The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) of Australia has declared retail media to be in a period of “rapid growth”, with fast-increasing spending into the sector paying dividends.
In its retail and commerce media “state of the nation” report for the year, IAB found that 93 per cent of retail and commerce media networks reported revenue growth onsite, with 89 per cent seeing that translate to in-store revenue growth.
It comes from a survey of 92 advertisers involved with retail and commerce media and 32 representatives from retailers or commerce media networks.
The survey saw a 63 per cent increase in advertising spending on retailers’ own websites and apps, and a 65 per cent increase in expenditure on retailer-powered advertising on third-party channels.
“The findings show retail and commerce media are now firmly part of media planning and competing for real budgets,” Gai Le Roy, CEO of IAB Australia, said. “At the same time, buyers are asking harder questions of their partners and retailers are evolving their measurement offerings in response. That is a sign of market maturity.”
But the growth of the sector is being met with increasing complexity; IAB said that 86 per cent of retailers are now working with three or more media partners, and a third are working with more than five.
Only 22 per cent of retailers, however, described their media offering as “advanced”, while 47 per cent said it is “still developing”. More than half of respondents said they plan to integrate AI into their retail media offerings in the future.
“Rapid growth balanced with increasing sophistication are encouraging signs for the industry,” added Lachlan Brahe, chair of the IAB Australia retail media council.
“Our latest findings show that advertisers are expecting more robust measurement and transparency, and retailers are investing in advanced solutions to address these and other areas.”
