Retail media networks are exploring partnerships with influencers and social platforms, promising to combine rich shopping data with authentic creator content. Industry experts warn that the pairing carries a risk: Optimization can't come at the cost of the trust that makes influencer marketing work.

"Don't let the prospect of great data convince you that you know the audience better than the creator does," said Colin Colburn, vice president of commerce and retail media at IAB, on a recent episode of "Reimagining Retail."

On paper, the pairing is straightforward: Retail media excels at reaching consumers with high purchase intent, while creators and social platforms capture attention earlier in the journey. But structural barriers and organizational silos have slowed advertisers from turning that complementary relationship into actual spend.

The spending reality lags behind the hype

Social media ads purchased through retail media networks will be a small slice of both markets in 2026. Only $1.3 billion will flow toward them, representing just 2% of retail media ad spending and roughly 1% of all social media ad spending, according to EMARKETER's forecast and our analyst Sarah Marzano.

"The opportunity is real," Marzano said. "The fact that these two arenas bring complementary strengths is real, but I think we have to be careful to assume that just because it makes sense on paper, that advertiser demand is naturally going to follow."

The modest figures reflect a fundamental challenge: Brands already have established relationships with social platforms and creators, often managed by separate marketing teams with different KPIs and budgets than those overseeing retail media investments.

Retail media networks must prove their data and measurement capabilities add enough value to justify changing how advertisers already buy social and creator content. Positioning themselves as a middleman won't unlock significant new budget.

Where data helps

Industry experts agree that retail data can improve creator marketing, but only when applied to specific parts of the process. The consensus: Use shopping intelligence for planning and selection, not creative direction.

"The intelligence that retailers have should really be used to help improve selection of creators based on the audience and shopper fit with that creator and their audience fit, and the product and category relevance," Colburn said. "Where the line comes into play is I don't think that that data should then influence what the creator builds."

Retail media networks have built their business on control, dictating ad formats, creative specifications, and promotional messaging on their owned properties. Creator partnerships require a different approach.

"With a creator, the beauty of it is taking that risk of they know the audience that they're, that they market to better than the brand or the retailer," Colburn said. "And you kinda have to let them use that gut instinct in a way that might make you feel a little bit uncomfortable."

The most successful retail media and creator partnerships will use data to sharpen audience matching and performance measurement while preserving the authentic voice and creative freedom that make influencer content effective. Over-optimization risks destroying the human connection that drives creator marketing results.

The measurement challenge requires new language

For retail media networks to capture meaningful budget from social and brand-building teams, they'll need to adapt their measurement frameworks beyond direct sales attribution.

"If they want to tap into new sources of advertiser budgets, then they need to learn how to communicate with different stakeholders," Marzano said. "There are different teams within brands who are making decisions when it comes to social media and creators, and they have different metrics and KPIs that they are looking to leverage."

Creators benefit from clearer closed-loop attribution showing how their content drives purchases. Retailers gain ongoing intelligence about what content resonates with shoppers, creating a feedback loop that can improve creative efforts across the network.

"It's not as sexy," Colburn acknowledged. "It's not showing sales attribution, right? But it is super important."

One factor working in retail media's favor: Creators are no longer synonymous with social media platforms. They're appearing in connected TV, streaming content, and other paid media formats, including retailer properties themselves.

"There's trends on the creator side that are actually kind of allowing this to happen in a way that really could be beneficial to both," Colburn said, noting opportunities for creator content in physical stores where shoppers stand feet away from product assortments.

As creators expand across channels, retail media networks have an opening to position themselves as a valuable partner, provided they resist the temptation to over-engineer the creative process with their shopping data.

Listen to the full episode.

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