Distributed commerce is here — and is already reshaping how consumers discover and buy. In fact, 62% of US and UK online adults who regularly use answer engines rely on them to research products and recommendations, while 40% use them specifically to discover products, per Forrester’s ConsumerVoices Market Research Online Community Survey, March 2026.
Algorithms in social commerce, answer engines, and connected devices are replacing merchant intuition. It’s no surprise that, per Forrester’s Digital Business And Strategy Survey, 2026, 57% of digital business strategy decision-makers are prioritizing new commerce strategies, including distributed commerce. But the economics are far more complex than the growth hyperbole suggests. To achieve long-term success and profitability with distributed commerce, as a leader, you must:
- Change your thinking: Design a commerce strategy for machine sellers. Platforms are setting the rules for content, data, and speed. For example, product feeds in emerging AI ecosystems can require updates as frequently as every 15 minutes, with new ones attributed and tailored to algorithmic discovery. This requirement creates an always-on demand for content variation, localization, and optimization across fragmented ecosystems, where the platforms control the traffic and the measurement. Brands may see early conversion lifts — but delivering high-quality content across a spectrum of distributed commerce over the long term requires intentional planning and design.
- Design time-bound playbooks: Replace always-on channel strategies with test-and-scale playbooks. Being profitable requires adopting campaign-based strategies aligned to specific channels and use cases. Why? Distributed commerce is inherently fragmented: Some channels reward creative storytelling, while others prioritize structured product data and intent matching. Savvy brands are also sequencing how and when they invest — testing channels, then doubling down only where performance proves sustainable.
- Pressure-test every channel: Only scale the investments that pass the right profit margins. Winners in distributed commerce will be those companies that pressure-test before they scale. This is a business model shift, not a channel decision. Leaders must evaluate every channel across four dimensions: financial upside, operational feasibility, content readiness, and macroeconomic resilience. This rigor is crucial to determining whether what looks like incremental reach is preserving — or eroding! — margins and brand equity.
If you are a Forrester client interested in discussing the evolution of your commerce strategy for humans and agents, book an inquiry or guidance session with my colleagues Joe Cicman, Emily Pfeiffer, or myself. We are available to discuss topics such as commerce strategy, distributed and dynamic commerce strategies, agentic commerce, and commerce services provider selection.
