Incrementality has always been the holy grail of retail media. But lately, it’s taken on greater importance as ad budgets are squeezed and retail media networks (RMNs) fight for their share of ad dollars.

This is the Q1 2025 installment of our quarterly “Ad Spending Benchmarks” series, which helps ad buyers and sellers calibrate their spending and revenue mix against the market.​

This is the Q1 2025 installment of our quarterly “Ad Spending Benchmarks” series, which helps ad buyers and sellers calibrate their spending and revenue mix against the market.​

Consumers prefer fewer personalized ads over more generic ads: An IAB Europe report found that personalization works—but transparency is key.

Meta may consider ad-free subscription offer for the UK: While the company settled a suit with a UK citizen, a similar offering in the EU has faced pushback.

Meta introduces new AI ad capabilities: The changes include more investments in Andromeda, new tools for Advantage+, and more genAI use cases.

This week, beauty buyers take action on texts, influencers have indirect influence, and podcast fandoms benefit brands.

Publicis strengthens AI and first-party data strategy: The Lotame acquisition enhances its identity solutions, adding 4 billion customer profiles and expanding Epsilon’s AI-powered ad targeting.

First-party data is becoming essential: As third-party cookies disappear, brands like The New York Times, Disney, and McDonald’s are leveraging direct consumer relationships to improve ad targeting and measurement.

Nextdoor bets on AI-driven content to fuel long-term growth: The platform’s NEXT initiative will transform past user discussions into monetizable recommendations, prioritizing engagement over short-term ad revenues.

Walmart’s ad business fuels operating income growth: Retail media revenues jumped 29% driven by marketplace expansion.

In 2024, retail media and CTV converged: First-party data enables precise targeting, while connected TV enhances ad personalization and tracks purchase behavior.

Google attracts EU scrutiny over advertising to teens: A global crackdown on privacy and teen data is extended to the search giant.

Revolve continues upward trajectory: The fashion ecomm beat Q3 expectations, attributing its success to AI, influencer marketing, and strong international sales growth.

How can ad buyers calibrate their B2B ad spending and budget allocations against the market, and how can publishers and solution providers assess whether their ad revenues are in line with industry trends?

How can in-game ad buyers calibrate their ad spending and budget allocations against the market, and how can publishers and solution providers assess whether their ad revenues are in line with industry trends?

How can ad buyers calibrate their ad spending and budget allocations against average for their industry, and how can publishers and solution providers assess whether their ad revenues are in line with industry trends?

How can OOH ad buyers calibrate their ad spending and budget allocations against the market, and how can media companies and solution providers assess whether their ad revenues are in line with industry trends?

LG brings ads to CTV screensavers: The rapid pace of new ad space on CTVs reflects a race for ad dollars.

Search ads launch on TikTok: The keyword-based feature enables brands to reach users during searches, aligning ad efforts with user intent and behavior.