The 7 Challenges for Retail Media - the definitive read for this part of the industry every year. Just landed this last hour. Prepared as ever by Colin Lewis - to the unitiated, Colin is my NRF room mate. Each year, same hotel, same turtle neck sweaters and a seemigly easier place to frequent than meeting back home in Ireland. We spoke alot this year about the idea of the Continental Divide. Colin taught me about strategy and the diagnostic process which is in here.
But the idea of the Continental Divide demonstrates the challenge in all of marketing and commerce right now - multiculturalism. The journey is different in each country and through each channel.
There is 1 universal language of commerce right now - Video. Served right and proportionately correct (shorts for example), it is the lifeblood of brand story telling.
Not one for predictions, Colin leans to truths - " Short form video has rewritten the rules of content and commerce: The impact of short form video looked at through a mobile phone -triggered by the popularity of TikTok – is changing how people discover products, how they decide what to buy, and how they act on impulse. The trend is going to continue to get bigger, and possibly worse and worse. However, whether we believe this is a good or bad thing, this is reality. "
His language use comes from a superhuman devotion to reading and writing. He uses words, sparingly, deliberately and in the context through which he wants you to understand them - not read them. I'm lucky to call him a friend outside of the work arena, but his work has gotten better every year.
The 7 challenges is available now - I encourage you to read it, and tag Colin Lewis and tell him how great he is ! He doesn't need to drive fast cars, too fast to prove it :)
7 CHALLENGES FOR RETAIL MEDIA
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A deep and necessary dive into the friction points of Retail Media, Vinny. The 'Attribution' and 'Standardisation' pieces are particularly tricky right now—without clear metrics, brands are essentially flying blind. As this space matures, these 7 hurdles will separate the winners from the rest. Another brilliant breakdown!