Retail media networks (RMNs) are on track to capture over $128 billion in ad spend by 2028, growing nearly 25% year over year. But behind this rapid expansion, RMNs face a challenge that could slow their momentum: they lack the complete picture of their customers.
Retailers sit on a goldmine of first-party data—loyalty programs, online purchases, and in-store transactions—but their customer view is often fragmented, incomplete, or entirely anonymous. Without a strong identity foundation, RMNs struggle to:
- Scale advertiser reach beyond logged-in users
- Seamlessly match audiences across channels (CTV, programmatic, social)
- Deliver the precise targeting and measurement that advertisers demand
The reality? Data is only valuable if it’s usable. And right now, too many RMNs are leaving value on the table.
The identity challenge: If you can’t see it, you can’t monetize it
Retailers have two types of customers:
- Known customers: Logged-in or self-identified users with purchase history and identifiable attributes.
- Unknown customers: Shoppers who browse, purchase in-store, or check out as guests—leaving behind only partial or anonymous data.
Although many retailers have a loyalty program, it’s unlikely they are capturing a full view of all of their customers, especially outside of their four walls.
When retailers don’t know their customers, they can’t effectively:
- Understand what messages will resonate with what audiences
- Extend their audiences beyond their owned platforms
- Provide advertisers with the reach and addressability they demand
- Accurately measure media performance and prove ROI
But this challenge isn’t unsolvable—it’s an identity problem, and Experian is built to fix it.
The missing link: Clean, enriched, and connected data
Assuming your data is ready to activate is a costly mistake. Too often, RMN data is messy, siloed, and incomplete, making it difficult to deliver the precision and performance advertisers expect.
Experian flips the script—helping RMNs transform fragmented signals into a complete, connected picture of their audience.
Here’s how Experian helps RMNs go from fragmented to first-class
Clean and optimize
We organize messy customer data, removing duplicates and filling in gaps.
Enrich and enhance
Our insights add depth to profiles with demographics, behavior, and purchase intent signals. For example, an RMN may know a shopper recently bought a car seat—but not that they lease a luxury SUV. That auto data is critical to securing auto ad dollars, and it’s exactly the kind of insight Experian provides.
Expand and connect
Using digital identifiers like hashed emails (HEMs), mobile ad IDs (MAIDs), and connected TV (CTV) IDs, we help extend audience reach across every channel advertisers care about.
The result? A complete and addressable audience picture that RMNs can activate confidently—on-site and off.
We partnered with one of the largest RMNs in the world to overhaul its first-party shopper data ahead of industry changes. By anchoring its data to stable digital IDs, addressability skyrocketed by nearly 300%. That’s the Experian difference—turning guesswork into confidence.
Retailers who master identity will win the RMN race
In an increasingly competitive RMN landscape, identity isn’t optional—it’s everything. Advertisers demand scale, accuracy, and measurable impact. Only RMNs with a robust identity foundation will rise above the competition.
RMNs that prioritize identity resolution and data enrichment will:
- Drive more revenue by increasing the size of their addressable audience
- Keep advertisers engaged with better targeting and measurement
- Capture RMN market share by offering scale and accuracy
Ready to transform? Experian will show you how
Fixing data inside the RMN ecosystem is just the beginning. In part two, we’ll cover:
- Why RMNs should be activating their enriched first-party data across CTV, programmatic, and social.
- Why off-site expansion is the future of maximizing revenue.
- How Experian’s data and identity solutions power off-site activation.
Experian isn’t just part of the RMN conversation. We’re driving it. Let’s talk.
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Tapad expands linear TV analytics solution, enabling optimal reach and frequency across TV and digital platforms NEW YORK, Jan. 24, 2017 /PRNewswire/ – Tapad, now a part of Experian, has partnered with WideOrbit, the leading provider of advertising management software for media companies, to develop the industry's first programmatic TV-buying platform powered by a device graph. Tapad is the leading provider of unified, cross-screen marketing technology solutions and was first to market with a device graph, the Tapad Device Graph™. WideOrbit's robust supply platform and industry-leading footprint offers access to premium TV inventory on top networks, reaching more than 99 million households across local affiliates. The partnership pairs Tapad's demand-side technology with WideOrbit's supply-side inventory. As a result, marketers can leverage cross-device audiences in their TV buys for the first time. Additionally, integrating the Tapad Device Graph™ with digital feedback loops and audiences both accelerates optimization and enables precise audience discovery for TV marketers. "The integration of WideOrbit's quality TV supply takes orchestrated cross-screen media buys to the next level," said Marshall Wong, Tapad's SVP of TV market development. "Marketers can now optimize TV campaigns within days instead of weeks. This also untethers them from buying against generic demographics like age and gender. By allowing brands to employ their own CRM or third-party data, we can move them much closer to audiences who will take action." "Integrating Tapad's device graph with WideOrbit's programmatic marketplace delivers enormous value to marketers looking to add TV to cross-device campaigns," said Ian Ferreira, EVP of programmatic at WideOrbit. "Television still delivers the most efficient reach of any medium, and Tapad's platform now allows marketers to purchase premium broadcast inventory that extends the power of cross-screen campaigns to TV with a single, unified solution." "Our clients build lasting relationships with consumers through thoughtful and pioneering marketing," said Jeff Giacchetti, VP of digital at Mediavest Spark. "The strategic partnership of demand-side technology and supply-side inventory makes it easier for brands to find efficient, incremental reach and are critical in this endeavor." For more information about Tapad's cross-platform advertising solutions, please visit https://www.experian.com/marketing/consumer-sync. Contact us today
Global Engineering Team Staffing Up New Oslo Hub; Nordic Operational Team Also Slated for Q1'17 NEW YORK, Jan. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ – Tapad, now a part of Experian, the leader in cross-device marketing technology, is opening an office in downtown Oslo, Norway, effective January 16, 2017. This development reflects Tapad's continued growth following its acquisition by the Telenor Group in early 2016. Tapad Oslo will be comprised of a globally-focused engineering team as well as an upcoming operational headquarters for the region. Jeff Olchovy, a senior Tapad developer and one of its earliest employees, will forge the company's Nordic engineering presence by supporting the build-out of the team. The initial hiring plan of more than 20 open positions includes roles such as Head of Engineering, Senior Software Engineers and Solution Engineers. Plans for Tapad's Nordic Region business line, including its leadership, will be announced within the first quarter of 2017. "Given the caliber of technical talent and our extensive network in the region, Oslowas the logical choice at this stage of our growth," says Dag Liodden, Tapad CTO and co-founder. "This enables us to continue building out our innovative team on a global scale in a region that is close to our hearts and minds." In collaboration with its New York-based developers, Tapad's Oslo-based engineers will continue to advance the company's renowned product portfolio, such as the Tapad Device Graph™. An early adopter of Scala and big data processing technologies, Tapad has long been an influencer in U.S. tech. "As the head of our platform group, which daily processes several petabytes of data and is the foundation for all of our real-time systems, Jeff is a highly respected engineer," said Pål Høye, Tapad's senior vice president of engineering. "Given his experience and skillset, he is ideally suited to find and lead an innovative team focused on building the industry-leading products we are known for." About TapadTapad Inc. is a marketing technology firm renowned for its breakthrough, unified, cross-device solutions. With 91.2% data accuracy confirmed by Nielsen, the company offers the largest in-market opportunity for marketers and technologies to address the ever-evolving reality of media consumption on smartphones, tablets, home computers and smart TVs. Deployed by agency trading desks, publishers and numerous Fortune 500 brands, Tapad provides an accurate, unified approach to connecting with consumers across screens. In 2015, Tapad began aggressively licensing its identity management solution, the Tapad Device Graph™, and swiftly became the established gold-standard throughout the ad tech ecosystem. Tapad is based in New York and has offices in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Detroit,Frankfurt, London, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis, San Francisco and Toronto. Tapad's numerous awards include: EY Entrepreneur of The Year (East Coast) 2014, among Forbes' Most Promising Companies two year's running, Deloitte's Technology Fast 500, Crain's Fast 50, Entrepreneur 360, Digiday Signal Award, iMedia ASPY Award and a MarCom Gold Award. Contact us today