How to Solve the Biggest Pain Points in Retail Media Networks and Maximize Revenue

Retail media has become one of the fastest-growing digital advertising sectors, allowing retailers to monetize their platforms through targeted advertising. In 2024, global retail media ad spending reached $154.8 billion, with projections indicating a 14.8% increase in 2025, bringing the total to approximately $177.7 billion. As retail media continues to expand, an increasing number of retailers—including grocery chains, e-commerce platforms, and delivery services—are launching their own retail media networks (RMNs) to tap into this growing revenue stream.

However, many retailers struggle to scale their media networks effectively despite the promise of high-margin ad revenue. The challenges range from technological limitations and data complexities to measurement inconsistencies and privacy regulations. In this article, we uncover the hidden obstacles of retail media and provide insights into how retailers can overcome these roadblocks to build profitable, scalable ad businesses.

Retail Media 2025: Why Every Retailer Wants a Piece of the Ad Pie

Retail media is growing exponentially, with major retailers recognizing its potential to diversify revenue and monetize first-party shopper data. In the U.S., retail media is set to account for more than 25% of total digital ad spend by 2027. In Europe, the market is growing 4× faster than overall digital ad spend, with key players like Tesco, Carrefour, and Zalando aggressively investing in their ad businesses.

Why Retail Media Is Booming:

Retailers own valuable first-party data, making them an attractive partner for brands looking for privacy-safe targeting.
Ad margins are significantly higher than product margins, with RMNs generating up to 70% gross margins.
The decline of third-party cookies means brands are looking for new data-rich advertising solutions.

While the opportunity is massive, launching a retail media network comes with challenges that many retailers underestimate.

The Tech Bottleneck: Why Many Retail Media Networks Struggle to Scale

Many retailers fail to anticipate the technical complexities of running an ad network. Unlike traditional retail operations, a successful RMN requires a robust ad tech stack capable of handling ad inventory, audience segmentation, campaign management, and real-time bidding.

Common Tech Challenges in Scaling RMNs:

Lack of a Unified Ad Tech Platform – Many retailers struggle with fragmented ad operations, using multiple disconnected systems for direct sales, programmatic ads, and reporting.
Self-Service Capabilities – Brands increasingly demand self-serve ad portals, but building these platforms requires significant development and integration efforts.
Latency and Site Performance Issues – Poorly optimized adtech can slow down website performance, impacting user experience and conversions.

Solution:

Retailers must invest in scalable ad management solutions that integrate direct and programmatic ad sales. Platforms like ADvendio, which operates within Salesforce, allow retailers to manage omnichannel campaigns and unify their ad sales workflows.

Data Dilemmas: First-Party Gold vs. Privacy Regulations – How to Navigate Both

Retailers have an unparalleled advantage in owning first-party shopper data, but using this data comes with regulatory hurdles. Laws such as GDPR in Europe and CCPA in the U.S. impose strict guidelines on how retailers can collect and utilize customer data for advertising.

Key Data Challenges:

Consent Management – Retailers must obtain explicit user consent for data collection, impacting audience size and targeting capabilities.
Walled Gardens vs. Data Sharing – Some retailers hesitate to share audience insights with brands, limiting advertisers’ ability to optimize campaigns.
Retailer-Specific Measurement Standards – With no universal standard, brands struggle to compare retail media performance across different RMNs.

Solution:

Retailers can leverage privacy-preserving technologies like clean rooms to allow advertisers to analyze data without direct access to PII. Additionally, clear opt-in mechanisms and transparent privacy policies can also help build trust while ensuring compliance.

The Measurement Mess: Solving the Standardization Problem in Retail Media

One of the biggest frustrations for advertisers investing in retail media is the lack of standard measurement frameworks. Unlike search or social ads, where metrics are standardized across platforms, each retail media network has its own reporting metrics and attribution models.

Common Measurement Challenges:

Lack of Cross-Platform Standardization – Every retailer measures performance differently, making it difficult for brands to compare campaigns.
Attribution Complexity – Retailers struggle to prove incrementality, i.e., whether an ad actually drove a sale vs. an organic purchase.
Delayed or Incomplete Reporting – Many retailers lack real-time reporting tools, causing delays in campaign optimizations.

Solution:

Retailers should adopt industry-standard measurement frameworks like incrementality testing, multi-touch attribution (MTA), and unified reporting dashboards to gain advertiser trust. ADvendio’s ad management platform can help retailers unify reporting across multiple channels, improving transparency and performance tracking.

Beyond On-Site Ads: Expanding into CTV, Digital Out-of-Home, and Social Media

Retail media is no longer just about on-site sponsored ads. Advertisers want omnichannel solutions that allow them to reach shoppers beyond retailer websites. The most successful RMNs are integrating:

Key Expansion Areas:

Connected TV (CTV): Retailers can use first-party data to serve targeted streaming ads.
Digital Out-of-Home (DOOH): Grocery chains like Kroger are deploying in-store digital screens for brand campaigns.
Off-Site Programmatic & Social Ads: Brands want to extend retail media campaigns into Google, Facebook, and TikTok for broader reach.

Solution:

Retailers should adopt omnichannel ad management systems to enable seamless cross-platform campaign execution. Expanding beyond on-site ads helps increase inventory value and attract larger advertising budgets.

Retail Media in Action: Case Studies of Brands Winning with Omnichannel Strategies

Several retailers have successfully scaled their media networks by leveraging technology, data, and omnichannel integration. Here are a few notable examples:

1. Walmart Connect

Walmart’s retail media network generates billions in ad revenue by offering on-site, off-site, and in-store ad placements.
They integrate CTV and programmatic ads, making it easier for brands to scale campaigns across multiple touchpoints.

2. Kroger Precision Marketing (KPM)

KPM enables brands to retarget shoppers via CTV ads using grocery purchase data.
Their digital out-of-home (DOOH) network allows brands to advertise on in-store screens.

3. Tesco Media & Insight

Tesco collaborates with ITV, allowing brands to use Tesco’s shopper data to target audiences in TV ad campaigns.

Each of these retailers leveraged technology and data integration to create high-performing ad networks.

Final Thoughts: The Future of Retail Media Networks

Retail media presents a massive opportunity—but only for retailers who get it right. The key to success lies in scalable adtech, transparent measurement, data privacy compliance, and omnichannel integration.

As competition intensifies, retailers must focus on:

Investing in automation and AI-powered ad management.
Expanding retail media beyond e-commerce to CTV, DOOH, and social channels.
Building advertiser trust through standardization and real-time measurement.

Retailers that embrace these strategies will emerge as the next generation of ad powerhouses in 2025 and beyond.

Need help managing your retail media inventory?

Learn how ADvendio’s advertising solutions can help streamline retail media ad sales, omnichannel campaign management, and measurement. Contact us today.