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Underrated Retail Media Metrics That Fly Under The Radar [Panel Episode]
We all know the usual suspects — ROAS, impressions, clicks — but what if the real indicators of retail media success are hiding in plain sight? In this episode, I ask four leading brand-side retail media experts a simple but revealing question: What’s the metric you’re obsessed with that everyone else seems to ignore?You’ll hear why one leader swapped vanity metrics for incrementality and household penetration. Another reveals an underrated email metric that shows exactly what’s resonating with customers. We’ll also explore how branded search volume can be a crystal ball for future growth, and why new-to-brand might just be your most important indicator of scalable success.If you’re ready to move beyond the same old KPIs and start measuring what really matters, this episode will broaden your perspective about retail media performance.This episode is sponsored by Connected Commerce at Acosta GroupTimeline[0:00] – Why the most important retail media metrics might not be the ones you’re tracking[1:00] – The power of “Revenue Per Recipient” in email campaigns[2:00] – Turning influencers into brand ambassadors through “Posts Per Influencer”[2:39] – Why branded search volume is a powerful leading indicator of brand strength[4:25] – Why “New-to-Brand” reveals true growth, not just recycled buyers[5:30] – Measuring incrementality, household penetration, and long-term brand salienceLinks & ResourcesFollow Jyoti Malik, Senior Director of Ecommerce at Belkin on LinkedInFollow Kelsey Knight, Chief Commercial Officer at Slumberkins, on LinkedInFollow Neha Gupta Mallik, Head of Connected Commerce at Mizkan America, on LinkedInFollow Chris Lowrey, Brand Director at Our Home, on LinkedInSubscribe to Retail Media Breakfast Club's daily newsletterFollow Kiri on LinkedIn
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6:50
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6:50
Brian Monahan Is Going Big With Albertsons Media Collective ['Snips' from The Snarketing Podcast]
A few weeks ago, I sat down with Brian Monahan of Albertsons Media Collective, for a profile in The Drum. And let me tell you, Brian isn’t your typical corporate executive. He’s unfiltered, entrepreneurial, and not afraid to say what everyone else in retail media is only thinking.In this 'Snips' episode, I dive into some of the biggest insights from Brian’s recent appearance on The Snarketing Podcast, where he expanded on themes from our original conversation. Find links to my profile in The Drum and the full Snarketing episode under 'Links & Resources' below. I explore Brian's bold takes on where retail media really stands, why alignment between advertisers and retailers matters more than ever, and how Albertsons is experimenting with ideas that most leaders wouldn’t dare to pitch in their first 60 days. If you think you know what retail media looks like, Brian might just convince you to think again.This episode is sponsored by Connected Commerce at Acosta GroupTimeline[1:12] - Brian’s bold claim: Retail media is the only medium where buyers and sellers share the same goal.[2:00] - Beyond ads: How gamified scavenger hunts and shoppable recipes could redefine in-store engagement.[3:26] - The big money challenge: Why most retail media networks are still living off trade and shopper budgets.[4:30] - The “do or die” moment: How retailers can tap into national brand dollars by integrating workflow and data.[6:00] - Rethinking brand equity: What retailers like Safeway and Acme can teach us about customer loyalty and trust.[7:27] - A bold experiment: Albertsons’ “BOGO for retail media” program that proves alignment with advertisers.[8:30] - Looking ahead: Why Brian Monahan is just getting started.Links & ResourcesListen to the full Snarketing episode, Ep 51: Brian Monahan - SVP at Albertsons Media CollectiveSubscribe to The Snarketing PodcastRead my profile in The Drum, This former Dentsu exec’s ‘bloody obvious’ bets are shaking up Albertsons Media CollectiveFollow Brian Monahan, SVP at Albertsons Media Collective, on LinkedInRead my article Trade vs. Retail Media: Who's Really Eating Whom?Subscribe to Retail Media Breakfast Club's daily newsletterFollow Kiri on LinkedIn
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8:45
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8:45
Is ChatGPT's Instant Checkout 'Really' Agentic? And Does It Actually Matter?
The retail world is buzzing over OpenAI’s new Instant Checkout. But here’s the big question: is it truly agentic commerce, or just another slick integration? In this episode, I break down the debate between definition purists and pragmatists, unpack what 'agentic' really means in the context of AI-assisted shopping, and explore why this conversation might be missing the real story.While the industry argues over semantics, I share why the ground beneath retail media’s most profitable foundation (its data) may already be shifting. From Walmart’s partnership with OpenAI, to new research showing that 78% of consumers have used AI for shopping in the past three months, the future of retail media is evolving fast. The real disruption might not come from autonomy definitions but from who owns the transaction data.This episode is sponsored by Connected Commerce at Acosta GroupTimeline[0:12] – The new retail debate: what 'agentic commerce' really means and why everyone’s arguing about it.[1:28] – Mastercard’s definition of agentic commerce and why some analysts say ChatGPT’s checkout doesn’t qualify.[2:32] – The pragmatists’ view: seeing agentic commerce as a continuum of autonomy, not a binary state.[3:00] – Why the Instant Checkout still matters, and how it’s quietly reshaping data ownership between AI platforms and retailers.[4:30] – A refresher on the three pillars of retail media revenue: onsite, offsite, and in-store.[6:57] – Why offsite retail media might be the first domino to fall in an agentic commerce world.[8:19] – The Amazon vs. Barnes & Noble story from 1997 and what it teaches us about getting stuck in semantic debates.[9:15] – What retailers need to start doing now to prepare for AI intermediaries owning transaction data.[10:00] – Instant checkout may not be 'truly agentic,' but it’s already changing retail media forever.Links & ResourcesRead my article Why Agentic Shopping Poses an Existential Threat to Retail Media (Part 1)Read Celeste Huang's article on WARC, Retail media growth momentum continues, set to lead in 2025Read Scot Wingo's articles on Retailgentic, Introducing the 5 Levels of Agentic Shopping Framework & ChatGPT Instant Checkout: Deep Dive Part I/IIIRead Acosta Group's article, AI is Retail’s New Gatekeeper: Personalization and Precision Marketing are Competitive Table StakesSubscribe to Retail Media Breakfast Club's daily newsletterFollow Kiri on LinkedIn
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10:15
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10:15
Will LLMS Monetize With Ads or Marketplaces? [Retailgentic Crossover]
Today I’m doing something a little different! Instead of my usual trends and insights, I’m sharing a clip from my recent guest appearance on Scot Wingo’s podcast, Retailgentech. Scott flipped the script and let me ask him about his career journey, his perspective on where retail is headed, and one of the biggest questions in e-commerce right now: How will large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT make their money in the future?Will they follow the traditional ad-based route we’ve seen from Google and Facebook? Or will they build marketplaces and take a cut from transactions, as we’re starting to see with new initiatives from Walmart, Instacart, and DoorDash?In this conversation, we dive into how AI-driven commerce could reshape loyalty, customer ownership, and what it means to be a “merchant of record” in the next era of retail. Find the link to the full Retailgentic podcast below under 'Links & Resources'.This episode is sponsored by Connected Commerce at Acosta GroupTimeline[1:01] – Will LLMs make money through ads, or through marketplaces?[1:30] – Scot breaks down ChatGPT’s “checkout” model and why he views it as a marketplace, not an affiliate system.[2:50] – How Google’s AI agent checkout experience compares and what that means for merchants.[3:00] – The retailer concern: will AI intermediaries cause commoditization?[4:00] – Why Scott believes this new wave of AI players won’t repeat the mistakes of Facebook–Google–Amazon. [6:00] – What it means for retailers to be the “merchant of record” and how that unlocks loyalty opportunities. [7:30] – The comeback of loyalty programs and non-price differentiators in retail. [8:30] – How omnichannel experiences and brand identity will help retailers stay relevant in the AI-driven marketplace era. [9:00] – Wrapping up: why the fundamentals of loyalty, differentiation, and customer connection still matter more than ever.Links & ResourcesListen to the full October 14, 2025 Retailgentic episode, Turning the Tables: Kiri Masters Interviews Scot Wingo on Agentic Commerce & AI ShoppingSubscribe to RetailgenticRead my article The 3 Ways Agentic Commerce Could Destroy Retail MediaRead my article Agentic Shopping Might Seem Crazy. So Did Self-Service Supermarkets.Follow Scot Wingo on LinkedInSubscribe to Retail Media Breakfast Club's daily newsletterFollow Kiri on LinkedIn
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9:39
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9:39
Agentic Shopping Looks Crazy. So Did Self-Service Supermarkets.
In this episode, I start with a trip back to 1916, when Clarence Saunders launched the first self-service supermarket, Piggly Wiggly, and everyone thought it was a ridiculous idea. Customers serving themselves? Paying cash instead of running a tab? Madness. Yet, it reshaped retail forever.I use that story as a lens to explore today’s 'crazy-sounding' innovation: agentic shopping (AI agents shopping on our behalf). Drawing from retail analyst Andrew Lipsman’s critiques, I unpack why skepticism toward new retail tech is healthy, but can also blind us to early versions of world-changing ideas. From Webvan to Amazon to TikTok, I show how many 'failed' technologies weren’t wrong — they were just early.Then, I dig into what needs to align for AI-driven shopping to go mainstream: better tech, real consumer pain points, frictionless distribution, sustainable economics, and cultural trust. Will agentic shopping become the next self-service revolution, or just another voice commerce flop? Let’s find out.This episode is sponsored by Connected Commerce at Acosta GroupTimeline[00:00] – The wild story of Clarence Saunders and how Piggly Wiggly reinvented grocery shopping.[02:05] – The lesson: the future doesn’t arrive by request, it’s created by those who rethink inefficiencies.[02:32] – Introducing today’s topic: why agentic shopping feels 'too weird' and why that’s familiar.[03:13] – Andrew Lipsman’s skeptical take: retail tech hype cycles and a graveyard of failed innovations.[04:17] – Why some 'failures' (like Webvan) were just early, not wrong — lessons from timing and execution.[05:12] – Amazon’s early struggles: when buying books online seemed absurd until it wasn’t.[07:24] – The TikTok lesson: from lip-syncing app to global phenomenon, how tech evolves beyond its first use case.[08:14] – My firsthand experiment: buying a lavender candle through ChatGPT’s instant checkout (clunky but promising!).[09:00] – What needs to align for agentic commerce to succeed: technology, pain, distribution, economics, and trust.[12:33] – Back to Piggly Wiggly: irrational innovations often look crazy, until they become inevitable.[13:28] – Final takeaway: better to prepare for possibility than assume limits based on early imperfections.Links & ResourcesRead my related article from Tuesday, I Got Prime Deals. Or Did I? Why Consumer Distrust Is AI Shopping's Real OpeningRead Andrew Lipsman's essay Agentic Commerce is a Collective HallucinationRead my article AI-Enabled Shopping Hits 74% AdoptionSubscribe to Retail Media Breakfast Club's daily newsletterFollow Kiri on LinkedIn
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13:47
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13:47