-stream sessions with real hosts and refined fan maintenance—areas built on human connection and a unique brand identity. AI only handles basic material production, freeing manpower to strengthen brand differentiation and deep user engagement, which form irreplaceable competitive moats.

Strategy 2: Supply Chain Efficiency Focus

This suits product-driven merchants with cost-effective goods. They need not devote energy to brand storytelling. Maximize AI potential by rolling out diverse marketing content for quick market testing. Once a viral product format emerges, leverage robust supply chains to speed up restocking and delivery. Their competitive edge rests on fast response and cost control, not creative content production.

Neither path ranks higher than the other. Ultimately, the key is identifying your core strengths and using AI to offset weaknesses.

Conclusion: The Trend Is Irreversible

The doubled sales volume of this promotion only quantifies a trend already unfolding. Online consumption in the US is shifting irreversibly toward short video and live interactive content. The outdated model of listing products and waiting for passive traffic will deliver shrinking returns.

If static product listings form the foundation of your business, engaging content acts as the elevator lifting revenue, and AI tools are the buttons anyone can press. Every merchant with competitive products gains a fast track to reach overseas consumers. At this turning point, abandon the outdated mindset of waiting for customers to find you. Adapt to content-driven shopping logic, leverage intelligent tools to cut production costs, and you secure the most stable, practical growth roadmap ahead.