Christopher Kung

The Mars Agency's Lindsey Simcik and Kristin Wall joined over 800 practitioners last week for the Salsify Digital Shelf Summit in Nashville, Tennessee, to network and gain insights into the evolution of the omnichannel space. Across the different sessions, five themes emerged: 🧠 Artificial Intelligence 📋 Product Quality ⚖️ Data Governence 📊 Measurement 🌱 Digital Transformation Get their key takeaways here 👇

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Google's decision to delay its complete removal of third-party cookies has opened up new opportunities for retailers. Retailers are now seeing a longer lifespan for cookies than what was originally anticipated and retail media networks are now able to capitalize on it. What are your thoughts on what this means for the future of retail media? #Retail #AdTech #MarTech #RetailMediaNetworks

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Grocery chain Hy-Vee inks deal with Grocery TV to sell in-store ads through The Trade Desk (Adweek): By Kathryn Lundstrom. Advertisers can buy in-store inventory programmatically. The grocery chain has partnered with Grocery TV, an Austin, Texas-based company that has built out a network of digital screens across more than 5,000 retail stores across the U.S. The deal allows Hy-Vee to plug its in-store digital screens into that network. Advertisers will be […] #DOOH #digitalbillboards #digitalsignage

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Google 🍪 announcement + Oracle 💰 settlement signal a shift to Consumer-centric advertising. The recent #adtech developments at #Google and #Oracle may seem disconnected at first, but they signify a significant shift towards consumer-centric advertising. Alongside Apple, these tech giants are embracing privacy concerns and strategically repositioning themselves by prioritizing consumers. This move aims to reduce risks and drive growth by empowering consumers, advocates, and next-gen companies to innovate new approaches in place of legacy adtech. The ripple effect is evident, with companies like Amazon and Meta expected to follow suit to mitigate the legal and financial risks highlighted in the coverage of Oracle's recent settlement. I transitioned from retail and ecommerce to adtech two decades ago with a vision to revolutionize advertising by attacking the inefficiencies of offline methods adopted in the digital realm. Seemed like an easy fix but it turned out to be a long slog. I also saw the inherent risk from cookies that hold adtech together to this day. Now it seems the consumer is finally getting a seat at the advertising table, and they don't like cookies or spam. For advertising and publishing businesses, the time is ripe to pivot towards alternative strategies in alignment with this evolving landscape. Seeking expert guidance to navigate these transformations could be the key to staying ahead in this dynamic environment. DM me for a chat or simply to chew the fat :) Google announcement - https://lnkd.in/gu9a-wba Oracle coverage- https://lnkd.in/gA9H-Fey My take from 2013 - https://lnkd.in/gB8QCjF

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MikMak is in The Wall Street Journal talking about the implications of the Kroger-Albertsons merger’s dissolution on retail media. Do you agree with our hot-take below? "In the wake of the merger’s dissolution, Kroger will struggle to achieve growth rates necessary to compete with the largest retail media sellers, said Rachel Tipograph, founder and CEO of e-commerce software company MikMak. “What does this all mean for Kroger and Albertsons? They begin to lose leverage around scale in a world where the delta between Amazon, Walmart and Instacart and everyone else is just getting wider,” Tipograph said. Consumer packaged goods brands that regularly sell to Kroger and Albertsons shoppers will continue advertising with both companies, said Tipograph. But the deal would have allowed for a more compelling pitch to so-called nonendemic brands, such as automakers, that don’t sell products in Kroger and Albertsons stores by streamlining the sales process and significantly increasing the amount of data the combined company could provide to advertisers, said Tipograph. The number of retailers that have launched their own media networks in recent years has overwhelmed ad buyers, who generally commit ad dollars to the largest players with the most advanced technology offerings, Tipograph said." Read on: https://lnkd.in/gshwNtSM

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Are CMOs becoming CAOs? CAO = Chief Advertising Officer. Looking at the new #Gartner survey of CMOs, paid media spending has gradually increased and has overtaken the spending on #Martech. While the survey also highlights that IT is getting more involved with Martech stack, its also a welcome sign that the budget may get split between #IT and #Marketing thereby giving some leeway to the already depleted #CMO budget. My only worry which is also in the long term will affect marketers is, what is the reason for a steady decline in marketing budgets? If you are a #marketer, you have something more to worry about beyond the budget cuts. And that's #GenAI.

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Brand safety is kind of a given in terms of marketer expectations in 2024, but the reality of making brand safety happen is a bit more complex. Let's talk about it at the TAG "State of the Fight" event during Advertising Week New York!

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Good collaboration requires communication, clarity, and cooperation. That couldn’t be more true when two companies are developing a data collaboration partnership in which they’re utilizing one another’s first-party data to surface new customer insights. The most productive data collaboration partnerships are focused, sincere, and outcome-based. I love how Evan Hovorka from Albertsons Media Collective says it in this clip from LiveRamp RampUp: “Having a seat at the collaboration table means there’s a behavior that is required to be invited…The ability to come in and whiteboard and collaborate, and have the patience and trust…we need to have that trust to build together safely.” #datacollaboration #medianetworks #datapartnerships

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Insights from Placer.ai shed light on how household income migration trends are impacting major players like Target, Dollar Tree, and Darden. Target's strategic moves, such as opening new stores and investing in technology and supply chain, seem to align well with the changing economic dynamics in emerging markets. On the other hand, Dollar Tree's review of its store portfolio reflects a wise response to demographic shifts driven by migration, especially in regions seeing a rise in affluent households. In the dining scene, there's a common thread: a push for expansion. I am intrigued by regions like Las Vegas and Idaho. While we're thrilled about our client projects there, we're keeping the details under wraps for now but this is exciting and good information to note. #HouseholdIncome #RetailTrends #MarketInsights #BabyBirdCommunications

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Another interesting viewpoint on the impact of AI on search. What makes the open web so interesting is the richness and complexity of it. But what’s the impact when Google “does the Googling for you? Tech research firm Gartner predicts traffic to the web from search engines will fall 25 percent by 2026. That’s a massive impact for indy publishers and many smaller companies who’ll find it harder to compete. It has the potential to improve the search experience for the consumer, it has become more than a bit messy over the last decade. But for smaller brands the fight to cut through will be that much harder. Quality of content and user experience will be key. https://lnkd.in/eZ7SituW

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Transparency Under the Microscope (Source: Digiday) Retail media networks are expanding to off-site channels, but marketers question ROI and performance transparency. RMNs are expected to capture $140 billion in ad spend this year, yet 55% of marketers cite lack of standardization as a key challenge. Concerns are rising over brand safety with made-for-advertising sites included in some offerings. Calls for greater transparency in the RMN negotiation process, CPM value, and retailer kickbacks continue to grow. Source Digiday: https://lnkd.in/gHQ3hf_H 🌎To learn more join the AdTechGod Slack Community: https://lnkd.in/g-XzVDkX ✉️Sign up for The Refresh newsletter: https://lnkd.in/g-gjn7GU

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The Profitable Growth Index of NRR:PP is a powerful tool to monitor the growth and profitability of your retail business. In this newsletter, I am reviewing PGI and the components of Net Revenue Retention and Payback Period and why it's critical to brands who are struggling today. https://lnkd.in/e24KBkpk

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"It's Complicated..." To kick off this week, I had the privilege of participating in the BRAVE COMMERCE Podcast Live Executive Summit with some of the sharpest minds across CPG. The event was hosted by two absolute bad asses Sarah Hofstetter and Rachel Tipograph and their incredible teams. Sarah said it well in her closing remarks... the Digital Commerce environment is "Complicated," but its also progressing, growing, and evolving into a superpower. My top 3 take aways from the day: 1. People Matter In a conference filled with AI, Digital, and Tech, what blew me away was the people in the room. Such brilliant minds, all working through similar issues, but willing to give their time, energy, and ideas to help each other. 2. AI AI alone will not replace jobs. But people that understand and can harness practical uses of AI will replace those that cannot. Its not AI for AI's sake but rather how can we implement technology to shift focus on more value added work. 3. Power of Team The ability to navigate the intersection of so many functions can get "messy," at times. So many case studies of success that were shared came down to teams being able to prioritize amongst all of the noise and execute together. So while "it's complicated," I'm grateful for the opportunity to learn and grow with so many others in NYC. #bravecommerce

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At Hahn, we believe it's time to retire the advertising value equivalency model that we have today. This is a PR measurement model that's 40 years old and pretty outdated... but it's still used by many brands. It's time for your business to have access to accurate qualitative data and sentiment. Luckily, there's a better solution out there—earned lift metrics. This earned lift model analyzes sales, media coverage, and customer behavior to accurately predict and improve media impact. If this interests you, be sure to check out our video here to learn a bit more. #EarnedLiftMetrics #MediaImpact #PRMeasurement

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As U.S. shoppers plan to spend 4% more this holiday season, with an average spend of $613, retailers will need to balance the demand for value and promotions with strategic pricing. In the short term, this means agility in pricing and inventory management will be essential to stay competitive, avoiding a race to the bottom on price. Retailers who adapt to these shifts and innovate in areas like gift card engagement and personalized shopping experiences will drive lasting customer loyalty and future growth. #ConsumerTrends

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Struggling Norfolk Retail Biz? Feeling stuck in the past? Is your online presence a ghost town? Brick and mortar stores can THRIVE in today's market! Here's how a combined CTO / CMO approach can transform your business like it did for Tidewater Safety Shoes. Questions? 📈 How can I leverage data to reach new customers? 🤝 Is my online store user-friendly? ⛓️ Are my marketing efforts disconnected? This FREE case study has the answers! ➡️ https://lnkd.in/eyu5KJDi #norfolk #retail #growthhacking #entrepreneur #ecommerce

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This is a worthwhile watch, great overview and discussion on how important designing with purpose is and the impact it can have on driving your business forward.

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