43% of Grocers Underutilize In-Store Retail Media: IAB Study

Forty-three percent of marketers say their organizations are underutilizing their in-store retail media investments, according to a new study from the Interactive Advertising Bureau and Grocery TV.

The report, "In-Store Retail Media's Full-Funnel Opportunity," surveyed 100 retail media buyers and decision makers who currently invest in in-store retail media. It examined how marketers use the channel, the metrics they use to evaluate it and factors that could affect future investment. The research was conducted through IAB's Insights Engine.

The study found that marketers increasingly view in-store retail media as a channel that can support objectives throughout the purchase funnel. More than 90% of respondents said awareness or reach, consideration, sales lift and repeat purchase or loyalty were important or essential metrics for evaluating media investments.

Scale was among the leading factors marketers consider when evaluating in-store digital media investments. Fifty-nine percent of respondents ranked inventory and scale among their top three considerations, ahead of measurement opportunities and cost per thousand impressions.

Activation complexity and measurement limitations were tied as the most commonly cited barriers to additional investment, with each identified by 27% of respondents. A lack of creative resources was cited by 23%.

Organizational Structure Matters

The study also found differences in how organizations structure responsibility for in-store media. Companies with dedicated retail media and national media or brand teams were more likely to report fully leveraging in-store media. Organizations where shopper or trade marketing teams were responsible for the channel were more likely to report underutilization.

"In-store media is becoming an increasingly important part of retail media's evolution," said Collin Colburn, vice president of commerce and retail media at IAB. "For marketers, the question now is how to integrate in-store into their media strategy in a way that makes sense for their objectives, teams and investment priorities."

Marlow Nickell, co-founder and CEO of Grocery TV, said in-store media has traditionally been managed by shopper marketing teams but that national media, brand and retail media teams are increasingly involved.

"National media, brand and retail media teams bring different objectives, budgets and measurement approaches to the conversation," Nickell said. "Bringing those perspectives together can help marketers incorporate in-store more deliberately into the media plan."

Respondents identified proof of performance and better alignment of key performance indicators across teams as factors that could make them more likely to increase their investment in in-store media. For grocers and brands alike, closing the measurement and organizational gaps may determine whether the channel's full-funnel potential gets realized.