This Week In Retail

This Week In Retail

Are Retail Media Networks the New Brick-and-Mortar?

Here's my Thought

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Mike Vaughn
Aug 29, 2024
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Hey Friends,

Remember billboards? Not in the sense of “they’re gone”, but in the sense of, remember when billboards we a semi-major source of engagement and advertisement? Before the days of working from home, when local ads and clever puns alongside highways would break the monotony of the morning commute.

Chipotle's refreshingly honest ads got right to the point, empower consumers to engage with the self-deprecating commentary.
image credit: Chipotle

And then we had a Twitter revolution, or X, depending on your preference. For the sake of simplicity, I’ll lump restaurants into the “retail” conversation for just a moment. Nothing was better than seeing Wendy’s engaging with patrons or clapping back at a competing fast-food chain. Here’s one that’s particularly relevant to today’s conversation.

image credit: Wendy’s X account

Consumer engagement in 2024 has been dominated by the intersection of retail and media. Every digital surface seems to be a place to turn to an ad opportunity. According to Mimbi, there are over 200 retail media networks. Media and advertising are significantly shaping the retail landscape through various emerging trends and technological advancements, while offering additional revenue streams for retailers. While Amazon gets a lot of credit for the “innovation” around retail and media partnerships, just listen to any retailer’s earnings call and you’ll hear conversation around a few points:

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