IAB Europe: lack of standards in retail media ‘a barrier to investment’

More than two-thirds of retail media buyers (70%) surveyed by IAB Europe cited a lack of retail media standardisation as “a key barrier” to further investment.

That is according to IAB Europe’s Retail Media Standards survey of 110 respondents, split between retail media buyers (28%), sellers (24%) and enablers (39%) across European markets.

Other common reasons cited for perceived inefficiencies in retail media included the amount of manual work required, fragmentation in the market, different platforms having different reporting and APIs, inefficient pricing structures and multiple buying methods.

Most buyers (90%) and sellers (84%) particularly called out media and attribution measurement needing standardisation in future, and these were a standardisation priority for nearly three-quarters (73%) of respondents.

In answer to these concerns, IAB Europe’s Retail Media Working Group has created a 101 Guide to Retail Media, including definitions of on-site, online and off-site digital retail media, examples of buying mechanisms, measurement and targeting, and best practices.

There will also be a new dedicated Retailer Council meeting in Q4 2023 to develop standards and promote retail media growth in Europe. Retailers who operate in at least one European market are eligible to become members of both IAB Europe and its Retail Media Working Group.

IAB Europe forecast that adspend on retail media will reach €25bn by 2026, exceeding traditional linear TV advertising.