Retail Media Networks’ Impact on the Digital Marketplace

March 31, 2022

The next time you’re shopping online on a retailer’s website like Walmart or Home Depot, and search for a product, take note of the experience you see on the page. Say you need batteries and do a quick search on the site. When the results appear, some of the products may actually be ads — indicated by the word “sponsored” immediately below the product — or featured in banner ads at the top of the page.

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That’s the power of a retail media network.

Retail media is marketing to your customer at the point of purchase. It can include everything from product sampling, strategic in-store displays to prime placements in a slick catalog delivered right to your customer’s mailbox.

I like to think about retail media advertising as digital end caps.

While Amazon is the granddaddy of retail media networks, the concept has grown and morphed. Now, retailers like Walmart, Walgreens, Target, Home Depot, Albertsons and many more are ecommerce marketplaces, selling products and allowing brands to target specific groups of consumers on their sites.

“It’s a growth lever for retailers, something all of their manufacturer partners — their vendor partners — are looking for,” Kristi Argyilan, the new Sr. Vice President of retail media for Albertsons and former president of Target’s media business told Ad Age in December.

Consumers like it, too, she said. “It’s based on what we see groups of consumer audiences starting to respond to. We’re giving them the information, or the promotion or the inspiration that they’re looking for.”

At the same time consumers are turning to online shopping, they’ve also become wary about their personal information being bought and sold in the digital world. Prompted by various governments’ regulations, web browsers are phasing out third-party cookies — we’ve all seen the opt-in pop-ups online.

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Building on changing consumer behaviors

Ecommerce was growing even before COVID-19, but there is no question the pandemic kicked it onto another level. Statista reported U.S. retail ecommerce sales grew 19% in 2021, to just shy of $768 billion, and projected they would hit more than $1.3 trillion by 2025.

“If your products are physically in a store, you can pay to have them placed on an end cap to get more attention,” explained Natalie Scherer, Sr. Vice President of Marketing at Rise Interactive, Quad’s digital marketing agency. “I like to think about retail media advertising as digital end caps.”

Retail media networks are having their moment for a variety of reasons.

Statista reported U.S. retail ecommerce sales hit $644.4 billion in 2020, up from $516.5 billion the previous year. In 2021, that figure grew to just shy of $768 billion. In 2022, it’s expected to hit $875 billion. By 2025, predictions are $1.4 trillion in retail ecommerce sales.

Why the excitement around RMNs?

Another major force in the data privacy trend is Apple’s new App Tracking Transparency, which requires apps to ask permission before they can collect data on users. All of this is drying up the consumer data pool, making it harder for brands and marketers to reach targeted consumers with relevant offers and products at all stages of the buying journey.

It’s no surprise other retailers are jumping in. eMarketer predicts retail media will account for more than $50 billion and receive nearly 20% of all digital ad spend by next year.

“If you’re buying on Walmart.com, you’re likely logged into an account and have consented to having Walmart know information about you because of past purchases. Target, Walmart, Ulta Beauty and other retailers have one-to-one relationships with customers,” she noted.

Is advertising on retail media networks right for you? Aaron Horowitz at Rise Interactive can help you decide. Contact Aaron at aaron.horowitz@riseinteractive.com or 847-612-2550.

Walmart’s growth “shows tremendous advertiser interest in retail media,” Brian Wieser, president of global intelligence at Group M told Ad Age. “Not just CPG brands, but marketers in other industries, as well.”

Walmart is a prime example of a retail media network trusted by consumers and brands. It has 100 million unique monthly visitors to its online marketplace and U.S. online sales grew 90% over the two years ended Jan. 31, 2022. Active advertisers using the Walmart Connect RMN in the U.S. increased 136% in one year. The company reported $2.1 billion in ad revenue last year.

Retail media networks offer built-in trust

U.S. retail ecommerce sales (in billion dollars)

516.5

644.4

767.7

875.2

2019

2020

2021

2022

Retail media networks (RMNs) are not exactly new, but they are one of the fastest growing advertising opportunities in the current media mix. RMNs are owned by specific retailers who offer advertising slots on their home, search or category pages. More recently they’ve expanded to include a broader range of channels such as in-store digital ads, product sampling and campaigns on connected TV. And they’ve made a huge impact on how brands allocate their media spend.

Retailers have embraced them as a lucrative revenue source, with many reporting explosive growth in 2021 — 25% of retailers received more than $100 million in revenue from RMNs last year according to Forrester

If you’re that battery company trying to connect with consumers when they’re ready to buy online, paying for your product to be visible on the retail site is a powerful opportunity

Watch: The Million Dollar Question — Should you expand to Walmart Advertising?

Statista, 2022

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Natalie Scherer, Rise Interactive

Advertisers get access to retailers’ first-party consumer data and buying habits

RMNs offer CPG brands an update on other types of promotions brands pay retailers for.

Enter retail media networks. They give brands a very effective way to reach online customers at the point of purchase.

The growth of retail media networks is fueled by data, and retailers are now monetizing their first-party data and insights. “A lot of retailers have realized that they’re sitting on a wealth of data about customers shopping on their websites,” Scherer explained.

March 9, 2022

Suddenly, a once-dormant marketing tool has become a powerful way for marketers to connect with consumers, driving them offline to online.

Is advertising on retail media networks right for you? Aaron Horowitz at Rise Interactive can help you decide. Contact Aaron at aaron.horowitz@riseinteractive.com or 847-612-2550.

Is advertising on retail media networks right for you? Aaron Horowitz at Rise Interactive can help you decide. Contact Aaron at

Retail media networks’ stunning impact on the digital marketplace