Ross Caveille

Thank you Hugh Stevens for sharing the stage with me yesterday at #RetailMediaSummitUK. Who knew we could have a simple (and honest) conversation on a topic full of complexities. Thanks to SMG and Path to Purchase Institute for hosting us. 👂 *Collaboration*: Unity and empathetic collaboration are necessary conditions for extracting mutual value 🏆 *Maturity & Competitive Excellence*: How do retailers continue to prove  incremental value and build data advantage to be on par with digital incumbents 🎛 *Insights*: Could the new frontier of retail media be about "audience as a  service"? 🖇 *Activation & Brand Planning*: How to deliver on Retail Media's 'full-funnel'  promise? 🔬 *Measurement*: Unlocking spend is a function of robust, consistent measurement

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Essential Strategies for Optimising Product Images for Mobile Shoppers on Amazon Key Insights from Hannah Lyss Tampioc, Mad Cat Creatives Acknowledge that the majority of shoppers are using mobile devices, making mobile optimisation essential. Use shorter, more concise text. Ensure the text size is large enough to be easily readable on smaller screens. For lifestyle photos, prominently highlight the product to maintain visibility on mobile screens. Prioritise clear and uncluttered visuals for better mobile viewing. #MobileOptimisation #EcommerceTips #AmazonSellers #MobileFirst #LifestylePhotos #MobileShoppers #ProductVisibility #FBAInsights #OnlineRetail

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What’s your experience with PMax campaigns? Here’s our POV on how to get the most out of them!

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📈 Market index numbers for April 2024 are now available, presenting comparisons with April 2023 across various metrics including e-commerce revenue, orders, advertising expenditure, POAS, ROAS, and total gross profit. Revenue is up by 5.5% from last year, as well as significantly up from last month. Gross profit has increased by 7.7%, while orders are up by 4.9% compared to April 2023. Overall, there are very positive trends with positive numbers across the board. Advertising spend is also up from last year by 7.7%. This indicates that acquiring sales has become more expensive. However, for the first time in a long while, the increase in gross profit is keeping pace, so there is no change in POAS from last year. ROAS is down by 2%. But as long as the POAS remains the same as last year, and both revenue and order volume are up, the overall profitability is up from April of last year. Overall, it's a very positive trend, let's hope it continues. 👍 Follow me on LinkedIn to learn about tracking, value-based bidding, and attribution. Stay updated on industry changes and discover how to improve tracking, utilize POAS bidding, boost CLV, and more! Our index is built on a robust dataset, which includes various businesses and approximately 15.4 million orders. This comprehensive analysis offers valuable insights to help navigate the ever-evolving landscape of the e-commerce market.

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UK retailers have set their eyes on the American market for growth. Recent events in the US have raised the stakes for ad performance. CPMs are higher in the US market, and in Q2 2024 they were more than double the cost of UK CPMs. However, American consumers also spend more, with 149% higher AOV alongside higher LTV. It is a high growth market for our clients – US spend was up by 244% YoY, while average conversion rates have increased by 62% YoY. You will not get a better moment than now to invest in the US. In the last election, US ad costs soared by 38% QoQ in Q4 2020. Swing states are likely to see particularly high CPMs, as both parties spend big on political ads. You should be wary of this if you are targeting swing states like Nevada, Arizona, Georgia and Pennsylvania. The outcome of the election itself could potentially also impact consumer confidence. Democrat states are likely to see a retail malaise if Trump wins. This includes common target markets for UK brands on the East and West coasts. We suggest deploying a strong top-of-funnel strategy today to mitigate the risk there. To read further analysis and editorial like this >> go to my profile and click to: The Readout, July 24, 🦋

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There was encouraging news for UK retailers and brands ahead of Black Friday. GfK reported a 3-point rise in consumer confidence, with strong optimism about shoppers' intentions to make significant purchases during the sales. This may be time to make hay while the sun shines, as discussions about price increases following the latest budget are becoming more prominent. Here are my thoughts on what we can expect this year. 🏬In-Store Sales Set to Drive Black Friday Surge 🏬 Black Friday sales are forecast to rise 4.5% this year, up from last year’s 0.4% growth, according to VoucherCodes. Sales on the day are expected to reach £3.18bn (up 5.4%), with the weekend seeing a 10.2% increase to £2.63bn. The high street is poised to benefit, with in-store sales across the four-day period predicted to increase by 9.1% to £4.29bn. However, online shopping will remain the dominant channel, generating an impressive £4.85bn. 🔥GenZ and Millennials are the key to success 🔥 Gen Z and Millennials are set to lead Black Friday spending, with average spending of £181 and £188, respectively. They also boast the highest participation rates, with 86% of Gen Z and 80% of Millennials planning to shop during the event—significantly surpassing older generations. To succeed, strategies must prioritize targeting these key demographics. 💷Brands Must Prioritize Significant Investment in Social Media 💷 To capture the attention of Gen Z and Millennials, brands must meet them where they spend their time—on social media. TikTok has already forecast a record-breaking holiday season, with Black Friday alone expected to drive triple-digit year-on-year growth for TikTok Shop. In fact, 89% of consumers say social media influences their holiday buying decisions. For success during Cyber5, brands, and retailers need to prioritize engagement and investment in social media strategies. However, the biggest hurdle will be earning shoppers trust. Concerns over entering payment information and doubts about product delivery remain key barriers to conversion. The messaging of campaigns must be consistent, clear, and reassuring, which will turn Black Friday into Bright Friday! #HolidayShoppingInsights #RetailTrends #BlackFridayAnalysis #TikTokShopBlackFriday #Cyber5Analysis

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The market index numbers for August 2024 are now available, offering a comparison with August 2023 across key metrics such as e-commerce revenue, orders, advertising expenditure, POAS, ROAS, and total gross profit. Key Insights: Revenue: Has grown by 2.9% year-over-year, with a modest increase of 2.1% from the previous month, reflecting steady growth and strong market demand. Gross Profit: Is up by 3.7% compared to August 2023, indicating that businesses are becoming more efficient and profitable, even in a competitive market. Orders: Have increased by 1.6% year-over-year, demonstrating stability in consumer demand and consistent sales volume. Ad Spend: Has risen by 5.9% compared to last year, signaling higher acquisition costs. This has had a negative impact on POAS. ROAS: Has been negatively impacted by the increase in ad spend, indicating that the revenue generated from this spend has decreased. Overall: The e-commerce landscape remains robust, with continued growth in both revenue and profitability, despite the challenges posed by rising advertising costs. 👉 Follow me on LinkedIn to stay updated on tracking, value-based bidding, and attribution. Learn how to improve tracking, leverage POAS bidding, boost CLV, and more! Our index is built on a robust dataset, including a wide variety of businesses and more than 20 millions of orders. This comprehensive analysis provides valuable insights to help navigate the ever-evolving e-commerce landscape.

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https://lnkd.in/eTjbfF9S Google launched Performance Max for Marketplaces to let sellers advertise marketplace products without a website. It opens Google Ads to more sellers by removing certain requirements. The impact could be major, but depends on adoption by big marketplaces #ppc #paidmedia #performencemax

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**Retail Media Data – It's Not About End of Funnel**   Recently, I was having a conversation with Michael Hawtin on the pros and cons of retail media data. What is interesting is that we both agree on the value of retail media data, but we just have slightly different points of view. Our conversation made me realize that we need to talk more about RMN datasets, the value they offer, and how we could possibly use these datasets in ways that deliver more value.   Michael rightly pointed out that there are some problems with RMN datasets (CPM costs, match rates, scalability, etc.). He also noted that RMN datasets are an extremely rich source of data. However, the cost does not always outweigh the benefit of using these sets in performance marketing (in most cases).   The thing is, as we spoke more, it became apparent that maybe as an industry we are limiting the use of RMN data to single outcome campaigns. The amount of data that exists in these datasets—from user behavior, impulse vs. considered purchase, price-driven vs. loyalty, product correlation, basket share, etc.—is immense. So why just stick to building audiences that are activated in performance segments of the funnel?   Here’s the point: we have access to all of this extremely rich data that builds a comprehensive picture and profile of consumers. We can aggregate this data into cohorts that can be used not only to target audiences in the lower part of the funnel but also further upstream. When matched or merged with panel data, this data can be used to identify audiences across upper funnel brand marketing, OOH, linear TV, etc. This helps drive more value out of the use of this data and gives us a better return on our investment.   By no means is this way of thinking about RMN datasets a revolutionary approach, but I do hope it will inspire others in the market to start thinking outside the box in how we can utilize this extremely rich source of data.   I’d like to thank Michael Hawtin for his time and conversation around this subject. He gave me a lot of food for thought (more than I can put down in words right now). That’s what our industry needs more than anything: healthy discussion, debate, and idea generation.   #letstalk #RetailData #Marketing #datadrivenmarketing #marketinginnovation #digitalmarketing #retailmedia

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Practical Performance Max Testing for Incremental Wins Everyone talks about PPC experiments in Google Ads, but what can you actually test to drive meaningful improvements? At Metric Hub, our philosophy is simple: testing isn’t about reinventing the wheel—it’s about finding small, repeatable gains that build momentum. Here’s how we approach Performance Max (PMax) testing: Uplift Testing: Duplicate a strong campaign into PMax, match budgets and targets, and split traffic using Google Ads Experiments. Over 4–6 weeks, you’ll see whether PMax adds incremental value. Shopping Comparisons: Replicate a Standard Shopping campaign in PMax and let it stretch across channels like YouTube and Display. After a few weeks, assess if PMax delivers better ROAS or efficiency. The key is clarity. Start with one question, test methodically, and focus on the metrics that move the needle and what happens if they don't. #PPC #PerformanceMax #GoogleAds #DigitalMarketing #IncrementalGains #EcommerceMarketing #PaidMedia #testing #MetricHub https://lnkd.in/e42ndNv2

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🚀 OVERFLOW - Advertising Support On-Demand - Launch! Following the successful beta testing of the new OVERFLOW Service by Tambo, Etopia Consultancy and RippleEffect, we are now making the service available for all Amazon Agencies! 🙏 Thank you all by the way for helping us ensure the service is ‘market ready’ The On-Demand Advertising Service has been created due to a request from various Amazon Agencies to find a way of increasing Advertising capacity around: 😮 New client wins 😷 Illness or long-term leave within internal teams 📈 Peak seasons So, it looks like we are just in time! What has the beta proven? ✅ This is not some virtual service ✅ The OVERFLOW Team can work independently and unsupported ✅ The Team can draw campaign insights unsupported ✅ The Team can present these insight to clients unsupported They are in fact not an alternative to using Virtual Assistants, they are an alternative to hiring expensive freelancers to bridge capacity gaps! And with each of the beta tester Agencies requesting to continue the service for different reasons, they have seen value in: ✅ Adding ongoing additional capacity to internal Advertising Teams ✅ Increasing resource specifically for Q4 ✅ Managing key accounts in lieu of a permanent domestic hire We are excited to be making the service available ahead of the festive season and would welcome discussion with any Agency Owners, Founders or Advertising leads to explore how we can support you! #amazon #amazonrefunds #amazonreimbursements #amazonvedor #amazonagency #amazonrevenue #amazonseller #amazon1p #amazonsuccess #amazon #amazonsupport #amazonpricing #amazonsupport #amazonagencies #amazongrowth #amazonseller #amazonadvertising #amazonprofitability #brandstrategy #ecommerce #marketplaces #onlineretail   —----------------------------------------------------------------------------   ELEVATE exists to do two things:   💷Create new REVENUE streams for Partner Agencies 📈Help Partner Agencies navigate GROWTH pains from Start-Up to Scale-Up   We do this through the development of On-Demand ‘plug in’ services and ongoing Growth support.   Please contact me IF you are a Marketplace Agency Owner or Founder who is experiencing any challenges in growing your Agency, the chances are I’ve been there and worked it out!   —----------------------------------------------------------------------------

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The IAB UK have released their 2023 ad spend report, and makes some great reading. The overall digital ad spend has increased in the market by 11%, and Retail Media has increased by 12%. This 12% figure is just scratching the surface in my opinion. Retailers have continued to integrate data across multiple marketing channels, for example, we have seen retailer data become more promient in CTV (which video has seen a growth of 21%), there are integrations with off-site display, and social platforms, and let's not forget these figures exclude the behemoth that is Amazon. We have also managed to see significant efficiency gains across our clients with retailers through driving more sales for less investment, especially as retailers start to improve their own algorithm's and tech capabilities in addition to our own optimisations. #retailmedia #IABUK

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Server-side tracking isn't just about privacy - it's about data quality. Just completed a migration for a major retailer. Results: - Major improvement in conversions reported - Significantly more accurate attribution - Zero reliance on client-side / 3rd party cookies But here's what nobody tells you: The hard part isn't technical implementation. It's redesigning your entire measurement strategy for a server-first world. Are you ready for the shift? #serverside #webanalytics #dataquality #digitaltransformation

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Some practical advice here.

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The use of AI to deliver strategic insights provides a competitive advantage to brands as well their retail partners. Couple this with the opportunity it provides to deliver personalisation with real purpose to improve customer experience across all touch points and you have a real game changer.

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Kantar BrandDynamics is receiving important signals from Telco providers... are we seeing a big switch in consumer favourites? 👀 In the last year, newer category entrants, such as Lebara, Asda and SMARTY Mobile, have picked up 3.1% Mental Market Share (otherwise known as Demand Power) at the expense of the bigger players in the category. Established Telco giants need to boost their signal and watch out if consumers continue to swipe left 👈 #telco #telecommunications #BrandTracking #KantarBrandDynamics

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'In-house media buying enters expansion mode as brands chase data ownership and agility, but savings don't always follow' (ref Mi3 below). Our in-market experience with brands growing their in-house media buy capabilities shows that there are often savings in the arena of campaign optimisation. 'Away from fraud, and towards human viewable impressions'. A bigger focus on in-house buying brings with it a more questioning approach to media selection, and ensuing optimisation opportunities. The bottom line, a concerted effort to minimise wastage by knowing exactly where their ads were placed (if at all), and if so, were they correctly displayed (especially true for video with sound on), whether viewable by humans, and whether interacted with by bots. In the same breath, so to speak, they talk 'attentiveness by humans', and 'brand safety'. Whist this is especially true of their programmatic buys (and we've yet to see a brand team not be surprised by the results of our analysis), even though they leave the implementation of such buys to third parties, the brand teams have a desire to see their media holistically, and are in a position to demand enhanced analysis of their buys whether in-house or executed externally. For any brand engaged in buying digital media, new-era analytics tools do a very different job from those of the past (the legacy vendors as they're often referred to), providing granular, transparent information that can be acted upon. If your brand teams are interested in trialing, at no expense and with zero obligation, a new-era tool such as #fouanalytics by world renowned Dr. Augustine Fou, please let me know. #campaignoptimisation #adfraud #viewable4humans #attentiveness #attention #digitalmedia #digital #campaignanalytics

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What’s been happening in retail this week? · Tesco is partnering with brand network GroupM for its dunnhumby data-supported media and insight platform. The partnership aims to enhance data-led retail media solutions across channels, as grocers look to build new revenue streams through retail media. · To this end, the Co-op reported its convenience retail media delivered an “immediate positive” sales impact in 2023. The Co-op says there’s a halo effect boosting brand awareness and sales in neighbouring grocery stores of up to four times the immediate sales increase. · Ann Summers is launching Knickerbox.com on 16 July, representing a £1.2m investment in a women’s underwear marketplace. The platform features 15 brands, including Calvin Klein, Lemonade Dolls and Curvy Kate. · Avon partnered with Blue Yonder to integrate AI into its supply chain, aiming to enhance forecast accuracy, planner efficiency and omnichannel capabilities. · Amazon now offers Prime membership to 18–22-year-olds at half price, costing £4.49 a month or £47.49 a year. · Boots UK owner Walgreens abandoned sale plans. Boots reported a 1.6% increase in total UK sales and 6% in comparable retail sales in the three months to May. Market share rose for the 13th consecutive quarter · Sainsbury's reported a 4.2% sales growth in the 16 weeks to 22 June, down from 9.9% last year. Grocery sales grew 4.8%, while general merchandise and clothing sales declined 4.3%. Like-for-like sales, excluding fuel, rose 2.7%. Argos sales fell by 7.7% when including the impact of closing the Argos business in the Republic of Ireland. Sainsbury’s forecasts an underlying profit of between £1.01bn and £1.06bn. · H&M’s operating profit rose to SEK 7.09bn (£530m) in its second quarter to 31 May, with a gross profit up 11% to SEK 33.57bn (£2.5bn). Net sales increased 3% to SEK 59.6bn (£4.45bn). H&M expects a 6% sales drop in June due to strong comparisons from last year and unstable weather. · Nike reported revenues of $51.4bn (£40.6bn) in the year to 31 May, up from $51.2bn (£40.5bn) the previous year. Nike brand, Nike Direct, and wholesale revenues each rose by 1%, while gross profit increased 3% to $22.8bn (£18bn). However, fourth-quarter revenues fell 2% to $12.6bn (£9.9bn), and Nike expects a 10% quarterly revenue drop due to competition from brands such as On and Hok. This is just a selection of news this week. Sign up below for more insight ⬇️ https://lnkd.in/d-z25aM

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