COMMENTARY

What Brands Can Learn From Retail Media

• by Elise Stieferman , July 11, 2022

Data is power in the world of business when used wisely. Data allows you to make smarter, more informed decisions about critical business matters, from store locations to product innovations to P&L. Arguably, compliantly collected consumer data is the most important and valuable piece of information for marketers.

Early entrants in the loyalty marketing space are seeing the enormous opportunity this data holds for their own companies as well as other brands looking to reach those same consumers. Furthermore, brand marketers without access to these robust customer databases are realizing they need to find long-term targeting solutions (and fast) as they face the impending challenges of the cookieless future.

Thus, retail media networks were born and have exploded, with a new solution seeming to emerge every other week.

Marketers who are continually pressured to show immediate ROI are drawn to the end-to-end solutions from targeting to measurement, being able to tie incremental sales to their advertising efforts.

But what are the roots at the foundation of retail media’s success? Trust, segmentation, accountability, scale.

Learn how brands can build on these four key principles of retail media networks and improve their marketing efforts across all channels.

#1 Trust and convenience are everything. This valuable consumer data is available because brand loyalty was a priority for these retailers. And in order to gain brand loyalty, you first have to build trust. Is there consistency in their consumer touchpoints? Are the desired products and services always, or at least consistently, available? Are the employee-customer interactions positive and helpful?

If the answer is yes, the customer will continue to return, warranting the time spent to enroll in a loyalty program. One-time shoppers won’t even spend the two minutes to save $5 if the experience is negative to neutral and they don’t have a reason to return.

#2 Smart customer segmentation and analysis are essential. Without proper segmentation and analysis of your customer base, consumer data is only providing a fraction of its value. Drive learnings from this data collection to help improve the customer experience and provide personalized engagements. By understanding your customers on both a personal level as well as cohorts based on common likes and interests, you will be able to drive affinity through unique offers and discounts, leading to cross-selling, upselling, and incremental store or site visits.  

#3 Accountability is the gateway to success. Retail media is wildly popular with CPG brands because it informs the answer to the question of “Is the marketing working?” Being able to tie ad exposure to sales is important to show how and if marketing efforts are resulting in meaningful business outcomes. Without the proper accountability to understand if your marketing is driving results, you are, at worst, causing waste and, at best, flying blind. Put together a smart strategy to keep your media accountable at each stage of the marketing journey. Even if retail media isn’t the ideal solution for your brand, identify measurement partners that can help you determine if you are moving the needle in the right direction.

#4 Scale sells. When you are talking about retail networks the size of Kroger, Walgreens, and Walmart now offering access to their customer data for targeting, the number of customers alone is enough for marketers to see dollar signs in their eyes. This is especially true for brands whose CRM data is minimal. Lean into these second-party data providers to supplement your own data targeting, while continuing to use lead-generation strategies to grow your data over time.