As commerce media continues to grow and mature, advertisers want greater consistency across networks and stronger evidence that their investments are driving business outcomes. The ANA's Retail Media Measurement Standardization report found that 55% of advertisers identify lack of standardization as the number one barrier to retail media investment.
Since commerce media networks often use different measurement methodologies, transparency into how campaign results are determined is an important step forward for the industry. This week, one company proved that they were taking this step.
Transparency and Third-Party Verification in Practice
DoorDash is among the first companies to achieve AAM’s Incrementality Certification, an assurance program to help companies increase measurement transparency and give advertisers greater confidence in the results.
During a presentation at SHOWCASE, the Retail and Commerce Media Upfront by Ascendant Network, Katie Daleo, DoorDash’s general manager of CPG ads, said, “The question we always get from partners is, ‘What incrementality did it drive?’”
She added that while sales lift provides the answer, transparency into how that lift is measured is equally critical. “As much as the numbers matter, so does the methodology behind them.”
During the certification, AAM evaluated incrementality measurement and reporting for DoorDash Ads’ Sponsored Products and Sponsored Brands including its methodology, data governance, causal testing framework, metric calculations and customer disclosures.
“The certification from the Alliance for Audited Media brings greater transparency and consistency to how lift is measured,” Daleo said. “As methodologies vary across platforms, it gives advertisers more confidence in understanding results and comparing them.”
The Shift Toward Transparency and Disclosures
AAM’s Incrementality Certification provides independent verification of incrementality measurement practices including methodologies and data sources, reporting and transparency and disclosure practices against industry guidelines, including the IAB and IAB Europe’s Guidelines for Incremental Measurement in Commerce Media.
The guidelines recognize that incrementality can be measured using different approaches depending on factors such as data available, campaign design and the business question being answered.
Rather than requiring every organization to use the same approach, an important first step is disclosing the methodology used and information for advertisers to understand how results were determined.
The ANA’s report recommends greater transparency into definitions, methodologies and reporting in commerce media and cites AAM assurance as an example of how to achieve this.
Learn more about AAM's certification and view the Incrementality Certification Compliance Guide.
