Key takeaways
- Commerce media networks (CMNs) hit a growth ceiling when on-site inventory caps out and first-party data only reaches known shoppers.
- Building identity infrastructure in-house can take a year or more before a network has a new audience product to sell.
- Three tests reveal real neutrality in a data partner: revenue source, representation on both sides of a deal, and identifier portability.
- Experian’s neutral infrastructure layer connects identity, activation, and measurement for commerce media networks without competing for advertiser spend.
Most conversations I have with commerce media network leaders open the same way. The advertiser demand is there, the first-party data is there, and a shortlist of three vendors all describe what they do in language that sounds interchangeable. Choosing between them is harder than it should be.
A constraint sits under that shortlist. On-site inventory runs out, first-party data reaches known shoppers and stops there, and advertisers keep asking for proof of incremental outcomes. Growing past all three takes capabilities the network doesn’t own, which makes the partner decision one of the more consequential calls these teams will make this year.
Most networks get sold a construction project
The pitches converge on roughly the same ideas. A network licenses an identity graph, adopts a platform, or takes delivery of components its own engineers assemble into something advertisers want to buy, sometime over the next several quarters. A few of the largest networks have the engineering team and patience for that.
Most do not. Commerce media operations already stretch across e-commerce, merchandising, analytics, legal, and privacy, with audience definitions that drift between teams and workflows that break at the handoffs. The networks taking on these build projects have the least resources and bandwidth to absorb them. I’ve watched networks buy an identity capability and go a full year before they had a single new audience product to sell.
What a network needs on day one is their customer data enriched, identities unified, the activation paths connected, and the measurement loop closed.
Your identity layer shouldn’t become someone else’s ecosystem
The second challenge is control. A media network’s customer data is its one unique asset, and the identity infrastructure decides how far that asset travels. A commerce media network should own its customer intelligence and use identity infrastructure that expands where that intelligence can go.
Identity should make that intelligence more useful and not make you dependent on someone else’s ecosystem. That means retaining control of customer data and choosing infrastructure that can connect it across partners, platforms, activation environments, and measurement providers.
For commerce media networks, independence is commercial infrastructure. Your identity layer should expand your options, not limit them.
Three tests separate structural neutrality from the claim
Independence costs nothing to assert. These three are harder to fake:
Experian clears all three because of how our business is built. We sell no media, own no supply, and represent no buyer, so the incentive to steer a media network’s spend never exists in the first place.
What Experian’s infrastructure layer delivers for commerce media networks
Many clients own their onboarding, data platforms, and clean room relationships, and our work improves the data entering those workflows. Match rates rise, addressable audiences expand, and the existing investment gets more productive.
Choose the infrastructure layer with no stake in your outcome
Run the three tests on every partner currently holding your identity, activation, or measurement. The answers will tell you how much of your business you’ve already made visible to someone who can act on it.
Experian serves as the neutral infrastructure layer for commerce media networks, connecting first-party data, identity, activation, and measurement while competing for none of your advertiser revenue. Bring us your current stack, your match rates, and the advertiser demand you turn away today, and we’ll map which layers close the gap and what that growth is worth.
Watch the conversation
About the author
Kevin Dunn
Chief Revenue Officer, Experian
Kevin Dunn joins Experian Marketing Services with more than 20 years of leadership experience across marketing and advertising technology, most recently serving as Senior Vice President of Brands and Agencies at LiveRamp. In that role, he led growth across retail, CPG, travel, hospitality, financial services, and healthcare, overseeing new business, account expansion, and channel partnerships.
Kevin is known for building cohesive, accountable teams and leading with optimism, clarity, and a strong sense of shared purpose. His leadership philosophy centers on empowering people, driving positive outcomes for clients and fostering a culture where teams can grow, take smart risks, and succeed together.
Latest posts
NEW YORK, Nov. 29, 2016 /PRNewswire/ — For the second consecutive year, Tapad, part of Experian, has been listed among Deloitte’s Technology Fast 500™, a ranking of the 500 fastest-growing technology, media, telecommunications, life sciences and energy tech companies in North America. Tapad, number 147 on the 2016 Deloitte list, is the leading provider of unified, cross-device marketing technology solutions. “It is an honor to once again be recognized by Deloitte for our growth and momentum, particularly given the stature of the other technology companies on the list,” said Are Traasdahl, founder and CEO of Tapad. “Our product innovation, particularly in TV analytics and measurement, is a major contributor to our progress. I’m extremely proud of our hard-working, talented team for continually executing at such a high level.” “Today, when every organization can be a tech company, the most effective businesses not only foster the courage to explore change, but also encourage creativity in using and applying existing assets in new ways, as resourcefully as possible,” said Sandra Shirai, principal, Deloitte Consulting LLP and U.S. technology, media and telecommunications industry leader. “This ingenious approach to innovation calls for the encouragement of curiosity and collaboration both within and outside the office walls.” “This year’s Fast 500 winners showcase that when organizations are open to diverse perspectives and insights, they are able to create an environment for their employees and customers to see the possibilities and ingenious solutions that might lie ahead,” added Jim Atwell, national managing partner of the emerging growth company practice, Deloitte & Touche LLP. “Entrepreneurial environments foster change and innovation within businesses, and we look forward to watching these companies continue to drive change across all sectors.” Contact us today
Distribution via LiveRamp enables seamless cross-device customer experiences through more platforms NEW YORK, Nov. 15, 2016 /PRNewswire/ — Tapad, now part of Experian and the leading provider of unified cross-device marketing technology solutions, today announced an expanded partnership with LiveRamp™, an Acxiom® company and leading provider of omnichannel identity resolution, to make the proprietary Tapad Device Graph™ accessible beyond Tapad-hosted direct integrations. Through LiveRamp, Tapad’s Device Graph Access now extends to more than 400 ad tech and mar tech platforms. Tapad’s Device Graph™ enables marketers to understand, monetize and measure consumer engagement across all digital channels, and Tapad’s unified consumer view is recognized as one of the most accurate, scalable cross-device solutions in the market today. Through the expanded partnership with LiveRamp, the Tapad Device Graph can be distributed to the hundreds of platforms used to reach consumers on digital channels and measure campaign performance – even as devices are added daily to Tapad’s extensive graph. “Increasingly, marketers want access to cross-device targeting and measurement capabilities within their preferred platforms,” said Anneka Gupta, chief product officer of LiveRamp. “Our expanded partnership makes it easy for marketers to access Tapad’s graph through the rapidly growing set of integrations available in our partner ecosystem.” This is the latest of several initiatives between the two technology platforms designed to make the integration of cross-screen platforms seamless, privacy-safe and easy to use for dynamic and engaging marketing efforts. “During the past year, Tapad has expanded its global presence and rapidly grown its data business – Tapad Coral – doubling the number of companies integrating our device graph into their platforms and growing our annualized run rate by 210%,” said Pierre Martensson, GM of Tapad Coral and APAC. “Our expanded partnership with LiveRamp positions us to meet the increased demand for Tapad Device Graph Access and enable new platforms to apply our graph with unprecedented speed.” Contact us today
Cross-Screen Pioneer Explores the Power of Connected Cars as a Vehicle for Customer Engagement LAS VEGAS, NV — (October 26, 2016) –Kate O’Loughlin, GM of Media for Tapad, addressed the J.D. Power Automotive conference audience today in Las Vegas, NV. With more than 1,400 participants representing every facet of the automotive marketing profession, the conference has become the industry’s leading marketing event. Bringing the unified, cross-screen perspective to the stage, O’Loughlin discussed the vital role of connected cars in the consumer engagement process. She is a founding member of Tapad which launched the world’s first cross-screen marketing technology in 2010. Tapad was acquired by the Telenor Group early in 2016. Key points from O’Loughlin’s J.D. Power 2016 address included: The marketers who deliver relevant and engaging content in a privacy-safe setting will be in the strongest position to navigate the proliferation of connected devices, including the connected points in cars. As automakers innovate the technology in cars, marketers need to be prepared for the size and diversity of data available for understanding consumers. It’s going to be increasingly difficult to wade through the data, so now is the time to build a solid framework for understanding the person behind the data. Marketers who evolve — and take a holistic approach — to their campaign measurements will achieve marked improvements in efficiency and an enhanced understanding of their core audiences. Actionable brand engagement metrics like Viewable Exposure Time (VET) will continue to overtake traditional advertising performance metrics. VET evaluates the optimal amount of time an ad is present on a screen to incite consumer action. In early testing by Tapad, campaigns that employ VET see conversion rate performance improvements from 13 to 60%. The consumer-centric technology solutions of the future need to be as scalable as they are affordable. Learn more about Tapads’ recommended Viewable Exposure Time metric contact us today! Contact us today