The rush to embrace retail data for marketing activities is likely to turn into a stampede, according to a new analysis, rising from an already impressive 79% of brands which are currently users to 87% in the next two years.
According to a new study by The Trade Desk, advertisers are seeing the potential of retail data as a way to help unlock how their campaigns are driving sales, meaning the data can help them optimise and measure in ways that are not possible within the walled gardens.
The market for retail data has been buoyed by the growth in retail media, which is forecast to grow from €8bn (£6.9bn) to £21bn (€25bn) in Europe by 2026. The likes of Tesco’s DunnHumby and Sainsbury’s Nectar and Boots have already made huge inroads into the sector by signing numerous deals for their loyalty club data.
Omnicom Media Group became the latest marketing giant to wake up to this potential when it entered a partnership with Tesco in August, allowing it to tap into the data of over 20 million Clubcard members.
The agreement will see OMG agencies OMD, MG OMD, PHD, Hearts & Science join forces with Tesco Media & Insight which in turn taps into DunnHumby’s Sphere platform. The move is designed to allow the agencies to deliver better outcomes at scale for client retail media investments.
And, with over three quarters (76%) of respondents to the Trade Desk survey saying they expect to increase or maintain their investment in retail data, most marketers surveyed say they are prepared to embrace it in the coming years.
However, at present, only 13% of digital marketing budgets are reportedly allocated to retail data, suggesting marketers are only scratching the surface of the benefits this authenticated data brings.
Preparations are already underway for this impending increase in investment, as marketers are set to direct their spend in retail data towards better digital strategies (67%), ecommerce (63%) and shopper marketing (44%).
Those already using retail data are doing so to drive sales (53%) and increase awareness of a brand or product (50%), while the same number report leveraging retail data to measure across channels to help determine the success of marketing campaigns.
The Trade Desk UK vice-president Phil Duffield said: “The appetite for retail data will only continue to accelerate as more advertisers look for ways to close the loop between advertising and sales.
“As we move closer towards the deprecation of third-party cookies, retail data can offer marketers authenticated information about purchase activity to help drive better performance and measurement, which is stark contrast to the walled gardens.
“With more retailers realising the opportunities for growth that data brings, the rapid expansion of retail data is imminent. This is a cause for optimism, as it can bring both new opportunities for retailers and marketers to deliver better targeted and higher quality campaigns that make the open internet even more accessible and beneficial for advertisers.”
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