With the rise of retail media comes the emergence of a stable ecosystem linking all players. More and more people want to benefit from the advantages of digital, which means more and more players will emerge. It is beneficial to have a clear view of who is involved, so we have summarised in a blog post how the retail media ecosystem is being built!

It's no coincidence that retail media is on an upward trajectory. This is due to a fortunate combination of factors. It has taken a major boost for e-commerce. The COVID-19 epidemic has played a huge role in driving the digital take-off. The shutdowns have brought people inside the four walls of their homes, where they live, work and shop. This led directly to enabling anyone who could to shop online. The technology was there in many places, and where the system was lacking, improvements were made.

The rise of retail media has also been embedded in a change in targeting opportunities. New solutions had to be found due to the restriction on the use of third-party cookies by browsers. At the same time, companies have increasingly focused on performance. Everyone is trying to minimise uncertain expenditure, choosing what is sure to deliver results and eliminating what doesn't work.

All these factors have helped retail media networks to take off. Let's take a look at the players taking their place in the retail media ecosystem.

The retail media ecosystem idea

The power of the ecosystem lies in the potential for collaboration. At the heart of these is data, which enables the creation of personalised messages. Different actors can bring different types of data.

• Retailers have information about what transactions are taking place, what characterises consumer behaviour and who the audience is.
• Brands can provide data from parties collected during interactions.
• Media owners have information about audiences and interests.
• Data providers can provide demographic data.

Trust is particularly important in the retail media ecosystem. Parties must be open to sharing their data with each other. But privacy and data security are also essential.

Stakeholders in the retail media ecosystem

Retailers

Retailers are the base of the ecosystem. Retailers such as Walmart, Amazon, who are huge players and can set a good example for smaller ones. In this sense, these companies act like a media organisation that sells and provides exposure for brands. This can generate additional revenue, which can contribute significantly to covering operating costs. They offer brands the opportunity to opt for measurable, results-oriented advertising solutions.

Brands

On the demand side, brands appear in different key categories. The biggest benefit for brands from retail media is that they can reach shoppers who are already "reaching for their wallets", ready to buy.

Brands need to be prepared to be flexible in their spending, dynamically adapting to the needs of their customers. They need to constantly monitor and optimise their campaigns, which is much easier with a well-functioning system. Inhabitad offers a logically structured, easy-to-use solution that brands can easily learn to use, giving them the flexibility to tailor it to their needs.

Agencies

Agencies typically represent brands, helping them to develop the right and most effective strategy. They help brands to position themselves where and how they can get the most conversions. Amazon used to be the reference point, but now it is worth thinking about other players. Thanks to diversification, brands can reach more customers thanks to much less competition from smaller players.

Consumers

Retail media is driven by consumers who want more, better and better. Customer experience is the most important buzzword in today's marketing. Today, we don't just shop, we want the shopping process to be interesting and exciting. In addition to traditional solutions, there is a need to introduce new, creative and innovative approaches. And, of course, it is essential that everything works perfectly from a technical point of view, that the site can be used on mobile without any problems, that it loads quickly, that it is easy to filter, to pay, that there are no interruptions.

Retail media is an excellent opportunity for all players, but it is essential that a balance is maintained so that the interests of one player do not overwhelm those of others.

Inhabitad's solution

Inhabitad provides retailers with an innovative software solution that makes it easy for online stores to connect to the ecosystem. The software itself is free to integrate and a percentage of sales is paid to the provider.

Once integrated, brands can buy space on the website, take advantage of the traffic to the online store and make their own profit. The system itself is fully self-service, with no further action required by the online store other than approving the integration. This allows the retailer to earn extra revenue while providing a plus for their own customers, thus enhancing the user experience.

The interface is simple to use: select the product or creative you want to advertise, choose the campaign format, set the targeting, which can be manual or automatic, and monitor the results.

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