Kevin Dunn, VP of Retail and CPG Sales, LiveRamp
Important points:
- CPG brands can use retail media networks to access first-party data and overcome traditional marketing limitations.
- The brand goes beyond traditional metrics and focuses on incrementality and customer lifetime value.
- Retail media is democratizing data access and enabling a more personalized and strategic marketing approach.
Data is essential for personalized consumer engagement. However, consumer packaged goods (CPG) brands, which traditionally rely on brick-and-mortar retailers to sell products such as snacks, beverages, and candy, will receive the same level of consumer data as D2C brands. facing challenges. Historically, many FMCG companies lacked a direct relationship with consumers, which meant they also lacked access to store traffic, transactions, loyalty, or e-commerce data. . This ongoing lack of data is making personalization and targeted marketing more complex and relying on broader and less effective strategies.
Recognizing this gap, forward-thinking consumer goods brands like Mondelez, PepsiCo, and General Mills are Leverage retail media as a strategic solution. These companies are carving new paths to growth, engagement, and revenue by maximizing first-party data and exploring innovative partnerships to incorporate second- and third-party insights. Masu. Their approach provides a shining example and robust framework for other consumer goods brands looking to bridge the data divide, and how innovation and strategic collaboration can turn data challenges into opportunities for success. is shown.
Access to first-party data through evolving and diversified consumer goods and retailer relationships
CPG brands greatly benefit from the first-party data provided by retail partnerships. However, since no single retailer provides a comprehensive view of consumer behavior, CPGs must diversify their access to data sources across multiple retailers and like-minded companies. By connecting data with a variety of partners, consumer goods brands can gain a more comprehensive understanding of their target audience and develop more effective data-driven marketing strategies.
a Typical example One of them is Mondelēz. The company sought to drive category growth and revenue growth for its Triscuit cracker brand while maintaining a privacy-conscious approach to data usage. Leveraging the collaboration enabled by clean room technology, Mondelez has partnered with Pinterest and Albertsons Media Collective, gaining the ability to integrate data from all three parties. This unlocks enhanced audience targeting and measurement capabilities, allowing brands to better understand and engage with consumers. The targeted campaign delivered impressive results, including a 16% increase in incremental sales, demonstrating how privacy-focused data solutions can achieve measurable impact for brands.
retail media networks, etc. Albertsons Media Collectiveis also introducing an AI-powered self-service platform that simplifies data access and campaign management, allowing FMCG brands to create their own campaigns and track them in real-time. For example, Walmart Connect’s platform allows brands to more easily optimize campaigns by allowing brands to select audiences, deploy ads, and monitor effectiveness with minimal data science intervention. AI tools can further improve retail media efficiency by assisting with audience segmentation and predictive analytics. This automation allows brands to adjust campaigns more frequently (weekly or monthly) based on performance insights. These platforms provide brands with real-time control, reducing dependence on intermediaries and allowing them to respond more quickly to changes in consumer behavior and drive better results.
Standardize more effective data practices
One of the challenges in retail media is the lack of standardized data practices across retailers. This discrepancy complicates brands’ efforts to compare and understand audience behavior across platforms.
Data standardization continues to be a challenge today due to the diversity of retailers, but continued efforts to align audience insights are paving the way for significant opportunities. By increasing consistency in how audience data is understood and applied, CPGs can make more informed decisions about where and how to allocate ad spend. For example, if a brand like Hershey’s can differentiate between audience segments between Albertsons and Walmart, it can strategically align its spend with the retailer that serves the most relevant audience. This approach leverages the unparalleled richness of standardized data insights to unlock the potential to connect with more customers in a more personalized way.
As consumer goods brands deepen their partnerships with media networks to gain these insights, their relationships with retailers are also changing. Traditional in-store marketing tools, such as shelf placement, are being replaced by a more data-driven approach. Reflecting a broader shift to data-centric digital strategies, consumer goods brands are increasingly making spending decisions based on retailer audience insights rather than physical shelf space. The success of Mondelez’s Triscuit campaign using clean rooms demonstrates how brands can use their data with partners to reach new customers and optimize campaigns with more accurate audience data .
Expanding beyond traditional retailers
Looking beyond traditional grocery retailers to non-traditional spaces such as convenience stores adds another layer of unique consumer insight available to CPGs. These outlets capture unique behaviors that may not be evident in a larger retail environment, such as impulsive, need-based purchases such as snacks and drinks. By diversifying their partnerships to include grocery stores, big box stores, and convenience stores, consumer goods brands can gain a broader, more nuanced understanding of their consumers’ shopping journeys. This diversity will ultimately allow you to develop more targeted marketing strategies and improve product placement decisions.
Based on this insight, CPGs can benefit from exploring non-specific partnerships, but in a way that aligns with the brand experience. For example, Roundel, which prioritizes a seamless guest experience, must carefully integrate non-native advertisers without disrupting overall consumer behavior. By choosing partnerships that complement their brand values and audience expectations, CPGs gain valuable input from industries outside of their traditional scope, such as entertainment and lifestyle, while maintaining a relevant and consistent customer experience. insights can be extracted. This approach not only enriches your understanding of your customers, but also expands your advertising opportunities in a thoughtful and impactful way.
Moving beyond ROAS to incrementality
When it comes to meaningful metrics, traditional return on ad spend (ROAS) is becoming less important. Brands are now prioritizing incrementality to determine whether a campaign truly created new consumers or simply redirected existing customers. By focusing on incrementality, FMCG brands can better assess the effectiveness of their retail media investments by reaching new customers rather than simply shifting loyalty between retailers. Your campaigns will be able to drive real growth.
For example, if a consumer was persuaded to buy cereal at Kroger instead of Target, incrementality determines whether the campaign actually led to increased sales or influenced the shopper’s choice of retailer. The CPG will help you determine this. By focusing on incrementality, CPGs can better assess the success of their retail media efforts and ensure their investments deliver accurate and measurable growth.
Retail media also helps CPG brands capture new revenue streams through seasonal targeting and customer lifetime value (CLV) tracking. Previously, brands might capture just one seasonal sale without tracking repeat purchases or seasonal re-engagement. Brands can now monitor whether consumers repurchase their products seasonally or on specific occasions, and can now build profiles based on CLV rather than single transactions.
Another key concept is householdization to target products according to life stage. This means tracking purchases at the family level over time. For example, families with young children are likely to continually purchase snacks that evolve with the child’s age, providing brands with an opportunity to build lifelong consumer loyalty.
This approach not only strengthens the brand-consumer relationship, but also builds long-term brand loyalty by ensuring targeted and relevant offers tailored to the needs of customers at each stage of their journey. promote. By focusing on CLV and tiered engagement, CPG brands can create lasting connections that drive sustainable revenue growth, rather than relying on short-term transactional gains.
Retail media as a long-term strategy
Retail media has become a strategic necessity for consumer goods brands, providing a valuable way to access first-party data without the need for a direct-to-consumer model. While some CPGs may explore D2C channels, the majority of consumer engagement will continue to occur within the retail environment.
The ease of access to this valuable data is driving further investment in retail media, especially as self-service platforms democratize participation. Smaller brands now have the tools to access and leverage retail data that was once primarily available to large corporations. With AI innovation and real-time campaign optimization, these platforms make it easier for consumer brands of all sizes to customize messages, reach relevant audiences, and track performance more effectively.
Ultimately, retail media has proven its worth as a long-term strategic pillar. By embracing data collaboration, CPGs can integrate data across partners to unlock powerful new insights, enable smarter data-driven decisions, and unlock the full potential of retail media networks. can. This collaborative approach fosters sustainable growth by fostering deeper consumer engagement and loyalty. As retail media networks evolve, leveraging these insights will continue to be a key driver of success in digital and data-driven markets.
Kevin Dunn is vice president of industry sales, retail and consumer products. live lamp (NYSE:Lamp). Kevin has worked in the martech and adtech industry for over 15 years. Prior to joining LiveRamp, he led the digital transformation of Acxiom’s marketing services business through innovative partnerships that brought together online and offline marketing. Prior to joining Acxiom, Kevin spent seven years at IBM where he was a founding member of an industry-changing product called Universal Behavior Exchange. He is a graduate of the University of New Hampshire and holds a Master of Science degree from Northeastern University. He currently lives in the Boston area.
