Retail Media Isn't the Panacea for All Retailers: 3 Questions Retailers Must Answer to Get it Right
Contrary to popular belief, retail media isn't a panacea for all retailers. Without the ability to leverage CPG brands by way of shelf space, promotions, e-commerce placements, and more, retailers should not have a false sense of the opportunity that cobbling together a small screen network may bring.
Unless there's already a clamoring by CPG brands to do more in-store and online, it's very likely that retail media efforts will be dead on arrival for most sub-scale retail chains.
That doesn't mean that there's no opportunity — there absolutely is — but retailers must be clear-eyed when evaluating options for investing in the hardware and software infrastructure necessary to create, maintain and utilize a communications platform meant to service shoppers and the venues themselves — not only brands.
As someone who has worked with dozens of digital placed-based networks in and around the retail space, my unsolicited advice to retailers is seek to answer the following three questions before considering setting up an in-store retail network:
What’s in it for the Shopper?
What is the compelling reason for shoppers to want your retail media network (in-store or online) to exist? What is the essential value exchange?
In short, what's "in it" for the shopper?
We know that shoppers care about convenience, personalization and other factors that enhance their experience, whether it be entertainment, deals or community messaging.
And as prices continue to rise, causing consumers to shift their shopping habits, whether it be by stocking up during sales, choosing private label over name brand items, or using more coupons, the stakes are even higher for retailers to get it right.
If you can clearly answer this question, you’re on the right track.
What’s in it for the Venue?
What is the compelling reason for the store manager to plug the screens back in if someone trips a cable or blows a fuse? I mean this literally.
What's in it for the actual store-level personnel that are the first line of defense when something goes awry? Why is it in the interest of the store manager and/or marketer to keep the lights on and the ads and promotions running? Are we promoting our own events? Spotlighting our stand-out employees? Moving products via in-store promotions?
This is an absolutely essential consideration: What's "in it" for the venue?
Can Advertisers Be Brought in Without Hurting the Value Exchange?
Finally, the third question comes "if and only if" the first two measures are met. The question is: Can you think of inviting a third-party advertiser to the mix? Crucially, the answer is only if those advertisers do not fundamentally corrupt the value exchange between the venue and the shopper.
If you have a network plan that passes this three-part litmus test, congratulations! Success is one of the possible outcomes of your retail media network. The hard part begins now.
Adam Malone is co-founder and president of Screenverse, a digital out-of-home (DOOH) advertising company.
As co-founder and president of Screenverse, Adam leads the supply partnerships, finance, and marketing departments, focused on keeping people and partners at the center of everything he does. With over 15 years of experience in the out-of-home media sector, Adam has a successful track record of innovation; leading the growth of DOmedia where he developed new products, partnerships, and international market opportunities. When he left DOmedia in 2019 after 10 years, it had an 18.5% North American market share and powered over $1.5B in annual OOH transactions. Before co-founding Screenverse, Adam served as a Client Director at Wilkins Media, a prominent out-of-home media agency. Adam resides in Rockville, MD, with his wife Mary Frances and four children.
