Content is becoming commerce

Indonesia’s biggest e-commerce platforms are telling sellers that videos, live streams and affiliate pitches are now driving purchases, not just attracting attention. (antaranews.com) Stephanie Susilo, executive director of Tokopedia and TikTok Shop Indonesia, said content has become “the main driver” of trade on e-commerce platforms as shopping shifts toward discovery inside apps. (antaranews.com) Indonesia’s Ministry of Trade recorded e-commerce sales of $5.76 billion, or about 96.7 trillion rupiah, in February 2026, and Susilo linked that figure to a model in which content increasingly serves as the entry point to transactions. (antaranews.com) At Tokopedia and TikTok Shop, live broadcasts by sellers and affiliate creators were watched 38 billion times during Ramadan 2026, and transactions during the pre-dawn sahur period rose as much as 15-fold, according to Kompas and ANTARA. (kompas.com) (antaranews.com) That marks a change in how platforms describe the sales funnel: the product pitch, demonstration and checkout are now happening in the same feed, often through creators who are paid commissions through affiliate programs. (kompas.com) The companies are backing that shift with seller tools and training. Tokopedia and TikTok Shop launched an integrated Seller Center in 2025, saying sellers could manage stores more efficiently and reach a wider user base across both ecosystems. (tokopedia.com) They have also worked with Indonesia’s Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises on Creators Lab training for small businesses, with the program focused on using video content to build buyer trust and raise sales. (antaranews.com) The model is already changing which merchants win on the platform. Kontan reported that during the Ramadan Ekstra Seru 2026 campaign, gross merchandise value rose 51% from ordinary days and affiliate contribution rose 63% for participating sellers. (kontan.co.id) Kontan said Moell Official led the mother-and-baby category during that campaign, while Pushop Store used an affiliate-first strategy and Vianova Watch Store relied on short video and live selling to lift performance. (kontan.co.id) Indonesia is already Southeast Asia’s largest digital market, and Tokopedia and TikTok Shop said in November 2025 that e-commerce still accounted for about 72% of the country’s digital economy value. (antaranews.com) For sellers on those platforms, the practical message is narrowing: a storefront still matters, but the sale is increasingly won by whoever can turn a scroll into a demonstration and a demonstration into a checkout. (antaranews.com)