Is Retail Media the Advertising Revolution Brands Need?

Imagine being able to engage consumers at the exact moment they’re about to make a purchase. What if your ads could leverage precise, real-time shopping behaviour to maximise impact? Welcome to the world of retail media - a rapidly growing sector poised to redefine advertising as we know it. 

With global retail media ad spending now projected to reach $169.5 billion by 2025 (as forecasted by WARC, the World Advertising Research Centre), the question isn’t whether brands should invest, but how they can do it effectively.

Retail media allows brands to place highly targeted advertisements directly within online and in-store retail environments, ensuring visibility to shoppers with strong purchase intent. 

Defined as a form of digital advertising where brands place ads directly on a retailer’s website, app, or other digital properties, this is a shift from traditional ad placements that rely on broader audience targeting, offering instead an opportunity to reach consumers in a more contextually relevant and impactful way.

But with so many brands jumping on the retail media wave, how do you make sure your investment actually pays off? In this article, we will explore the biggest opportunities, challenges, and smart ways to measure success—so you can track what’s working, optimise your spend, and drive real business impact.

Opportunities for Advertisers in 2025

Let us explore the opportunities generated by this advertising channel:

Direct Access to High-Intent Shoppers:

Retail media networks enable brands to reach consumers who are actively making purchasing decisions.

By placing ads within retail environments, whether through sponsored product listings, display ads on retailer websites, or digital signage in physical stores, advertisers can influence choices at the critical moment, enhancing the likelihood of conversion.

For B2C brands, this presents a golden opportunity to boost product visibility in competitive categories. B2B brands can also leverage retail media, particularly in industries where procurement and bulk purchases occur through digital marketplaces. Ensuring your brand is visible in these high-intent shopping environments means tapping into an audience that is already in a buying mindset.

Leveraging First-Party Data for Precision Targeting:

Retailers possess rich first-party data, encompassing shopping habits, preferences, and demographics. Unlike third-party cookies, which are being phased out due to privacy regulations, first-party data is both reliable and compliant.

For brands, this means an opportunity to deliver highly personalised messaging. B2C companies can segment audiences based on browsing and purchasing history, ensuring that ads resonate with consumers on a deeper level. B2B marketers can benefit from this data by identifying key decision-makers, tracking purchasing trends, and tailoring ad content to the needs of specific industries or business roles.

Enhanced Measurement and Accountability:

The digital nature of retail media allows for real-time tracking of ad performance. Advertisers can monitor metrics such as impressions, clicks, and sales conversions, facilitating data-driven decisions and optimisation of campaigns for better ROI.

For B2C brands, this means a clearer understanding of which products are driving engagement and where consumers are dropping off in the purchase journey. For B2B brands, tracking engagement and conversion rates in digital marketplaces can help refine messaging, improve lead nurturing strategies, and ensure that marketing spend is driving tangible business outcomes.

Why Embrace Retail Media?

• Increased Conversion Rates:
  Engaging consumers at the point of purchase with relevant ads significantly boosts the chances of immediate sales. Studies show that retail media ads often yield higher conversion rates compared to traditional digital ads because they are displayed in a shopping context.
• Cost-Effective Advertising:
  While some traditional advertising channels require extensive budgets with uncertain returns, retail media often offers more precise targeting at a fraction of the cost. By focusing spend on consumers who are already in the shopping mindset, brands can drive higher ROI.
• Respect for Consumer Privacy:
  Adopting first-party data ensures compliance with data privacy regulations, building trust between brands and consumers. With privacy laws tightening, the ability to deliver targeted ads without relying on third-party cookies is a significant advantage.

Common Challenges (And How to Overcome Them)

Frequent challenges encountered by advertisers when they adopt this channel are:

• Lack of Transparency in Retail Media Spend: Many retail media networks operate in walled gardens, limiting data access and making it difficult to track true media effectiveness. Advertisers struggle with hidden fees, unclear pricing models, and attribution complexities, which can lead to inefficiencies in media investment.
  Our Holistic Media Audit service can provide independent assessments of media spend, ensuring advertisers get full visibility into cost structures, campaign effectiveness, and contract compliance.
• Difficulty in Selecting the Right Retail Media Partners & Negotiating Contracts:
  With multiple retail media networks (Amazon, Walmart Connect, Instacart, etc.), choosing where the right partner can be overwhelming.
  Many advertisers lack benchmarking insights on pricing, value-added services, or contractual obligations, making negotiations with retailers more complex.
  Abintus can support advertisers in selecting the best retail media partners, benchmarking offers, and negotiating fair and competitive contracts.
• Inconsistent Measurement & Performance Optimisation Challenge: Retailers often provide limited cross-platform measurement and many relevant KPIs can be overlooked. Advertisers struggle with real-time tracking, making it hard to optimise media investments across different retail networks.
  Adopting our Media Performance Tracking solution can help establish consistent measurement frameworks, ensuring that advertisers can track ROI, media efficiency, and effectiveness across multiple media partners.

Key Performance Indicators to Monitor

To effectively gauge the success of retail media campaigns, advertisers should focus on:

Return on Ad Spend (ROAS):
Measures the revenue generated for every pound spent on advertising. A high ROAS indicates strong performance and efficiency.

Click-Through Rate (CTR):
Indicates the effectiveness of the ad in encouraging users to take action. Higher CTRs suggest strong engagement.

Conversion Rate (CR):
Tracks the percentage of users who complete a desired action after clicking on the ad. This is a crucial metric for measuring the effectiveness of direct-response campaigns.

Customer Lifetime Value (CLV):

Assesses the total revenue a business can expect from a single customer account. CLV is especially important for B2B brands looking to build long-term relationships.

Documented Success Stories

Walmart's Ascent in Retail Media:

• Walmart has significantly expanded its retail media network, Walmart Connect, contributing to a 30% increase in its advertising business over the past year. This growth has not only diversified Walmart's revenue streams but also provided brands with a powerful platform to reach consumers.

Tesco's Digital Transformation:

• Tesco has rapidly scaled its retail media network, planning to more than triple its digital ad screens to 6,000 by the end of the year. Using its Dunnhumby data arm, Tesco offers brands hyper-personalised advertising opportunities, enhancing customer engagement and sales.

Conclusion and Next Steps

The retail media landscape presents significant complexities, but with the right expertise and tools, advertisers can transform these challenges into opportunities for growth. Abintus offers comprehensive solutions that address the core pain points in retail media advertising - from spend transparency and partner selection to performance measurement. Our suite of services empowers advertisers to make data-driven decisions, optimise their media investments, and achieve better returns on investments.

Ready to unlock the full potential of your retail media investments?

Schedule a call  today to discover how our Holistic Media Audit, Media Agency Pitch Management, and Media Performance Tracking solutions can drive better outcomes for your business. Let's work together to build a more transparent, efficient, and profitable media investment.