Retail Media Gets Serious: Coles 360Impact Signals the Need for Robust Measurement

Retail media, the fast-growing practice of retailers selling advertising space on their platforms, is a force to be reckoned with. In Australia, Morgan Stanley predicts the market to hit $2.8 billion by 2027. Supermarkets, online stores, and other retailers are turning their vast customer data into lucrative advertising revenue streams. However, sustained growth and attracting big advertisers depend on a crucial factor: measurement.

A recent survey exposed a common challenge for brands: proving the return on investment (ROI) of retail media. Alongside technology and budget management, reliable measurement emerges as a critical issue. This highlights a deeper problem: fragmentation. Without standardization in measuring campaign success, it’s hard for brands to justify pouring more resources into this promising arena.

Coles’ Bold Move: Introducing 360Impact

Coles, a dominant Australian supermarket chain, is taking a proactive stance with the launch of its 360Impact measurement platform. This signals a significant shift towards data-driven accountability in retail media. Coles’ goal is clear: provide advertisers with deeper insights into how campaigns drive purchase behaviour – a key factor in demonstrating the value of these placements.

360Impact promises a holistic view, tracking both the online and in-store impacts of ads. Crucially, it intends to move beyond simple impressions, and link ad exposure to tangible sales increases, even drilling down to category-level effects. Coles emphasizes using control groups, implying a rigorous, scientific approach to identifying what truly works.

Why Measurement is Make-or-Break for Retail Media

• Data Speaks Louder than Promises: With any new marketing channel, advertisers initially need a leap of faith. However, in an era of data-driven decision-making, this only goes so far. Measuring ROI is how retail media can prove itself indispensable.
• Transparency Builds Trust: Detailed measurement provides advertisers with clearer metrics, beyond vanity stats like clicks or impressions. This promotes greater trust between retailers and brands.
• Standardization Unlocks Potential: The lack of consistent metrics across different retailers is a major pain point. If retail media wants to compete for a bigger share of marketing budgets, the industry needs standardized measurement guidelines. This will boost comparability and make the whole process more efficient.

The Coles Effect & the Future

Coles’ focus on measurement could be a catalyst for a broader change in how Australian retail media does business. By demanding better evidence for campaign effectiveness, the brand is raising the bar for the entire industry.

If successful, 360Impact could become a model for other retailers, accelerating standardization and fueling the maturity of the retail media market. Ultimately, robust measurement is the key to ensuring brands that this new world of advertising is not just shiny and promising, but definitively impactful for the bottom line.