It is no secret that the data retailers have is unparalleled and the growth of Retail Media Networks (RMNs) is interlinked with this. This blog dives into the utilisation of retailer data, how it can be used across other media channels, and how the insights can enable brands to sharpen their advertising campaigns.
A big thank you to the following contributors for sharing their thoughts:
Helen Johnson, Group Director at SMG
Esme Robinson, Director Platform Solutions at Epsilon
Jakub Rutkowski, Head of Digital Media at Allegro
Ollie Walls, Director Commerce Media at PubMatic
Esme: “We all know retailer first party-data is the cornerstone of a Retail Media offering, and this can encompass multiple things – who is buying, what are they buying, when are they buying, trends, performance, and insights – all sorts of invaluable data that can be used to deliver impactful messages to build a trusting relationship between consumers and brands, and measure impact. In addition to this, RMNs can partner with vendors with second or third-party data bringing further intelligence and insights to brands, to create more relevant and personalised messages across the whole funnel. Even with users who may be new to the retailer or brand.”
Jakub: “RMNs uniquely combine media performance metrics with deep insights into customer behaviour, offering a level of data that other sources cannot provide. This combination enables brands to better understand their audience, craft personalised communication, and verify what works, driving meaningful engagement and measurable impact.”
Helen: “Retailer data has always held high value to brands, from historic CRM programmes to general EPOS data. However, the landscape has transformed over the past 5 years with the explosion of rich, large-scale loyalty card schemes and critically the development of technology which has made this data available to advertisers in a sophisticated way across instore, onsite, and offsite.
Taking the UK as an example, with 80% of British shoppers being members of at least one loyalty scheme and thus many UK retailers having millions of consumers as an addressable audience, this has cemented retailer first-party data as a powerhouse in delivering superior insights, precision targeting at scale and the holy grail of closed-loop measurement to brands.”
Ollie: “RMNs provide brands with comprehensive shopper data, including transaction details, real-time inventory, and loyalty programme insights. The data covers customer demographics, purchase frequency, preferences, and lifetime value analysis. Brands gain access to basket composition patterns, product competitive intelligence, price sensitivity and sales performance metrics, and online purchasing behaviour including basket abandonment.”
Jakub: “IAB Europe’s standardised metrics, provide robust tools for most campaign needs, offering valuable insights into performance. Additionally, there is an opportunity for brands to collaborate closely with RMNs to develop tailored campaigns that align with specific goals. For example, in partnership with Pampers, we focused on engaging new customers by using RMN data (developed by the Data Science team) to expand the brand’s audience, focusing on the audience with the highest growth potential. This collaborative approach in setting up a campaign highlights how working together can maximise results, creating a win-win dynamic between RMNs and brands."
Helen: “Retailer data has transformed the advertising process and net output for brands and consumers. From a targeting perspective, brands can not only target their consumers with superior precision but also target consumers who have a high propensity to buy or engage with their brand, limiting media wastage. With closed-loop measurement, brands can measure if their campaigns deliver incremental sales based on real (not claimed or inferred) purchases across both in-store and online and critically this can be done in real-time, allowing optimisation across touchpoints and creative executions.”
Esme: “Beyond the expected performance metrics, which are becoming increasingly standardised thanks to work by organisations such as IAB Europe, there are a host of other insights that can be provided to brands. For example, basket analysis to showcase what other products/categories customers are shopping alongside a brand, or share analysis to see how a brand is trending against the wider category or even how frequently customers are purchasing a brand (vs other brands/the category) – these examples all create actionable insights.”
Ollie: “Retailer data delivers actionable campaign insights, enabling precise customer segmentation and a deeper understanding of purchase behaviours. Through detailed analytics, brands can develop targeted advertising strategies, uncover cross-category patterns, and benchmark against market dynamics. This data-driven approach maximises ad relevance, engagement, and conversion rates.”
Helen: “Some of the UK’s retail loyalty schemes have been around for decades, often meaning that some are operating in clunky legacy data systems, and thus connecting these to third-party channels can be challenging. There are multiple data tech partners available but retailers have three key need areas 1) a simple way of sorting and having visibility of data internally; 2) a clean room that provides a secure, privacy-compliant way for data to be analysed and/or shared with other data sets; 3) an interoperable identifier such as EUID or RampID that allows retailer data to be matched and used across non retailer inventory such as the open web in a GDPR compliant way.”
Esme: “Identity resolution has to be the number one priority here – to create audiences of real people tied to real transactions, connected to attributes or insights to create a segmentation, to control frequency, to tie channels back to conversions without double-counting, all of this relies on tying touchpoints to a real person. This is easier said than done, and working with a vendor who can offer both identity resolution and activation allows brands and retailers to minimise wastage and signal loss and have more control over the end-to-end process.”
Jakub: “Here we face two sides of the Retail Media coin. The good news for brands is that even without their own data, RMNs can provide all the necessary insights and tools to drive success. On the other hand, this places responsibility on retailers to understand, manage, and continually enhance these capabilities. At Allegro, being at the forefront of MarTech innovation is a key priority—not just in advertising but across the entire organisation. This includes unifying our user ID graph, implementing a CDP by year-end, and more still to come. From a brand perspective, if they don’t have their own data, the RMN can provide the necessary data and tools to deliver successful campaigns.”
Ollie: “Retailers need a robust data strategy built on either a CDP (Customer Data Platform) or DMP (Data Management Platform) to develop their desired taxonomy. Retailers can share their data through direct integration with supply-side platforms (SSPs) to enable targeting for media buyers and advertisers, or by partnering with data onboarding specialists to facilitate secure data transfer. The recommendation here is for partners to offer buyers core targeting options plus custom segment capabilities. This approach generates market demand and interest for their data without having to upload the full catalogue.”
Jakub: “Standardisation and transparency. These are the homework RMNs must complete to succeed, especially as over 50% of brands see them as key challenges. Establishing these foundations builds trust and attracts advertisers’ investment. I've highlighted data capabilities and MarTech implementation, but the Retail Media wave also requires retailers to think and act like media owners. Offsite means that no inventory is within retailer ownership, making partnerships with publishers essential. At Allegro, we prioritise collaboration with major local and global platforms such as Google (YouTube), Meta, and TikTok to deliver impactful and scalable campaigns.”
Helen: "There are three core strategies retailers are driving – firstly, ensuring that they have a sizable (in terms of breadth and depth) addressable audience, ensuring that their first-party data is competitive and has a clear proposition usage for brands. Secondly, they have been creating alliances with third-party media owners such as CTV, social platforms and open web DSPs ensuring that they are offering brands a full omnichannel proposition to activate against and elevating their capabilities in planning, activation and measurement to deliver this. Lastly, they are looking at broadening their access to brand investment, creating partnerships with media agencies and developing their non-endemic strategy."
Esme: “For brands to invest, retailers need to be competitive in what they offer. This can be anything from data hygiene and organisation, to channels offered, and measurement capabilities. Regardless of the individual capabilities, what RMNs need to do is reduce fragmentation. Fragmentation was the number one investment barrier (58% of respondents) according to IAB Europe’s ‘Attitudes to Retail Media Report’. By working with the right partners, retailers can reduce fragmentation for a better experience and will be rewarded with increased investment.”
Ollie: “UK retailers are expanding offsite data strategies through partnerships with DSPs, SSPs, social platforms, and broadcasters. Using data clean rooms enables secure insight sharing for targeted advertising across digital, social, and CTV platforms. The integration of in-store and online data drives personalised offsite campaigns, enhancing customer engagement and omnichannel strategy. While larger retailers already monetise their data for offsite use, others seek guidance on activation. The convergence of retail data and CTV has created direct partnerships with broadcasters for first-party data measurement and monetisation. Success depends on maintaining customer trust through relevant advertising that enhances the shopping experience.”
Ollie: “I have seen this successful typically when the advertiser, agency, and retailer collaborate in their approach. An example would be a health and beauty brand that partnered with a retailer to leverage first-party data for market share growth. They analysed purchase history to deliver personalised ads across digital, social, and in-store channels. Customers who bought specific products received targeted ads for complementary items, creating cross-selling opportunities. This integrated approach significantly increased both online and in-store sales, with clear measurements, showing digital ads' impact on physical purchases—proving the value and effectiveness of retailer data in offsite advertising.“
Jakub: “I’ve already mentioned the Pampers case, and we also have recent examples of collaboration with a cosmetic brand (achieving a ROAS of 10), and a cleaning supplies brand (reaching 5.5 million category buyers). Leveraging first-party data is the sine qua non of digital campaign success. 85% of our campaigns are powered by this data, delivering a twofold increase in ROI compared to those without it. Our MarTech implementations enable a 90% customer match rate for offsite activities. With 20 million monthly users, our data drives an average of 50% better ROAS than industry benchmarks while reducing media waste by targeting only relevant audiences.”
Helen: “A360, which is Boots’ award-winning first-party data proposition, connects the 16MM users of Boots’ Advantage Card to both Boots’ owned and third-party media channels. This allows brands to deliver audience-led campaigns across instore, online and offsite with precision planning, real-time optimisation and closed-loop measurement within the AI-enabled proprietary software platform Plan Apps, both at a managed and self-service level. This has been used by brands such as L’Oreal, Oral B, Dior, Dove, Phillips and Estée Lauder. It has proven to deliver positively against short-term conversion in incremental ROI as well as measures such as new to brand and category and longer-term customer value, transforming the role Boots can play for brands across the total media funnel.”
Esme: “Currys, representing the largest consumer transactional database for electrical purchases began to leverage their first-party data with Epsilon – linking to Epsilon’s COREid and enhanced with contextual and buyer demographic information to provide deeper understandings and message the most relevant in-market individuals to ensure better targeting, performance and more efficient media spend. By connecting in-store data, Currys was able to see the impact of the advertising on offline sales, with 26% of tracked purchases occurring in-store and achieving a total of 8:1 SKU-level ROAS with 65% of buyers being new-to-brand. By taking advantage of the retailer’s rich first-party data and Epsilon’s offsite behavioural information, it was able to reach a large audience in a short period, driving real revenue and value for Currys and Currys brands.”
IAB Europe’s Retail Media Committee is at the forefront of the Retail Media industry. Members are driving Retail Media growth and shaping the landscape by:
All of the committee's work can be found in our Retail Media Hub here.
Find out more about getting involved by contacting Marie-Clare Puffett - puffett@iabeurope.eu.
With the festive season in full swing and a new year fast approaching, we invite you to join us in reflecting on what has shaped 2024 for us, our members, and the industry overall.
This blog post showcases some of IAB Europe’s best bits and all the great work we have accomplished with our wonderful members and partners this year. Thank you all for your hard work, support, and expertise and for helping us make 2024 a great success.
So, let’s dive in…
From our flagship conference Interact in Milan to newly added Great Debates, Virtual Programmatic Days, and dedicated webinars on topics such as DE&I, we have covered a variety of interesting topics through our virtual and in-person events this year.
Below we have highlighted some of our most popular events. If you want to watch any of our events on demand, simply head to our Knowledge Hub and select ‘Watch on Demand’ in the side menu.
Interact 2024 in Milan - The Big Questions. The Sharp Answers
This year we headed to the vibrant city of Milan for Interact 2024, where we brought industry leaders, innovators, and experts together to answer the big questions shaping the future of digital advertising. Going beyond standard keynote presentations and panel discussions, we brought the ‘interactive’ back to Interact, with each session framed around a key question that our elite, expert speakers endeavoured to answer.
From the demise of third-party cookies and Retail Media to sustainability, policy, measurement, and more, we had the smart, sharp answers to our industry's biggest questions of today. Check out the event wrap-up here.
One Virtual and One Hybrid Virtual Programmatic Day
Our Virtual Programmatic Day (VPD) is one of our most popular events, bringing industry experts and thought leaders together to explore the latest trends, drives, and barriers impacting programmatic trading in Europe.
This year our H1 virtual event covered the hottest topics in the news, the new programmatic ecosystem, media quality, attention, and more.
Check out the session recordings and highlights from our H1 event here.
For our H2 hybrid event, we headed to Berlin, where topics included the results of and thoughts on our 10th annual Attitudes to Programmatic Report, the future of personalisation, the impact of MFAs, and how prepared the industry is for the addressability era.
Check out the session recordings and highlights from our H2 event here.
The Great Debate Series
Our Great Debate series of events brings industry experts together to discuss and debate the industry’s hottest topics of the moment. This year we added AI to the agenda and also hosted a hybrid event on Retail Media.
Check out our Great Debate event recordings and highlights below:
More Bespoke Events
As well as our main events, we hosted several bespoke events and webinars on critical topics including Connected TV, Quality, DE&I, and Programmatic Outcomes. Check out some of them below:
We have a passion for research, and our wealth of experience conducting industry attitudes and benchmarking studies across various digital advertising topics speaks for itself. Here are our top five research highlights from 2024:
All of our guides are created with the help and expertise of our industry committee members. Check out some of our top trending pieces below:
In collaboration with our Retail Media Committee, we have been actively driving initiatives to educate and elevate the Retail Media landscape in Europe, focusing specifically on the development of standards such as:
Jason Wescott, Global Head of Commerce Solutions, GroupM & IAB Europe’s Retail Media Committee Chair
"2024 marked a transformative year for IAB Europe in Retail Media, as our focus on the category intensified. Witnessing the positive impact and influence of our efforts across the industry has been immensely gratifying, as we united to enhance understanding of digital Retail Media and establish standards to enable its growth and success across Europe.
Looking ahead to 2025, I am excited to announce that In-Store Measurement Standards, Certification for Measurement Standards, and a Retail Media Training Programme are all in the pipeline. These accomplishments are a testament to the knowledge and dedication of our exceptional committee members and industry network, along with our efficacious collaboration."
You can explore all of this great content and more of the work from our committee on our Retail Media Hub.
In collaboration with our Sustainability Standards Committee, we have continued our great work to help reduce the carbon emissions produced by the delivery of digital advertising this year. Here are some of the new tools and key outputs we have produced to support this important topic:
Steffen Hubert, Associate Director and Lead Sustainability, Seven.One Entertainment Group & Vice-Chair of IAB Europe's Sustainability Standards Committee
"Sustainability is a multifaceted journey—one that resembles a marathon more than a sprint. It requires resilience, innovation, and the courage to navigate complexity. I am deeply grateful to our IAB Europe Sustainability Standards Committee, a passionate and driven group that continues to embrace every challenge with enthusiasm. No task has proven too big, no solution too ambitious.
As we reflect on 2024, we celebrate the tangible progress made. From tools like CreativeLi and OpenGHG to our educational Guide to the CSRD, we have provided even more essential resources to help navigate through the challenges of the industry. Furthermore, we are proud to have played a key role in shaping the digital component of the Global Media Sustainability Framework (GMSF), marking another significant step forward. These achievements are milestones in a long-term effort and demonstrate what is possible when collaboration and determination come together.
Looking ahead to 2025, the road may become even more intricate, but I am confident in this team’s ability to face the challenges head-on. Together, we will continue to push boundaries, drive meaningful change, and make sustainability not just a goal, but a shared success."
You can explore more of this great work and valuable resources on our Sustainability Hub.
This year, we also welcomed two new working groups, expanding our knowledge and expertise across two key areas for progress:
Stay tuned for the 2025 plans in which we’re ramping up on industry education and outreach in both addressability and AI topics.
Let’s dive into policy! This year, we have maintained our focus on policy advocacy, showcasing the industry's value, actively engaging in discussions on key EU policy dossiers, and updating the industry on the new EU Commission.
Here are some of the key highlights:
As we set our sights on 2025, get ready for even more outstanding content, valuable insights, dynamic events, and exciting updates from IAB Europe.
From expanding our work in Retail Media and Sustainability to exploring new areas such as AI, programmatic advancements, and other key topics, we’re eager to collaborate with our members as we tackle the industry's most pressing and innovative challenges in the coming year.
We’re also thrilled to announce that our annual Interact conference will take place in an exciting new location—stay tuned for more details soon!
That wraps up 2024! A heartfelt thank you to all our members for engaging with our initiatives this year and helping us deliver content that continues to inspire and provoke thought.
If you’re interested in joining IAB Europe or are already a member and want to get more involved in our committees, task forces, outputs, or content, don’t hesitate to reach out at communication@iabeurope.eu.
Wishing you a joyful festive season and a well-deserved break. We’re excited to reconnect and collaborate in the new year as we drive the industry forward in 2025 and beyond.
What's in store for the programmatic world in 2025? We asked members of our Programmatic Trading Committee (PTC) for their predictions on the trends and themes that will shape the industry over the next 12 months. Take a look below to see their insights, including 2025 buzzword predictions!
We’re grateful to our PTC members for their valuable contributions. Check out their predictions, quotes, and perspectives below:
Josephine Howe, Senior Marketing Manager, Microsoft Advertising
"2025 will mark a technologically innovative year in programmatic advertising. Machine learning has played an important role for many years in our industry, yet we will start to see the adoption of further AI capabilities to make existing business models more effective and introduce new, exciting ad formats we have not thought of before.
Programmatic advertising has traditionally been a fast-evolving field where upskilling at pace is a table stake - this will enhance adoption even further. Beyond that, I believe 2025 will be a significant year for highly efficient personalised, yet privacy-safe advertising solutions. Browser APIs are to stand the test of time with the chance of being introduced at a broader scale."
Alex Still, Chief Commercial Officer, Verve
"Gamified advertising is set to experience a revival in 2025, with in-app ads seamlessly integrating into platform experiences. This reflects a shift toward greater media efficiency, as underutilised channels like in-app, DOOH, and audio gain prominence, offering brands opportunities for meaningful engagement with less competition. At the same time, privacy updates on platforms like iOS and Android will push brands to adopt advanced contextual targeting solutions to maintain effectiveness while respecting user privacy."
Jörg Vogelsang, Chief Digital Officer, BCN Brand Community Network & Vice Chair of IAB Europe’s Programmatic Trading Committee
"In the field of digital advertising, AI is, for now, mainly used for creation. In 2025, I expect further application possibilities, which will lead to significant improvements and efficiency increases in the backend for instance in the area of campaign management and campaign strategy.
Also, contextual targeting is something I would expect to develop further as well as hyper-personalisation. A negative aspect of AI is that websites and content can be generated very easily and cheaply, which benefits made for advertising websites. This is already a major issue in the US and the UK. In Germany, the proportion of MFA websites is expected to increase – awareness of the risks of MFA sites needs to be raised among advertisers. Alongside programmatic I assume that the proportion of curated marketplaces will increase."
Samir Chabab VP, Global Field Marketing, Ogury
"In 2025, AI and addressability will be key drivers of growth in the advertising industry. While 2024 focused on discovering and targeting audiences, this trend will accelerate as privacy concerns continue to rise. With more consumers opting out of data-sharing requests, advertisers will need to find innovative ways to reach their audience without compromising privacy.
AI will be at the forefront of this shift, enhancing real-time bidding, optimising ad placements, and predicting user behavior with greater precision. In this privacy-conscious environment, leveraging zero-party data—information willingly shared by consumers—will be crucial for creating personalised, performance-driven campaigns that respect user preferences, while ensuring effective targeting."
Ben Geach, Advertising Tech Lead, Google
"2024 was the year that marketers became comfortable with the advantages that AI gave them to compliment their own skillset, and 2025 we will see the adoption of these tools into every stage of the advertising workflow - from creative asset generation, through scaling campaign set-up to optimising & analysing results in real-time - AI tooling can provide this (& more) at scale, getting the right message, to the right customers, at the right time. Allowing marketers to be more responsive, highly innovative & results orientated."
Ekkehardt Schlottbohm, Regional VP, Northern Europe, PubMatic
"In 2025, the digital advertising industry will continue to evolve with a strong emphasis on transparency, efficiency, and audience-driven strategies. Agencies and brands will increasingly prioritise gaining control of the programmatic supply chain to ensure fair distribution of ad spend and improve publisher compensation."
Key trends include:
Supply Path Optimization (SPO) and Unlocking Working Media: Buyers will focus on tools and partnerships that provide deeper insights into the ad spend journey. By eliminating inefficient intermediaries and promoting open collaboration, the industry will enhance transparency and optimise media investments.
Curation: Organising premium inventory aligned with audience data will enable buyers to access high-quality, fraud-free, and brand-safe inventory. This approach, supported by advanced technology, will drive scalability, reduce costs, and maximise performance.
Connected TV (CTV) Evolution: Programmatic technology will continue to integrate into CTV buying, bridging traditional IO models with modern programmatic solutions. This shift will empower advertisers to achieve addressability and frequency control while maintaining the quality of direct deals."
Sam Matharu, EMEA Director of Analytics, Marketing Science
"Generative Creative - 2025 will be the year that programmatic creatives become boosted by Generative AI. We will move from dynamic creative optimisation (DCO) to GCO (Generative Creative Optimisation). Brands like Coca-Cola have already made hero adverts such as their Christmas TV Campaign with AI and we will see more of this next year - allowing scale, relevance, and applied creativity."
Franziska Motta Ferraz, VP, Media Owner Development, EMEA, Criteo
"In 2025, programmatic advertising will play a pivotal role in unlocking the potential of commerce media. By leveraging automation, data-driven insights, and real-time decision-making, programmatic will empower advertisers to connect with consumers more effectively and drive growth."
Consumer Behaviour Shifts - Adapting to Evolving Journeys: Consumer shopping behaviour has undergone significant changes, with more touchpoints and channels shaping the buyer’s journey. To address these shifts, new supply, signals, and experiences are being created to foster the change in consumer behaviour. Programmatic advertising tools need to adapt to stay attuned to consumer needs to ensure brands can effectively build trust, engagement, and long-term loyalty. The next iteration of commerce of the open web will emphasise ubiquity and frictionless shopping experiences across publisher content, social networks, and retailer websites. It will integrate advanced technologies, such as AI and identity signals, to create hyper-connected ecosystems where every interaction can potentially lead to a purchase.
Commerce Everywhere: Enabling Seamless Shopping Experiences: As consumer expectations lean heavily towards convenience, 2025 will likely see a surge in shoppable ad formats and commerce content. These formats and commerce will enable consumers to become closer to the point of purchase, minimising friction in the shopping journey.
Moreover, commerce media networks will further integrate advertising into retail environments—both onsite and offsite—blurring the lines between discovery and purchase.
The Power of AI Prediction Models in Advertising:
As commerce becomes intertwined into the consumer shopping journey, a whole new host of commerce-focused signals are created. Everything from products viewed, categories explored, time spent on specific product pages to brands engaged with on social platforms, and search terms used to create wish list, are all commerce-focused signals that are now at our fingertips.
With the increase in the number of signals, AI prediction models will revolutionise how brands deliver targeted and relevant ads. By analysing patterns and predicting consumer intent, AI is set to become a key driver in 2025, enabling hyper-personalised messaging tailored to individual preferences and providing contextually relevant ad placements during ideal points of purchase for better user experiences.
The integration of real-time insights, personalisation, and deep learning will not only improve ad effectiveness but also help brands build stronger emotional connections with their audiences.
Tanya Field, CPO and Co-founder, Novatiq
"2025 will prove decisive as regulators determine how to manage Google's influence in the advertising realm. This could manifest either as a sell-off, a breakup of its business, or a push for greater openness, with the aim of fostering healthier competition within the ad tech ecosystem.
Concurrently, expect further challenges to emerge around the methods marketers use to reach consumers online, with a likely crackdown on third-party solutions and a greater drive towards first-party alternatives. AI will, of course, continue to be a major trend in the year ahead but expect greater scrutiny into its workings. The focus will shift to integrating AI with robust privacy standards, ensuring that consumer protection and data privacy are not compromised. Finally, the re-election of Trump could potentially result in privacy challenges in the US, with the balance between consumer rights and the ability of businesses to use their data coming under pressure."
Josephine: "Generative artificial intelligence, reinforcement learning, personalisation."
Alex: "Gamified advertising, contextual targeting, media efficiency."
Jörg: "Evolution of AI, made for advertising, curated marketplaces, cookieless future / post cookie."
Giulia: "Personified advertising, privacy, addressability."
Ben: "Consumer choice, AI-powered campaigns, Creative x GenAI."
Ekkehardt: "Media curation."
Sam: "AI, addressability, incremental reach."
Franziska: "Commerce media, data signals, AI prediction models
Tanya: "Hyper personalisation, CTV dominance, media efficiency, AI privacy challenges, telco data, telco-verified IDs, telco-verification services."
Josephine: "Adoption, upskilling, innovation, privacy, security."
Alex: "Transition."
Jörg: "Change & evolution."
Giulia: "Consumer trust."
Ben: "Evolving consumer habits."
Ekkehardt: "Unlocking Working Media."
Sam: "Mainstream AI."
Franziska: "Commerce everywhere."
Tanya: "Turbulent and regressive."
CTV, Retail Media, DOOH... Where will brands invest in 2025 and what developments will be made? We asked our Brand Advertising Committee (BAC) for their predictions on the trends and themes that will shape the industry over the next 12 months. Take a look below to see their insights, including 2025 buzzword predictions!
A big thanks to Anita Caras, VP of Insights & Measurement, Teads, Jacques Cazin, Viznet Advisor, IAB Europe VP BAC and Emmanuel Josserand, Sr Dir, Brand, Agency and Industry Relations, FreeWheel, members of the BAC!
Jacques:
Anita:
Emmanuel:
Jacques:
Anita:
Emmanuel:
Jacques:
Anita:
Emmanuel:
If you'd like to find out more and get involved in IAB Europe's committee work in 2025, please reach out to the team at communications@iabeurope.eu.
The E-commerce Germany Awards (EGA) contest returns, welcoming both industry leaders and emerging players from the DACH e-commerce landscape who would like to showcase their unique solutions for the online shopping market and take part in the competition.
The EGA contest was founded in 2018, it attracts over 350 contestants and engages more than 80,000 industry professionals annually. The awards program highlights companies pushing boundaries, solving industry challenges, and defining trends in the DACH e-commerce landscape. Each year, the EGA contest offers participants valuable visibility, enhanced brand recognition, and a chance to connect with a broad network of industry experts.
New Year, New Categories to Compete in
The EGA 2025 contest consists of 12 categories. They are annually updated to align with the latest industry developments, ensuring that each facet of e-commerce is recognised. The categories for the 2025’s competition include:
The competition entries will be evaluated by a jury of e-commerce experts. This time it includes professionals from companies such as KoRo, Jack Wolfskin, RECUP, GREENFORCE, Kickerkult, heycater!, and many more, as well as members of industry associations. This diverse panel ensures a fair and insightful evaluation, identifying excellence across all categories.
How to Compete
Any company active in the DACH region e-commerce market is eligible to participate. The submission process is straightforward. First, the company that wishes to participate in the contest should select up to two categories that best represent their solution's strengths. Then they should prepare their entry, highlighting their company’s achievements, innovations, and contributions to the industry, backed by data and case studies. After that, all that’s left is submitting their application, following the guidelines on the EGA website to complete their entry.
It’s important to note that the initial submission is free, ensuring accessibility for everyone to apply. Fees only apply to the TOP 10 finalists in each category: €400 for one category and €250 for a second category.
Key dates and stages
Submissions are now open and close on the 20th of December 2024. Then there’s time for verification of applications and on the 7th of January, the public voting round will allow the e-commerce community to support their favorite companies on LinkedIn till 23th of January at 3 P.M. The TOP 10 in each category will then advance to the jury evaluation phase. The winners will be announced at the Awards Gala taking place on the 19 February 2025 in Berlin which also gives a great opportunity for connecting with other industry leaders along with celebrating outstanding achievements in e-commerce from the DACH region.
Are you ready to elevate your skills and master the digital future? IAB Europe Training is here to help you thrive in 2025 with expert-led courses, bespoke content, and engaging learning experiences. And now, we're making it even easier for valued IAB Europe members to join with exclusive discounts!
Special Offer for IAB Europe Members
Take advantage of these offers by emailing training@iabeurope.eu to receive your discount codes!
Why Join IAB Europe Training?
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Upcoming Courses – January 2025
Environmental Sustainability - 13th-17th January 2025
Learn how to reduce your organisation’s environmental impact while meeting the growing demand for sustainable digital advertising practices.
Retail Media Essentials - 21st January 2025
Explore one of the most dynamic areas of digital advertising. Gain insights into innovative marketing strategies, technologies, and regulations to stay competitive.
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Why is in-store Retail Media an under-invested channel, despite its significant traffic potential?
IAB Europe and the IAB have taken major steps to address this, collaborating to deliver the final comprehensive In-Store Retail Media Definitions and Measurement Standards.
After two months of open feedback, we thank all of our industry partners for their input and are pleased to release the final and improved version of the standards here.
This initiative wasn't a solo effort. IAB Europe and the IAB, collaborated with numerous Retail Media Networks and retailers to create a robust and industry-wide accepted standard. This collaborative approach ensures broader adoption and promotes greater transparency within the Retail Media ecosystem.
At the heart of this initiative lies a clear definition of what in-store Retail Media is: advertising inventory that leverages retail data for planning, execution, and measurement within a store's physical environment.
As Yara Daher, Retail Media Consultant at IAB Europe noted in her ‘Coming out of Denial’ blog post last month: “All In-Store Media is Retail Media: In-store Retail Media merges experiential marketing with digital strategies”.
Whilst the definition encompasses a variety of formats, the focus of these standards is on digital screens, audio, and connected shopping formats. Other formats will be included in future iterations.
This document is by no means the final word - it’s a foundation for industry dialogue, and we understand that it doesn’t perfectly apply to every store format or every category. We are committed to working closely with the industry to provide specific examples, detailed explainers, and further definitions to make this work even more tangible and applicable.
The definitions and standards included in the final document introduce essential terminology and metrics, including:
With its ability to blend experiential and digital strategies, in-store Retail Media holds great potential for brands and retailers alike. These definitions and standards aim to align the industry and enable all stakeholders to speak a common language to unlock growth opportunities.
Commenting on the final release of the standards, Jeffrey Bustos, VP, Measurement Addressability Data at IAB said, "These standards lay the groundwork for transparency and consistency in in-store retail media by focusing on what matters—clear definitions and measurement methodologies. It's about understanding the true impact of campaigns and driving better outcomes for brands and retailers. This collaborative effort is a big step forward for the industry.”
We invite you to explore the final standards here.
As concerns about climate change continue to grow, digital advertising professionals are increasingly aware of our industry's environmental impact and the urgent need for action.
As such, IAB Europe Training recently launched its ‘Environmental Sustainability in Digital Advertising’ course, to help industry professionals reduce their organisation's carbon emissions and drive transformative change within the digital advertising supply chain.
To dive a little deeper into what the course entails, we caught up with our course facilitator, Dimitris Beis, Data Analyst and Sustainability Lead at IAB Europe, to learn more about the course and why this initiative is so important. See what he had to say below!
Q. Why is sustainability a key focus for the digital advertising industry?
In recent years, sustainability has risen to the forefront of discussions in the digital advertising industry, evolving from a niche concern to a widely acknowledged priority.
As more and more people recognise the significant environmental impact of internet-related activities, devices, and systems, our industry has become increasingly aware of its responsibility to address its contribution to the climate crisis and take decisive action to adopt sustainable practices and reduce the overall carbon footprint of the digital advertising ecosystem. From creative production to programmatic supply chains, every aspect of our industry leaves a carbon footprint and it’s important we empower people and companies to make more informed and impactful changes in our industry.
Q. What inspired the creation of the Environmental Sustainability for Digital Advertising course?
As mentioned above, there is a growing awareness across our industry about the need for sustainability. Furthermore, our research indicates that industry education remains a key challenge. Environmental sustainability is often perceived as a very technical and inaccessible topic leading to many feeling unsure of where to start. This course was designed to help industry professionals at all levels to better understand and implement sustainability strategies by providing practical insights and easy-to-use tools that can help make a difference. We want to make sustainability accessible and actionable for all.
Q. What can participants expect to learn from this course?
From 13th - 17th January, across five two-hour dedicated sessions, participants can expect to cover a broad spectrum of topics. The course has been designed to cater to professionals with various levels of familiarity with environmental sustainability, building up from a basic cross-sector overview of ESG to more technical topics. From the environmental impacts of digital advertising to how to quantify carbon emissions and optimise operations for sustainable efficiency, we’ll provide you with the practical tools and insights you need to help reduce your organisations emissions and implement effective measures to drive real change in the supply chain today.
Q. Why should industry professionals be prioritising sustainability now?
Beyond its environmental benefits, sustainability is also a key driver for business. Besides the increasing compliance obligations created by regulation, many consumers and clients are increasingly demanding eco-conscious practices. By being proactive participants can better navigate this complex space both to satisfy the moral imperative for climate action and advance their business objectives.
Q. What would you say to anyone considering signing up for the course?
No matter what level you’re coming to us at, this is your opportunity to help lead change in our industry. This course will help to give you the confidence and tools you need to make a difference in your day-to-day and play your part in the transition to a more sustainable mode of operations for the digital advertising ecosystem.
Ready to take action? Find out more and enrol to join the IAB Europe Training Environmental Sustainability for Digital Advertising Course taking place 13th - 17th January 2025, here.
In this week's member guest blog post, we hear from Anastasiya Baydechenko as she shares her latest experiences from Ukraine, and how her team is dealing with the intensifying attacks they are suffering as a Nation.
We continue to offer our heartfelt support to our colleagues in Ukraine. To show your solidarity, you can explore ways to help by supporting critical aid organisations. Visit this link for a list of trusted organisations where you can make a donation and provide meaningful support to those in need.
Every contribution counts. Let’s stand together for Ukraine.
If we were asked now what life in Ukraine has been like in recent weeks, I would say it's an online game similar to the «3 Body problem»: we never know what the next level will be like, but 100% more difficult. Back in the spring, we could classify attacks and predict whether we would have a long or short air raid, whether it would be very loud or not, and whether it would be worth hiding in the subway or sleeping in the bathroom. Back in the summer, reconnaissance drones could mostly fly during the day, but now even strike drones fly during the day. Now we have either combined attacks of many types of weapons (Russian, Iran, north Korean) or something completely new. The level of uncertainty is going off the charts now.
Last month, enemy drones were launched at about 5 pm, in very large numbers, on November 25th, for example, 145 strike drones were launched. Most often they fly to Kyiv. Other cities are under targeted attack: Dnipro, Odesa, Kryvyi Rih, Zaporizhia. Usually about half will be neutralised by electronic warfare means, and the rest will be shot down by air defense forces, but some may hit civilian infrastructure or houses. There is also always a risk of damage to buildings from the debris of downed drones. From time to time, strategic aviation takes off and then we are attacked by missiles, usually, such attacks are accompanied by missiles from submarines, Kinzhal missiles from MiG 31K planes, and ballistic missiles. For example, on November 17th we experienced a massive attack, the enemy launched 210 air targets at Ukraine, of which 144 were shot down, 41 were destroyed by electronic warfare means, and 2 returned to Russian territory (my applause). But blackouts are back. Kyiv has returned to the constant sounds and smells of gasoline generators.
Оn November 21st, we were attacked with an intercontinental ballistic missile, as far as I know, this is the first case in history of the use of such a missile. There were several videos on the Internet. The complexity of this missile is that it breaks up into 6 shells, each of which breaks up into 6 more, forming a total of 36 targets for air defense.
A pertinent question is, how does all this affect people, businesses, and the country as a whole? Undoubtedly negatively. Although there have always been and will be fatalists who, under any shelling, go to the store, walk the dog, or go wherever they want. And some of our supermarkets are open during the air raid siren.
Still, most people experience a wide range of strong negative emotions from fear, anxiety, and despair to aggression and hatred. Moreover, collective negative emotions are extremely contagious, they easily engulf the masses. General news, propaganda, fake news, and separate information or videos about the executions of our prisoners of war only add fuel to the fire. The situation is further complicated by the fact that, in general, Ukrainians very rarely seek psychological or psychiatric help and are not willing to take medication, antidepressants in particular.
Businesses are undoubtedly under the influence of negative economic expectations, which are stopping development. Global advertisers are very quick to withdraw budgets in a crisis, but more inert when it comes to resuming advertising activity. These frozen budgets are partially compensated by local advertisers, but only partially. The issue of labour shortages, due to mobilisation and migration, is also becoming increasingly acute. Attacks on energy infrastructure and power outages are also an important factor in low business optimism.
But is there anything positive and how do we live with all this?
Yes, nothing has taught us to live in the here and now like shelling, and nothing has taught us more about time management than the blackouts. Many things that have been hanging in the nation's tasks for hundreds of years are now finding their solution in these slightly more than a thousand days of war: the issue of our own army, the critical importance of language, the understanding that national security is not a subject of subcontracting.
Every time we receive new horror stories from the news, messengers, or propaganda tools about some new or another missile that has no analogues and will blow up half of Kyiv, I think, okay, what can I do? I am not an Air Defense. The IAB Ukraine team and I can do our job. Moreover, I believe that when we are not frozen in a reptilian reaction to the danger of the outside world, but see ourselves in the future through plans, tasks, projects, we are signing a virtual contract with Life.
And saying to Death: “Not today”.
Don't forget to Visit this link for a list of trusted organisations where you can make a donation and provide meaningful support to those in need.
Every contribution counts. Let’s stand together for Ukraine.
At IAB Europe, we recently announced the Beta launch of our Retail Media Certification Programme an industry-first initiative designed to set a new standard for transparency, fairness, and accountability in Retail Media measurement.
To help you better understand the programme, what it is about and why Retailers should get involved, we sat down with our very own Industry Development & Insights Director, Marie-Clare Puffett. Here, she answers some key questions and shares her vision for the programme.
Q1. What inspired the creation of the IAB Europe Retail Media Certification Programme?
With Retail Media becoming such an integral part of brand strategies and the challenge of consistent measurement standards coming up in so many conversations, we saw an urgent need for standards to be created and certified to ensure transparency, and best practices in our industry. Our goal is to build trust and enable all stakeholders to operate efficiently and confidently in this space. The programme provides a benchmark of excellence, ensuring those certified meet essential criteria that align with global best practices.
Q2. Who is the programme designed for, and why should companies participate?
The programme is initially designed for retailers, enabling them to demonstrate their commitment to transparency, fairness and accountability in Retail Media reporting. The plan is to expand this to other companies in the ecosystem in 2026 and beyond.
Certified retailers will benefit from increased trust with brands, agencies, and other industry stakeholders, so it’s a great opportunity to showcase leadership in the Retail Media space.
Q3. What does the certification process look like?
The certification process has two stages. First, there will be an independent audit with one of our approved auditors of the Retailer’s Media Network measurement capabilities, against the required standards outlined in our compliance table. Then, if at least 90% of the required standards are met, we will provide the retailer with a certification badge solidifying their position that will be valid for one year.
Q4. How does the programme benefit the wider Retail Media ecosystem?
Certification is a powerful tool for driving consistency across the Retail Media landscape. It provides a common language and set of expectations that companies can use to communicate their value more effectively. Ultimately, this will help Retail Media grow by making it a more transparent and efficient channel for everyone involved.
Q5. What support does IAB Europe offer to companies interested in the certification programme?
The compliance table provides a comprehensive overview of what will be checked during the independent audit. We are open to meeting with retailers to discuss these requirements and the independent auditors will also host an initial kick-off meeting to discuss the requirements and any questions. Our goal is to make this process as smooth as possible, ensuring that everyone who is ready for certification can achieve it. If you would like to register your interest you can do so here.
Q6. Is there a cost associated with the certification?
Yes, there is a fee for the certification process and there are two costs to consider. Firstly, the independent audit will need to be paid for and secondly, once the audit has been passed and the company wishes to receive certification then a certification fee is due to IAB Europe. You can find out more in our FAQ document here.
Q7. How does this programme align with IAB Europe’s mission?
At IAB Europe, we’re dedicated to advancing digital advertising by promoting standards and best practices across all channels. The Retail Media Certification Programme aligns perfectly with this mission by addressing the unique needs and challenges within Retail Media. It’s another great step toward creating a transparent, accountable, and thriving digital ecosystem.
For more information on IAB Europe’s Retail Media Certification Programme and how you can get involved, visit our webpage here.
Our 2024 State of Readiness—Sustainability in Digital Advertising survey is now open! Take part today to help us understand how much progress our industry has made towards sustainable digital advertising practices.
As sustainability becomes ever more critical across the digital advertising ecosystem, it’s essential to gauge how companies are prioritising and progressing with it.
By participating in our short survey, you’ll contribute to an insightful, pan-European overview of our industry's advancement toward sustainability. This year, we’re particularly focused on comparing results with last year’s report to measure real progress and shifts in attitudes.
Why take part?
Whether you're part of a local or pan-European team, from the buy or sell side, your voice matters. Don’t miss the opportunity to have your say before the extended deadline on Friday, 17th January 2025.
Our Retail Media Consultant, Yara Daher, shares five key principles to help guide Retail Media's transformation in 2025.
Retail Media is no longer a niche; it's a dominant force shaping the future of advertising, and the numbers speak for themselves. Retail Media in Europe grew 4x faster than the total ad market in 2023, boasting a staggering 22.1% growth compared to 6.1% for the overall market. This trend is projected to continue, with forecasts indicating a €31 billion market value by 2028.
Budgets are shifting from trade but also from other media channels such as linear TV and programmatic. It is a mistake to talk about Retail Media in isolation, the Future of Retail Media is pegged to the future of other media. CTV and Retail Media will witness similar rates of growth but the truth is one powers the others. Retail data will power CTV (or other channels) a Coca-Cola campaign might be booked as Retail Media on Tesco but activated on ITV.
Keith Bryan of Colosseum Strategy and former President of Best Buy Ads told his board 14 years ago “Retailers are media companies in denial”. They believed in that and let him set up what is now 'Best Buy Ads'. As we approach 2025, it is time for Retail Media Networks (RMNs) and Commerce Media Networks (CMNs) to emerge from this denial. To achieve this, a collaborative effort is essential. RMNs, CMNs, brands, agencies, ad tech companies, and industry bodies must work in unison to drive significant advancements in Retail Media.
Here are five key principles to guide this transformation:
1. Retail + Media: The synergy between retail and media is vital; neglecting one undermines the effectiveness of the other. Understanding and leveraging this duality will be critical for success.
2. All In-Store Media is Retail Media: In-store Retail Media merges experiential marketing with digital strategies. Prioritising scalability over hyper-personalisation will help maximize impact in physical retail environments.
3. Don’t ignore Onsite Search: Failure to optimise onsite search is an existential threat. RMNs must recognise the importance of a seamless and effective onsite experience to enhance visibility and engagement.
4. Capture the Full Customer Journey Offsite: Offsite media extends across the entire customer journey. Programmatic partnerships can provide extensive reach, but true differentiation comes from strategic collaborations with publishers and creators.
5. Move Beyond ROAS – Embrace I²: It's time to shift focus from Return on Ad Spend (ROAS) to Insights and Incrementality (I²). By prioritising these metrics, brands can gain a deeper understanding of campaign performance and enhance decision-making.
As Retail Media continues to gain traction, embracing these principles will help the industry move forward. By recognising the interconnectedness of retail and media, and working collaboratively among all stakeholders, we can transform Retail Media into a driving force for advertising success in 2025 and beyond.
Find out more about IAB Europe's Retail Media work and how you can get involved on our Retail Media Hub here.
