Although inflation, a strong job market, and a positive economic outlook are at play, three dominant ad channels are contributing to upward US ad spend. October saw a 3.2% YoY growth for the US ad market, marking the fourth consecutive month of spending increases, according to the Standard Media Index ad market tracker.

Recently, both Walmart and Target have warned that consumers’ cautious spending habits may lead to a sluggish holiday season this year. Were they right to be worried? Here’s how the holiday shopping season is going so far.

US ecommerce sales will grow 9.3% to reach $1.137 trillion in 2023, per our forecast, thanks to cost-conscious consumers looking for better deals and an increasing number of digital grocery buyers. As 2023 wraps up, ecommerce will go out on a high note, with online holiday sales growth outpacing brick-and-mortar sales.

The world of retail media is always changing. Here’s what has caught our eye over the past few months.

It’s December, which means marketers should already have plans in place for 2024. The next year will be punctuated by increasing retail media and connected TV (CTV) ad spend, creator economy evolution, and even more AI. Here are five charts to prepare you for what’s ahead.

For the second half of 2023, US retail media ad spending will reach $46.38 billion, per Insider Intelligence’s forecast. Meanwhile, connected TV (CTV) ad spending will also post growth of 20.0%. In response, marketers in 2024 will create dedicated retail and media strategies to leverage retail data sets in CTV.

Retail media just got even bigger. We recently updated our US retail media ad spend forecast to show higher growth than previously estimated, culminating in $109.40 billion in spend in 2027.

Consumers have their environmental impact top of mind and it’s informing how they shop. Nearly 70% of consumers seek out brands that follow sustainable business practices, according to research from Amazon Ads.

With the rise of digital ad channels like connected TV and retail media, there’s a lot of emphasis on making every ad and consumer touchpoint shoppable. Ad formats with direct calls to action help drive conversions and increase ROI. But brand equity can get left out of the conversation when we focus on performance marketing in isolation. Every ad should perform and provide some sort of measurable impact, but each ad is also vital for telling a brand’s story, even at the bottom of the funnel where marketers are more focused on driving conversions.

Amazon is projected to take the lion’s share of US holiday season retail ecommerce sales this year, beating out its closest competitor, Walmart, by over $80 billion, according to our June 2023 forecast.

As Cyber Monday rages on, let’s take a look at what’s already happened over the course of the Cyber Five weekend and what it means for both retail media networks and advertisers alike.

Brands that engage in non-endemic advertising by purchasing ad inventory from a retailer that does not sell its goods or services are well positioned to take advantage of the partner platform’s first-party data, audience segmentation, and overall reach.

Mobile apps are vital for commerce. In fact, among US smartphone users, 65.8% will use retail apps in 2024, putting the category behind only maps/navigation apps (72.8%) and weather apps (71.1%) in terms of adoption, according to our July 2023 forecasts.

How does social media influence Gen Z’s customer journey?

In 2024, retail media ad spend will grow 28.6%, coming to just under $60 billion, per our forecast. To reach that potential, retail media networks (RMNs) need to identify what attracts advertisers and set them up for success. Here’s how three consumer packaged goods (CPG) leaders are thinking about retail media.

US retail media ad spend will more than double between 2023 and 2027, reaching a total of $109.40 billion, according to our forecast.

Many advertisers see retail media solely as a performance marketing channel. But 7-Eleven’s retail media network, Gulp Media, is aiming higher up the funnel.

Tech is awash with hype cycles, but experts agree that generative AI has firmly established its staying power. Our “Attention! Trends and Predictions for 2024” summit shed light on the promise of generative AI, revealing three key growth areas: revolutionizing retail with conversational search, streamlining innovation with low-code automation, and pioneering inclusivity within AI development.