Sam's Club Cracked the Code on In-Store Retail Media—Here's How They Did It
After touring their Murfreesboro club with Harvey Ma (who runs Sam's Club's Member Access Platform), I saw something rare: a retailer that actually figured this out.
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2 Ways Retailers Can Compete In An AI-Enabled Shopping Future
What happens to a retailer's data advantage when AI platforms like ChatGPT start processing transactions? Perhaps the answer isn't as bleak as you might think.
The Secret Hopes & Dreams of RMN Leaders
Even if you'd secretly still love a warm, foamy babyccino with a marshmallow on top, there comes a time when you have to act your age. That's retail media right now.
Some Retailers Want to Power Other Retailers' Ad Businesses. Will It work?
Amazon, Instacart, and Best Buy want to power other retailers' ad businesses. Will it fly?
Underrated Ecommerce Metrics That Tell The Real Story
I asked four brand-side retail media leaders a deceptively simple question: What's the metric you're obsessed with that everyone else seems to ignore?
Brian Monahan's 'Bloody Obvious' Bets Are Shaking Up Albertsons Media Collective
Brian Monahan doesn't dish out the usual sanitized, PR-approved talking points; he talks like someone who's built businesses and isn't afraid to say what everyone else is thinking.
While We Debate What's 'Really' Agentic, Retail Media's Foundation Is Already Shifting
Today's instant checkout might not meet the technical definition of agentic commerce. DBut the coming disruption to the retail media business model doesn't care about semantics.
What Will Make LLMs More Money: Ads Or Marketplaces?
Will AI agents like ChatGPT make money through ads, or by becoming the next Amazon-style marketplace? In this piece, I share highlights from my conversation with Scot Wingo on the Retailgentic podcast.
Agentic Shopping Might Seem Crazy. So Did Self-Service Supermarkets.
History is littered with technologies that never escaped the hype cycle. But some innovations that became mainstream also looked absurd at the time.
The Last Mile of America: Inside Austin Leonard's Plan For Dollar General Media Network
Dollar General is betting that its 20,000+ stores scattered across rural America represent an advertising opportunity that most buyers are completely missing.
I Got Prime Deals. Or Did I? Why Consumer Distrust Is AI Shopping's Real Opening
Online shopping has become exhausting detective work for millions of consumers.
The Fairy Godmother Of Retail Media, Cara Pratt, On Her New Agenda At Circana
With Circana’s acquisition of Nielsen’s Marketing Mix Modeling business in August and NCSolutions in June, the company is positioning itself as the independent arbiter retail media desperately needs.
AI
Retail Media's Measurement Problem: It's Not Just the Retailers
The IAB and MRC has been herding cats in an effort to engage the retail media industry in measurement standards. Industry participants have various explanations as to why adoption is not yet widespread.
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Trade vs. Retail Media: Who's Really Eating Whom?
Trade dollars are flowing into retail media channels. Retail media platforms are absorbing trade's operational complexity. Who wins?
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AI Makes Shopping Easier. But Shoppers Still Check The Receipts.
The gap between stated and revealed preferences isn't going away. But neither is the opportunity for brands who show up where shoppers are actually going—not where they say they'll go.
AI
How Brand Leaders Are Using AI Today (That They Weren't a Year Ago)
Sometimes you just need to hear how other people are actually using AI in certain ways before the light bulb goes off.
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Best Buy Wants To Become An Ad Platform, Not Just Another RMN
But the really interesting part of Best Buy's upfront-style 'We Got Next' showcase was how the electronics giant positioned itself as infrastructure that other retailers can plug into for data collaboration and audience extension.
AI
AI-Enabled Shopping Hits 74% Adoption
New panel research shows that consumers are familiar with AI and are starting to use it throughout their shopping journey, and while familiarity with agentic commerce is low, most consumers are interested in the concept.
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The Lazy Girl's Guide to Social Commerce
Social commerce—buying products directly within social media apps—is laziness as a business strategy. Meet customers where they're scrolling, remove friction, make buying as effortless as double-tapping a video.
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Why 'Omnichannel' Misses the Point
The old question of "where should ecommerce sit?" feels increasingly irrelevant. The consumer journey doesn't respect departmental boundaries, so why should your organization?
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Managing a Multi-Retailer RMN Stack: The Operational Reality
How can brands actually manage, optimize, and prove ROI across multiple retail media networks that each operate differently?
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Underrated Advice for Choosing a Retail Media Agency Partner
The best partnerships aren't built on impressive portfolios alone, but on finding agencies that truly understand how to work with your business.
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What It Actually Takes to Build a Retail Media Federation
Part 3 of my exploration into a possible future of retail media consortiums and federations.
Meet The First Retail Media Federations & Consortiums
Federations and consortiums in retail media are already taking shape, hoping to solve the challenge of a 'long tail' of RMNs trying to find a seat at the table.