Retail Media and Onsite Advertising in E-commerce
Retail media — advertising sold by retailers to brands and suppliers to promote their products on the retailer's digital properties — has become one of the fastest-growing advertising formats. Amazon Advertising pioneered this model; now major retailers (Tesco, Sainsbury's, Boots, Ocado, ASOS) operate retail media networks. For large e-commerce businesses, retail media represents a significant incremental revenue stream.
Retail Media Formats
- Sponsored product listings: Paid placement in search results and category pages — the dominant format. CPC-based.
- Display advertising: Banner placements on the site — homepage hero, category page banners, product page ads
- Email and CRM media: Inclusion in retailer email newsletters to segmented audiences
- Off-site media: Using retailer first-party data to target audiences on external platforms (Google, Meta)
Technology Requirements
Running a retail media network requires: an ad server (Criteo, Microsoft PromoteIQ, Kevel) for sponsored listings; a self-serve campaign management interface for advertisers; reporting and attribution; brand safety controls; and integration with the site's search and category pages. The investment is significant but the revenue potential for high-traffic retailers is substantial.