By Kevin Dunn, VP of Retail & CPG Sales, LiveRamp
Key Takeaways:
- CPG brands can use retail media networks to access first-party data and overcome historical marketing limitations.
- Brands are moving beyond traditional metrics to focus on incrementality and customer lifetime value.
- Retail media is democratizing data access, enabling more personalized and strategic marketing approaches.
Data is essential for personalized consumer engagement. However, consumer packaged goods (CPG) brands, which traditionally depend on brick-and-mortar retailers to sell products like snacks, beverages, and candy, face challenges in acquiring the same level of consumer data as direct-to-consumer brands. Historically, many CPG companies have lacked direct relationships with consumers, which has meant they’ve also lacked access to store traffic, transaction, loyalty, or e-commerce data. This ongoing data scarcity has made personalization and targeted marketing more complicated, leaving them reliant on broader, less effective strategies.
Recognizing this gap, forward-thinking CPG brands like Mondelēz, PepsiCo, and General Mills are leveraging retail media as a strategic solution. By making the most of first-party data and exploring innovative partnerships to incorporate second- and third-party insights, these companies are unlocking new paths to growth, engagement, and revenue. Their approach provides a shining example and a robust framework for other CPG brands seeking to close the data divide, demonstrating how innovation and strategic collaboration can transform data challenges into opportunities for success.
Access to first-party data through evolved and diversified CPG-retailer relationships
CPG brands benefit significantly from the first-party data that retail partnerships offer. However, since no single retailer offers a comprehensive view of consumer behavior, CPGs must diversify access to data sources across multiple retailers and like-minded companies. By collaborating data with a range of partners, CPG brands gain a more holistic understanding of their target audiences, allowing them to craft more effective, data-driven marketing strategies.
A prime example of this is Mondelēz, which sought to drive category growth and incremental sales for its Triscuit cracker brand while maintaining a privacy-conscious approach to data usage. Leveraging a collaboration enabled by clean room technology, Mondelēz partnered with Pinterest and Albertsons Media Collective and gained the ability to bring together data across all three parties. This unlocked enhanced audience targeting and measurement capabilities, allowing the brand to better understand and engage its consumers. The targeted campaign drove impressive results, including a 16% increase in incremental sales, showcasing how privacy-focused data solutions can achieve measurable impact for brands.
Retail media networks, like Albertsons Media Collective, have also introduced AI-powered self-service platforms that simplify data access and campaign management, enabling CPG brands to independently create and track campaigns in real time. Walmart Connect’s platform, for example, allows brands to select audiences, deploy ads, and monitor effectiveness with minimal data science intervention, making campaign optimization much more accessible. AI tools can further enhance the efficiency of retail media by assisting with audience segmentation and predictive analytics. This automation enables brands to adjust campaigns more frequently — weekly or monthly — based on performance insights. By empowering brands with real-time control, these platforms reduce reliance on intermediaries, allowing for quicker responses to shifting consumer behaviors and better outcomes.
Standardizing data practices for greater effectiveness
One challenge within retail media is the absence of standardized data practices across retailers. This inconsistency complicates brands’ efforts to compare and understand audience behavior across platforms.
Standardizing data remains a challenge today due to the diversity of retail players, but ongoing efforts to align audience insights are paving the way for significant opportunities. By creating greater 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 audience segments between Albertsons and Walmart, it can strategically tailor its spending to the retailer offering the most relevant audience. This approach unlocks the potential to connect with more customers in more personalized ways, leveraging the unmatched richness of standardized data insights.
As CPG brands deepen their partnerships with media networks for these insights, their relationships with retailers are also transforming. Traditional in-store marketing tools, like shelf positioning, are giving way to more data-driven approaches. Increasingly, CPG brands base spending decisions on a retailer’s audience insights rather than physical shelf space, reflecting a broader shift toward data-centric digital strategies. The success of Mondelēz’s Triscuit campaign with a clean room exemplifies how brands can collaborate their data with partners to reach new customers and optimize campaigns with more accurate audience data.
Expansion beyond traditional retailers
Looking beyond traditional grocery retailers to non-traditional spaces like convenience stores adds another layer of unique consumer insights available to CPGs. These outlets capture distinct behaviors, for example, impulsive, need-based purchases like snacks or drinks, which may not be evident in big-box retail environments. By diversifying partnerships to include grocery stores, big-box retailers, and convenience outlets, CPG brands gain a broader and more nuanced understanding of consumer buying contexts. This diversity ultimately allows them to develop more targeted marketing strategies and improve product placement decisions.
Building on this insight, CPGs can benefit from exploring non-endemic partnerships, but they must do so in a way that aligns with their brand experience. For instance, Roundel, which prioritizes a seamless guest experience, would need to carefully integrate non-endemic advertisers without disrupting the overall consumer journey. By choosing partnerships that complement their brand values and audience expectations, CPGs can unlock valuable insights from industries outside their traditional scope — such as entertainment or lifestyle — while maintaining a relevant and cohesive customer experience.
Moving Beyond ROAS to Incrementality: A Strategic Shift for CPG Brands
As the marketing landscape continues to evolve, traditional metrics like return on ad spend (ROAS) are no longer the sole focus for CPG brands. Instead, the industry is moving towards a more nuanced approach known as incrementality. This shift aims to determine whether a campaign is truly driving new consumer engagement or simply reshuffling existing customers between retailers.
By prioritizing incrementality, CPG brands can gain a deeper understanding of the effectiveness of their retail media investments. This approach helps them assess whether their campaigns are genuinely expanding their customer base or merely shifting loyalty from one retailer to another.
For example, if a consumer switches from buying a product at one retailer to another due to a marketing campaign, incrementality analysis can reveal whether this change resulted in a net increase in sales or simply a redistribution of existing revenue. By focusing on incrementality, CPG brands can ensure that their marketing efforts lead to tangible growth by attracting new customers.
Moreover, retail media offers CPG brands the opportunity to explore new revenue streams through targeted seasonal campaigns and tracking customer lifetime value (CLV). By monitoring repeat purchases and seasonal re-engagements, brands can build comprehensive customer profiles based on CLV rather than isolated transactions.
Another critical concept in this shift is householding, which involves tracking purchases at the family level over time to tailor product offerings based on different life stages. By understanding and catering to the evolving needs of consumers within a household, brands can foster long-term consumer loyalty and engagement.
Retail Media as a Long-Term Strategic Pillar
Retail media has emerged as a strategic imperative for CPG brands, providing access to valuable first-party data without the need for a direct-to-consumer model. While some brands may explore direct-to-consumer channels, the majority of consumer interactions will continue to occur within retail environments.
This increased access to valuable consumer data is driving further investment in retail media, especially as self-service platforms democratize participation. Smaller brands now have the tools to leverage retail data previously available only to larger players. With advancements in AI and real-time campaign optimization, CPG brands of all sizes can now personalize messaging, reach relevant audiences, and track performance more effectively.
Ultimately, retail media serves as a long-term strategic pillar for CPG brands. By embracing data collaboration, brands can unlock the full potential of retail media networks, generating valuable insights for smarter decision-making. This collaborative approach fosters sustained growth by deepening consumer engagement and loyalty, essential in an increasingly digital and data-driven market.
Author: Kevin Dunn, Vice President of Industry Sales, Retail & CPG at LiveRamp
the title: “The Power of Positivity: How a Positive Mindset Can Transform Your Life”
In a world filled with challenges and uncertainties, maintaining a positive mindset can be a powerful tool for navigating through life’s ups and downs. The power of positivity lies in its ability to shape our perspective, influence our actions, and ultimately transform our lives for the better.
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A positive mindset also has a profound impact on our relationships with others. When we radiate positivity, we attract like-minded individuals who uplift and support us. Our positive energy becomes contagious, spreading to those around us and creating a ripple effect of happiness and harmony.
Furthermore, a positive mindset can enhance our physical and mental well-being. Research has shown that individuals who maintain a positive outlook on life are more likely to experience lower levels of stress, reduced risk of depression, and improved overall health. By focusing on the good in life, we can boost our immune system, increase our longevity, and enhance our quality of life.
So, how can we cultivate a positive mindset in our daily lives? It starts with practicing gratitude and mindfulness. Taking time each day to reflect on the things we are grateful for can shift our focus from what is lacking to what we already have. Additionally, mindfulness techniques such as meditation and deep breathing can help us stay present and grounded, allowing us to approach each moment with a sense of calm and clarity.
In conclusion, the power of positivity is a force to be reckoned with. By adopting a positive mindset, we can transform our lives in profound ways, from how we approach challenges to how we interact with others and care for ourselves. So, let’s embrace the power of positivity and watch as our lives flourish with joy, resilience, and fulfillment.
