A curated view of what’s happening in the world of Digital Monetisation, Audience Development, and Measurement.

This week we dive into TikTok and Marin’s integration, Walmart’s ad offering, and the appeal of health and wellness placements to non-endemic advertisers.

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Monetisation

Walmart Is Using Digital Advertising to Offset Price Pressure
Walmart is making big moves in the advertising space, increasing its efforts in a bid to mitigate market forces affecting its margins—such as inflation, supply chain disruption, and operational costs.

The company recently reported ad revenue of $2.1 billion worldwide, as it looks to grow its ad platform, Walmart Connect. Advertising, being a high-margin business, has provided Walmart with the financial buffer needed to keep prices low in retail while also positioning the company for a more digital future.

Walmart sees its expansion into digital advertising as a key part of its evolution as an e-commerce retailer, helping to develop customer relationships and collect valuable first-party data.

We’ve already seen retailers evolving to act more like media publishers, and data is at the heart of this transformation—especially as rules around cookies change. Their large pools of first-party data are incredibly valuable, but Walmart’s step into advertising isn’t just about building its reputation as a digital retailer. It’s become a crucial revenue stream, diversifying the business to withstand challenges affecting other revenue areas. It’s a logical move.

Full article on AdExchanger

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Audience Development

Are D2C Advertising Strategies Drifting Away from Meta?
Facebook has had a rocky time in recent years, and many brands have been re-evaluating its role in their digital advertising strategies. Despite this, Omaha Steaks, a US-based food retailer, continues to prioritise Facebook and Instagram in its social media advertising mix.

However, while Meta remains a valuable tool for advertisers due to its significant user base, a Digiday article highlights the risks of over-reliance on social media, suggesting that brands should diversify their marketing strategies. Omaha Steaks and other brands have been experimenting with TikTok and alternative channels.

Change is inevitable in digital marketing, and the landscape is likely to look very different in just a couple of years. While social media platforms provide strong short-term performance metrics, brand equity is built over time across multiple channels. A resilient brand must be supported by multiple pillars—so that if one falls, the others hold strong.

Ultimately, brands will go where their customers are, and if that means moving away from Facebook, they will. This is why businesses experiment with different channels—to stay flexible and prepared for shifts in consumer behaviour. However, for the time being, Facebook remains a key player in performance marketing.

Full article on Digiday

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Health and Wellness Categories Are Growing in Popularity With Advertisers

Advertisers are increasingly looking to target health and wellness publishers such as Well + Good, Health, and Mindbodygreen, even when their products do not have a direct connection to these categories.

A Digiday report highlights that non-endemic advertisers—such as those in e-commerce and the automobile industry—accounted for eight out of the ten largest deals done by Well + Good last year. Even Bacardi, an alcohol brand, sponsored their podcast.

This trend is likely driven by the increasing societal focus on self-care, healthy lifestyles, and mental well-being, making these placements more attractive to advertisers. Ad spend in these categories is expected to increase throughout 2022.

The takeaway? Your audience isn’t always watching the content you expect them to. There may be significant value in looking for potential customers in markets outside of your core category—particularly when those markets are trending in society.

That said, this strategy carries risks. Without sufficient audience research, it can be the equivalent of throwing money into the wind and hoping it lands in the right place. But with thoughtful planning and the budget to test and refine, brands may find surprising opportunities in unexpected places.

Full article on Digiday

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Measurement

MarinOne Integrates With TikTok to Improve Ad Optimisation
Marin Software’s MarinOne platform has integrated with TikTok Ad Manager, enhancing reporting and performance for advertisers.

TikTok’s growing importance in the advertising landscape makes ad management tools like this crucial. Optimisation is key to ensuring a campaign achieves maximum reach and effectiveness—allowing advertisers to reallocate budgets away from underperforming areas and into high-performing verticals.

TikTok’s advertising platform is still in its relative infancy, and many brands remain hesitant to invest heavily. However, as the platform adapts to user demands and strengthens its ad infrastructure, its share of marketing budgets is expected to grow.

TikTok’s dominance among Gen Z audiences is already well established. While competitor YouTube still has roughly double the monthly active users and a solidified market position, TikTok’s rapid rise cannot be ignored. It is a rising force in digital advertising that brands must pay attention to.

Full article on MarTech Series