Retail Media Summit 2024: Key Takeaways for Brands

The 2024 Path to Purchase Institute’s Retail Media Summit was a whirlwind of stellar sessions and insights. We've got you covered if you couldn’t attend (or just want a recap!) of June’s big event in Chicago. AdAdapted was not only a sponsor and session host this year, but we were there to soak up what is on the minds of retailers and brands in this ever-evolving retail media landscape that we all know and love. 

We’ve gathered some key themes that resonated with us from the summit and compiled them into a series of takeaways for CPG brands to consider as they move through the remainder of 2024. We’ll also give a glimpse into our RMS session with Albertsons Media Collective, complete with video! So, let's dive into what brands NEED to think about to win in today's retail media environment.

Audience First: Planning with the Consumer in Mind

A consistent theme throughout the summit was the importance of audience planning. Discussions revolved around elevating targeting and segmentation strategies to truly understand audiences and why they make purchasing decisions. This granular audience focus is crucial for crafting personalized experiences that resonate with consumers.

What Should Brands Consider?

Deep Customer Understanding: How well do you understand your target audience? What are their needs, wants, and pain points? By going beyond demographics and examining signals like pre-shop behavior, you can craft messaging that truly resonates.

Segmentation Strategies: Are you segmenting your audience effectively? Can you tailor your campaigns to reach different customer groups with the most relevant messages?

Personalization is Key: Building Relevance for Consumers

Personalization emerged as another talking point during many sessions, with speakers often touching on the importance of understanding consumer demographics to build brand affinity and help drive sales. Conversations revolved around leveraging data and insights and ways brands can tailor messaging and offers to individual consumers, creating a more relevant and engaging experience. 

What Should Brands Consider?

Leveraging Data and Insights: What first-party data do you have access to about your customers? How can you use it to personalize your messaging and offers for maximum impact? 

Building Brand Affinity: How can you leverage personalization to create a more emotional connection with your target audience?

Measurement: The Bedrock of Success

KPIs and measurement were a constant refrain across advertisers. Aligning clear, measurable goals upfront and holding everyone accountable is essential for demonstrating the effectiveness of retail media campaigns and securing future budgets. Every penny spent needs to prove its worth.

What Should Brands Consider?

Defining Clear KPIs: What are your goals for your retail media campaigns? How will you measure success? Make sure your KPIs align with your overall marketing objectives.

Demonstrating ROI: Can you clearly show the value your retail media campaigns deliver? Be prepared to report on key metrics to secure future budget allocation.

The Rise of Contextual Commerce

Contextual commerce was a hot topic, with discussions focusing on how to reach consumers in their daily lives with relevant messaging seamlessly integrated into their natural environments. This approach goes beyond traditional display advertising, with many advertisers demonstrating ways they aim to create shoppable experiences within the context of consumers' digital activities.

What Should Brands Consider?

Seamless Integration: How can you integrate your messaging into the natural flow of consumers' digital activities?

Shoppable Experiences: Are you exploring ways to create shoppable experiences within relevant online environments this upcoming holiday season? These moments can be a powerful way to drive sales.

Partnering for Success: The Albertsons Conversation

On the summit's final day, AdAdapted’s GM of Partnerships, Alison O’Keefe, had a fruitful conversation with Amanda Kramer, Head of Premier Client Success at Albertsons Media Collective, discussing Retail Media 3.0. Amanda shared Albertsons’ retail media evolution, touching on many of the above themes and how the company constantly seeks to better serve its consumers through innovation and partnerships. 

The duo shared the results of a recent retail media campaign in which AdAdapted’s tech solution delivered 20x better off-property media performance, carting more branded products for engaged consumers. This boost is significant news for the retailer and partner brands looking to complement their RMN performance. Check out more from their conversation here!

The Future is Bright: Adaptability is Key

We’ve heard it many times, but it’s true: the retail media landscape constantly evolves. The key takeaways from the summit all point towards one crucial factor: adaptability. By prioritizing audience understanding, personalization, and a data-driven approach, brands and retailers can stay ahead of the curve and thrive in this ever-changing environment. 

Here at AdAdapted, we're excited to be part of this journey, continuously innovating and partnering with industry leaders to shape the future of retail media. Contact us to learn more! 

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