As Retail Media cements its place as a core revenue stream for retailers and a must-have in brand marketing strategies, many retailers are looking to take their first steps into this fast-growing space. But launching, or even scaling, a Retail Media Network (RMN) can feel overwhelming without a clear starting point.
To support those just beginning their journey, we asked members of our Retail & Commerce Media Committee to share their expert insights on what retailers need to know. From building a strong data proposition to navigating internal challenges and prioritising measurement, this Q&A offers foundational guidance to help new entrants set up for long-term success.
Thank you to the following contributors, for sharing their thoughts and expertise:
Katie Streeter Hurle, Chief Strategy Officer, SMG
Tim Abraham, Senior Director, Data Partnerships, The Trade Desk
Larisa Dumitru, Head of eCommerce EMEA, GroupM
Katie - “I’d advise retailers to talk to their brands first. What would they like to see? What does good like to them? Ultimately, they’re your first customers and will be a critical part of informing your proposition. Next up, look at the market. Where do you fit in, and how do you offer something that’s perhaps missing from existing offers? Finally, make a choice about where you have the capabilities in-house to do this and where you’ll need partnerships. There’s expertise in the market that could help you accelerate progress fast, whilst the market is in growth.”
Tim - “First and foremost, retailers need to make sure that nothing they do with customer data will damage that most trusted relationship. The key question then is which “buyer profiles” the retailer wishes to address. For example, media agency buyers versus brand trade marketing versus non-endemics, to maximise Retail Media Network (RMN) revenue and margin. In particular, this means providing a Retail Media proposition that fits with mid-funnel and upper-funnel omnichannel media campaigns. The final consideration will be how the retailer brings its offering to market, and who will be selling and operating campaigns.”
Larisa - “Before launching or growing a Retail Media offering, retailers need to be super clear on what makes them stand out and how they’ll actually help brands hit their goals - whether that’s driving sales, building awareness, or winning share of shelf (or all of the above, ideally). They also need to make sure they’ve got the tools, data, and reporting to prove it’s working and are transparent about what the roadmap is.”
Larisa - “To build a strong data proposition, retailers need to start by recognising the value of the data they already have — things like what customers are buying, how often they shop, and what influences their decisions. This step is often overlooked, but it’s critical: understanding the power of your own data is the foundation for giving brands the insights they need to connect better with shoppers.
From there, it’s about organising the data so it’s easy and safe for brands to use, while making privacy and security non-negotiable. Setting clear rules around data access and protecting customer trust will help create a platform that brands are comfortable and excited to invest in and grow with.”
Tim - “Different buyers have different needs. A traditional shopper marketing buying approach has a stronger bias towards incremental sales lift and less towards brand preference metrics. Other buying approaches might treat return on ad spend (ROAS) as the means to compare performance between buys, even if there is no incrementality component. For others, retailers need to provide an off-site, self-serve solution that allows them to leverage retail data across their omnichannel media plans. Retailers don’t need to do everything on day one – it is critical to have a clear narrative of what problem each part of their RMN proposition is solving.”
Katie - “Measurement needs to be available on day one. It doesn’t need to be sophisticated necessarily, but standard, baseline metrics (for on-site, in-store, and off-site) are all critical now. When advertisers see the direct impact of their campaigns, confidence builds, and a clear measurement plan not only validates RMNs externally but also makes the RMN team accountable for results from launch. Once the basics are in place, you’ll of course then need a roadmap to scale your measurement offer and build depth in it.”
Tim - “In the earlier stages of Retail Media, investment was tightly coupled with broader retailer or supplier trade marketing relationships. But now, brands must prove the value of Retail Media investments as they would for any other media strategy. Retailers are uniquely able to do this by providing outcomes-based measurement. Ideally, this goes beyond ROAS to consider incremental sales lift and, where possible, shows the impact of running across multiple RMN channels (e.g., the impact that off-site has on on-site). A note of caution, however: Retailers shouldn’t overlook measurement solutions that show the value of Retail Media on upper funnel metrics.
Larisa - “If retailers want to tap into serious media budgets, they need to start acting like true media owners - and that means bringing real measurement rigour into everything they do. Brands like Unilever expect clear proof that their investment is delivering business outcomes, not just reach or visibility. Measurement shouldn’t be an afterthought; it should be built into the strategy from day one, with clear KPIs, transparent reporting, and a commitment to optimising performance.”
Katie - “In my experience, retailers can face internal barriers moving at pace. Whether that’s signing off new contracts, launching new capabilities, working with legal or DPO teams, it’s genuinely hard to make progress fast because resources aren’t always there and Retail Media is a new part of the business. Figuring out how to unblock those pipes to bring new propositions to market quickly is vital. Secondly, Retail Media necessitates a totally different way of working with brands, which can take time to influence, and retailers have to learn a whole new language. In a normal retailer-supplier relationship, there’s a commercial and trading dynamic that sometimes favours the retailer. In a RMN, the supplier brand is the client/customer and will invest only if the opportunity will genuinely deliver results. This needs a very different way of working and a completely different level of servicing.”
Tim - “The challenge we most commonly hear from retailers is securing internal buy-in and support for bringing a Retail Media solution to market. Retailers are rightly cautious about how data is used, and this is reflected in demanding the highest standards of governance. A second common challenge is developing a business model that covers operational expenditure, such as software as a service (SaaS) technology fees. These costs can grow quickly, particularly people costs associated with managed service solutions, where retailers manage campaign execution.”
Katie - “You have a second mover advantage right now, don’t underestimate this! You can look at where you follow the ‘market playbook’ that has been established by the early and mature RMNs to drive growth quickly. But equally, many new RMNs will be launched from smaller businesses or wider commerce players who are naturally very agile. There’s a great opportunity to differentiate and cut into the market in new ways too.”
Tim - “Perhaps a deceptively simple piece of advice is to be customer-centric! We regularly hear from retailers that their key objective is to deliver an incremental margin back to their core business. This can be achieved as a win-win compared to reduced media wastage and better return on investment for advertisers. However, retailers should understand that brands will expect RMN solutions to meet the standards of control, independence, and consistency that are demanded from other media options.”
Larisa - “Start by putting brands at the centre of your thinking. Understand what they need — real results, trusted data, clear measurement — and build your Retail Media offering around helping them succeed, not just selling ad space. Collaborating with media agencies from the outset is key too; they can help you shape your offerings, align with brand goals, and drive the right results. If you focus on delivering real value to brands and work closely with agencies, everything else — investment, partnerships, growth — will follow.”
For more information on IAB Europe’s Retail and Commerce Media work and how you can get involved, please visit our Retail Media Hub here or contact Marie-Clare Puffett at puffett [at] iabeurope.eu.
