RETAIL MEDIA NETWORKS
How to Stand Out in the Race for Retail Media Networks
Automation, Personalization & Closed-loop Activation
Why are Retail Media Networks Growing?
Retailers have traditionally relied on product sales for most of their profits. Now, the drastic rise in e-commerce and industry profitability challenges has prompted them to turn digital real estate and customer data into ad sales, providing abnormally high returns for the industry.
While traditional retail media has been around since the first brick-and-mortar retail stores, the significance of the term has changed in the last five years to focus on digital retail media networks (RMNs), or retail data monetization.
RMNs have already proliferated across the retail industry, but what will determine their future success, and which networks will come out on top?
In the past, retailers were very hesitant to monetize their transaction and loyalty data, creating a gap in an advertiser’s ability to deterministically measure the efficacy of a campaign.
The market shift away from cookie-based audiences corresponds with retailers’ increasing comfort with using their first-party data for advertising. This creates a unique opportunity for retailers to become publishers, directly capturing more ad dollars through strategic data monetization via retail media networks. The result is a major uptick in the overall number of networks themselves, with several new networks created every year.
Deterministic closed-loop measurement is the biggest perk driving the value of retail media networks compared to other digital advertising. RMNs can connect digital advertising campaigns to actual purchases at an individual level, which Google and Facebook can’t inherently offer without the retailer sending their transaction files to those third parties.
Another retail media network benefit is the retailer’s ability to bridge customer in-store shopping habits with their online purchasing patterns, offering another unique differentiation from other channels.
Trends for 2023
- 01 Using loyalty programs to create better value for retail media networks
- 02 Expanding into larger retail media marketplaces
- 03 Offering programmatic sell-side retail media inventory
- 04 Transitioning to retail media network platforms led in-house
- 05 Creating closed-loop measurements for retail media by adding in-store touchpoints
- 06 Improving customer data quality through customer data platforms (CDPs) and customer 360 profiles
The Opportunity
In the past, retailers were very hesitant to monetize their transaction and loyalty data, creating a gap in an advertiser’s ability to deterministically measure the efficacy of a campaign.
The market shift away from cookie-based audiences corresponds with retailers’ increasing comfort with using their first-party data for advertising. This creates a unique opportunity for retailers to become publishers, directly capturing more ad dollars through strategic data monetization via retail media networks. The result is a major uptick in the overall number of networks themselves, with several new networks created every year.
Deterministic closed-loop measurement is the biggest perk driving the value of retail media networks compared to other digital advertising. RMNs can connect digital advertising campaigns to actual purchases at an individual level, which Google and Facebook can’t inherently offer without the retailer sending their transaction files to those third parties.
Another retail media network benefit is the retailer’s ability to bridge customer in-store shopping habits with their online purchasing patterns, offering another unique differentiation from other channels.
Why Publicis Sapient’s Retail Media Network?
We partner with clients every step of the way, from strategy through design, implementation and support, pairing our strategy, operational models and engineering with the deep media and creative expertise of our Publicis Groupe sister agencies.
Our end-to-end Retail Media Network solution
Design and build of custom monetization platform to deliver against bespoke use cases
Custom Platform Development
Management of on-site and/or off-site media network operations
Media Network Operations
Strategic support for advertisers looking to optimize their use of retailer media networks
Advertiser Consulting
End-to-end management of solution through off-site and on-site inventory and data activation
Monetization Managed Service
Keys for a successful Media Network
STRATEGY
Engage in Corporate Strategy and Investment Planning
Assessment of current assets, market sizing, business model design (pricing and margin expectations), and monetization approach.
TECHNOLOGY
Invest in Key Ad Tech, Mar Tech, and Data Management Technologies
Technology systems required to deliver monetization solution. May include licensed tech (ad server, DSP, CDP) and/or custom solutions.
MARKETPLACE ACCESS
Media/Data Sales and Go-to-market Capability
Connecting the data and/or inventory to advertisers. Involves technology setup, sales development, and go-to-market execution.
MANAGEMENT & OPERATIONS
Media Planning and Buying
Implementation and management of monetization solution. Includes campaign setup, ad ops, campaign management, reporting, billing & reconciliation, etc.
Publicis is uniquely positioned in the Retail Media Space
One of the largest buyers of Digital Media
in the world for the largest CPGs you are targeting — we understand their needs and how to go to market
Unique combination of expertise
Digital media buying + Ad’Tech/MarTech + Customer Data & ID management + Strategy & Consulting — we can Assess, Design, Build, Operate and Transfer it back
Ad Tech experienced
Platform enabled with extensive tech partnerships with Adobe & others. We understand the key tech players and help clients select the right technology
Track record in Retail Media Networks
We have done it and been there, we can save you time and money
DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION
Publicis Sapient
MEDIA BUYING & MEDIA PERFORMANCE
Starcom
Spark Foundry
Zenith The ROI Agency
AD’TECH
CitrusAd
CUSTOMER DATA
Epsilon
Discover how we partner with Adobe to enable marketers to drive customer acquisition, deepen relationships and retain customers.
Publicis & Adobe: Monetize & activate rich customer profiles, serve hyper personalized experiences, and offer closed loop measurement
Adobe Product capabilities that help enable Retail Media Networks
Data: Adobe Real Time CDP, Adobe Analytics
Planning, Ad Sales, Content & Workflow Management: Workfront, Creative Cloud, Adobe Experience Manager, Assets, Commerce, Adobe Campaign
Closed Loop Measurement: Customer Journey Analytics, Marketing Mix Modeler, Attribution AI
Portfolio of Ad Products: Advertising, Journey Optimizer, AEM Screens
How we’ve made an impact
American Supermarket Builds Retail Media Network with Publicis Sapient | Publicis Sapient
How a Major Grocer Monetized Data to Grow Exponentially | Publicis Sapient | Publicis Sapient
Contributors
Ray Velez
Chief Technology Officer, Publicis Sapient
ray.velez@publicissapient.com
Publicis Sapient is a technology company that provides enterprise AI platforms and services. With over 30 years of digital business transformation experience, we enable enterprise clients to transform how they operate and serve their customers, unlocking new value and enabling them to thrive in an AI-driven world. Our platforms Sapient Slingshot, Sapient Bodhi and Sapient Sustain use AI built off this deep enterprise context to help organizations modernize their legacy tech systems, build agentic solutions, and automate their IT operations. The combination of our AI platforms and the expertise of our people enables us to deliver faster and more effective outcomes through solutions that are specific to the unique needs of our clients’ businesses, their industries and their customers. Publicis Sapient is the technology hub of Publicis Groupe, uniting 20,000 people worldwide across 28 countries.
For more information, visit publicissapient.com.