In the fast-evolving world of retail media, consistency and transparency are critical for building trust and optimizing media investments. With hundreds of networks available, advertisers and media buyers have called for standardizing measurement to better evaluate campaigns and make more informed investment decisions across networks.
In our latest AAM Media Matters interview, we spoke to Angelina Eng, vice president of measurement, addressability and data center at the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) and a member of AAM’s Board of Directors. Eng discussed the development of the IAB/MRC Retail Media Measurement Guidelines, what areas they cover and how they will increase standardization across the retail media ecosystem.
Collaboration for Industry Standardization
Released in early 2024, the IAB/MRC Retail Media Measurement Guidelines represent a collaborative industry effort to address key challenges in retail media. Eng said the development of the guidelines began after buyers expressed concerns about measurement inconsistencies across retail media networks.
“It was hard to compare apples to apples,” Eng said. “There were inconsistent metrics and a lack of transparency on methodology and some of the metrics that were being reported.”
The guidelines were an extensive collaboration between the IAB and Media Rating Council (MRC) and a working group of more than 200 organizations worldwide, including AAM. The IAB also worked closely with counterparts in Europe and Latin America to ensure a global unification of standards.
“We looked at the development from a global perspective with partners like IAB Europe, because retail and e-commerce have the same challenges globally, not just in the U.S.,” Eng said.
Key Metrics and Emphasis
The goal of the guidelines was consistency since a platform might have its own definition of a metric and measurement methodology.
“Part of the challenge, especially from the buy side, is aggregating all these data points across the different sources for an apples-to-apples comparison.”
To achieve this, the guidelines specify measurement baselines in areas such as impressions and clicks, and outcomes like return on ad spend (ROAS) and incrementality. The guidelines also address eliminating invalid traffic (IVT) and ensuring viewability to accurately measure outcomes.
“The foundation for understanding incrementality and attribution is making sure that ad impressions are filtered for invalid traffic and meet viewability standards, so when retail media networks measure outcomes, they know that the ad had the opportunity to be seen by a human,” Eng said.
Benefits of Compliance
The guidelines have been well-received by the industry and provide much-needed clarity.
“Especially for advertisers and brands, it's important to understand where your dollars are going and what is driving sales and gaining insights on where to optimize your campaign,” Eng said. “That starts with quality data and ensuring that it’s consistent so retail media networks speak the same language and approach measurement in the same way.”
Eng added that several retailers have indicated they would like to stand out for their compliance to the guidelines through accreditation or certification. AAM’s new Retail Media Certification evaluates a network’s compliance and offers suggestions for optimization.
“I’m proud of the work AAM is doing to certify and audit retail media platforms and by working with the IAB Tech Lab to ensure publishers and retail media networks are setting up their systems and platforms correctly to meet industry standards,” Eng said. “It's something that continues to develop trust in our industry, which is much needed.”
Looking Ahead
In discussing how the guidelines might evolve, Eng anticipates retail media networks expanding into channels such as gaming, podcasts, augmented reality and virtual reality. Eng added that industry-wide adoption is the key to ensuring consistent data and fostering trust across the ecosystem.
“It's important that we push toward adopting these industry standards, which means buyers need to ask questions when selecting partners such as: Are you accredited? If not, why aren't you? What is your methodology? How are you handling data? What are your data policies and how are you ensuring that consumer data is being protected?”
When every participant in the ecosystem, including data platforms and measurement solutions, adopts the guidelines, consistency across all campaigns and networks improves.
