Driving Retail Media Success: What It Is and Why It Matters

By Francisco Robles, Executive Director, Ad Sales Strategy 

The $63 Billion Gold Rush You Can’t Afford to Ignore

What If Ads Actually Worked?

Imagine an advertising world where your budget doesn’t vanish into the ether—where instead of guessing what people might want, you knew what they just bought and could target them accordingly.

That’s the promise of retail media, and unlike a lot of marketing buzzwords, this one is actually delivering. Brands leveraging retail media networks (RMNs) are seeing 2–3X higher ROI compared to traditional targeting methods.

Why? Because instead of relying on shaky inferences—search history, social media likes, “interest in luxury vehicles” (which really just means someone drooled over a Ferrari once)—retail media is fueled by actual purchase data.

Yes, what people buy is the best predictor of what they’ll buy next. And retailers, sitting on mountains of this data, have finally figured out how to monetize it in a way that benefits everyone—advertisers, customers, and, of course, themselves.

Let’s break it down.

What Is a Retail Media Network?

Retail Media Networks (RMNs) are like the digital extension of a store’s aisles. Instead of placing an ad near the cereal in a physical supermarket, a brand can now target actual cereal buyers online, across multiple digital touchpoints.

Retailers like Amazon, Walmart, and Target have built massive RMNs that allow brands to buy ad space using first-party shopper data—gleaned from purchases, loyalty programs, website activity, and more.

This means that when a shopper searches for baby wipes, the ad they see isn’t a generic “parenting tips” banner but an offer for the exact brand of wipes they already trust.

The brilliance of RMNs isn’t just their precision but their ability to reach consumers at multiple stages of their buying journey—not just in-store or on the retailer’s website, but while they’re streaming, scrolling, and browsing.

This wasn’t always the case. Initially, retail media ads were confined to the retailer’s own website. But then, someone had a bright idea:

"What if we separate the data from the media?"

Cue the floodgates opening.

By allowing purchase data to be used on external platforms—social media, streaming services, programmatic ad networks—RMNs have become one of the most effective audience-targeting tool in digital advertising.

How Retail Media Networks Actually Work

1. Retailers Collect Data
   • Every time a customer makes a purchase, browses a retailer’s website, or uses a loyalty card, that data gets stored.
2. Data Gets Analyzed and Segmented
   • Retailers create anonymized profiles, grouping shoppers based on past purchases, behavior, and preferences.
3. Advertisers Buy Ad Space
   • Brands can then bid on these audience segments, ensuring their ads reach real buyers, not just browsers.
4. Campaigns Are Served & Optimized in Real-Time
   • Retailers provide near-instant performance insights, allowing brands to tweak targeting and placements for maximum sales both in store and online.

The result? Fewer wasted impressions, higher conversions, and a direct connection between ad spend and revenue.

Retail Media Example

I love Ferraris. I read about them. I follow them. My social media feed is filled with images of them. But here’s the thing: I do not own a Ferrari. Nor am I in the market for one.

If an advertiser used traditional interest-based targeting, they’d waste money serving me ads for Ferrari accessories. But if they used purchase-based targeting, they’d know I just bought windshield wipers for a Kia—and they’d show me ads for actual car accessories I might buy.

This is why purchase-based targeting consistently outperforms other methods. And why brands are flocking to retail media networks in droves.

Types of Retail Media Ads

Retail media isn’t a one-size-fits-all game. Here are some of the most common types in retail media advertisers can use to reach shoppers:

• On-Site Ads: Sponsored product listings, display banners, and search placements on the retailer’s website.
• Off-Site Ads: Programmatic placements on external websites, social media, and even streaming platforms.
• In-Store Media: Digital screens, endcap displays, and loyalty program offers at physical store locations.  It’s not widely available yet, but believe me, it is coming.

Basically, if you can serve an ad there, retail data can make it smarter to help brands reach consumers at critical points in their purchasing journey—whether they’re browsing, searching, or checking out. 

Retail Media’s Biggest Players

Amazon is the undisputed king of retail media, commanding 75% of all retail media spend in the U.S. Walmart Connect and Target’s Roundel round out the top three.

But RMNs aren’t just for traditional retailers anymore. Airlines (United’s Kinective), pharmacies (CVS Media Exchange), and even furniture stores (Wayfair’s ad network) are cashing in.

In fact, Deloitte survey found that 64% of U.S. retailers plan to launch their own RMNs (Wall Street Journal) by the end of 2024. The gold rush is officially on.

Why Retail Media is So Effective

• It’s Based on Real Purchase Behavior - Unlike demographic or interest-based targeting, retail media relies on actual buying history, making it exponentially more accurate.

• It Reduces Wasted Impressions - No more serving ads to people who just bought the product you’re selling. (Yes basic, but that’s been a problem for years.)

• It Measures Real Sales Impact - Retail media provides data on sales—meaning brands can see exactly how much revenue their ads generate.

• It’s Growing—Fast - Retail media is projected to hit $140 billion globally by 2026.
  
  

According to eMarketer's forecast, retail media ad spending will have a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 17.2% between 2024 and 2028.

Retail Media Challenges (And How to Overcome Them)

Like any advertising strategy, retail media isn’t perfect. Below are some hurdles:

• Higher Costs: Retail data can add 20–30% to CPMs, but the improved ROI often justifies the spend.  This combined with the 10-15% charged by DSP and additional fees levied by SSPs can result in half of the budget being paid on data and ad tech fees.
• Limited Data Access: Retailers keep their data within walled gardens, making it harder to integrate across platforms.  This makes it hard to flush out the overall impact of a campaign and can make it difficult to see the unique incremental audience that each retailer brings in.
• Complex Setup: Some RMNs require minimum ad spend commitments and partnerships with demand-side platforms (DSPs).  These can take weeks to get approval delaying activation and limiting nimbleness.

The Future of Retail Media

Retail media advertising is no longer just a niche strategy—it’s becoming the backbone of modern advertising. The ability to use purchase data to drive ad targeting is reshaping everything from display ads to streaming CTV placements.

And with retailers expanding their ad networks beyond their own websites, the potential for retail media-powered advertising is virtually limitless.

If you’re an advertiser looking for higher ROI, smarter targeting, and better measurement, or are just tired of wasting impressions on someone that just bought your or a competitor’s product, it’s time to take retail media seriously.

The brands that figure this out now? They’ll be the ones laughing all the way to the bank.

Next Millennium: Powering Retail Media Success with Programmatic Advertising

Ready to maximize your retail media potential? At Next Millennium, we combine expertise, high-impact ad placements, and AI-driven insights to deliver real results that work hardest for your brand and audience. Whether you’re starting your retail media journey or looking to optimize existing campaigns, we’re here to help. Let’s take your campaigns to the next level—we’ll help you achieve 2X, 3X, and beyond—accessing high-value audiences at just 5% of CPM with no monthly minimums.

What sets us apart:

• Retail Audience Expertise – Drive sales, boost product velocity, and attract new shoppers to your brand.
• Dedicated Account Management – Fast, responsive support to keep campaigns running smoothly.
• Turnkey Activations – Managed services and direct IO options for seamless execution.
•  Flexible Budgets – Low minimums to fit your campaign needs.

If you're beginning your retail media experience or want to optimize your retail media investment, you’ve come to the right place. Let’s work together to create the next success story for your brand.

Contact us today to get started!