Retail media advertising is experiencing a significant growth in Australia according to the latest Retail Media State of the Nation from IAB Australia, with 37% of retail media investors allocating a considerable portion of their budget to this area, a rise from 26% in 2023. The ability to reach shoppers at the point of purchase, followed by leveraging retailer first-party data, is the key driver of this investment for agencies and marketers.

According to the report, 69% of advertisers indicate that return on ad spend (ROAS) is now a top priority. However, the path to retail media investment is not without its challenges. Measurement and reporting (45%), complexity in the relationship between brands and retailers (41%), cost of partnering (34%), and attribution capabilities (34%) are cited as the main barriers.

To address these challenges, the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) Australia's Retail Media Council has released the Australian Retail Media Measurement Principles and Guidance. This resource provides information on current market practices and solution availability. The guide sets out five principles: Transparency & consistency, Accuracy & reliability, Shopper Centric, Privacy & security, and Compliance with industry standards and best practices.

"The second wave of our Retail Media State of the Nation research provides much needed data on the development and needs of this emerging sector of the market. As well as driving this industry research the IAB Australia Retail Media Council with representatives of 26 different companies have aligned on much needed guidance on retail media metrics and measurement best practices." said CEO of IAB Australia, Gai Le Roy.

"This new guide has been developed with the input from a diverse group of retail media stakeholders including retailers, brands, agencies and technology providers. We believe this breadth of input is vital to educate the market and increase confidence and clarity in retail media. To maintain trust and credibility within the industry, retail media organisations must use robust measurement methodologies and technologies, providing clear and comprehensive definitions for each measurement aspect," said General Manager of Retail Media at Cashrewards and Chair of the Retail Media Council, Lachlan Brahe.

60% of retail media spend in Australia is being diverted from other advertising budgets, including traditional media channels and social media. This shift has seen an increase in new or non-media budgets for retail media, up from 31% in 2023. The top three categories of advertisers or agency clients executing retail media campaigns are FMCG, Health & Beauty, and Retail.

The IAB Retail Media Council includes companies such as Adobe, Afterpay, Amazon, Bench, Broadsign, Cartology, Cashrewards, Citrus Ad, Coles 360, Criteo, David Jones, Diageo, Endeavour Group, Google, GroupM, Hatchd, Hearts & Science, Kinesso, Mars United, MediaMonks, Microsoft, OMD, oOh! Media, Publicis Group, Pubmatic, Scentre Group, The Trade Desk, Terry White Chemmart, Uber, Vudoo, WooliesX, Yahoo, Zenith, and Zitcha.