In-Store Retail Media in 2025: Evan Bowen on Monetizing Brick-and-Mortar with Placements.io

1. How is your organization adapting its retail media strategy to capitalize on the projected growth of in-store retail media spending, expected to exceed $1 billion by 2028? 

Yes, in-store growth is largely driven by the rise of brick and mortar stores becoming more and more digital. While 99% of retail media ad dollars are allocated to digital, 83.7% of retail sales still occur in brick-and-mortar stores (source). 

We’re approaching in-store media the same way we approached on-site, off-site, and social. Our goal is to act as the orchestration layer that allows RMNs to both monetize effectively, and to manage in-house initiatives with third-party messaging. In-store inventory management allows retailers to execute across the full workflow required to support advertiser expectations and their own ad sales business. 

“The projected $1 billion in-store retail media opportunity reflects how fast physical retail is becoming part of the digital ad ecosystem,” said Evan Bowen, chief business officer at Placements.io. “We’re helping Retail Media Networks unify their in-store and digital efforts with our technology as the orchestration layer. We’re streamlining workflows, aligning messaging, and enabling smarter monetization at every touchpoint.” 

2. What challenges have you encountered in integrating platforms with in-store digital signage systems to streamline ad sales and campaign management? 

Integrating with in-store digital signage introduces complexity, especially when systems vary widely across retailers. Advertisers are demanding the same level of visibility and attribution they expect from digital channels, including performance metrics tied directly to sales outcomes.

We recently completed an integration with Vistar Media to help standardize these experiences. Our focus is on normalizing data flows and creating a seamless orchestration layer that helps retailers deliver campaign results with confidence and clarity.

“As in-store media matures, advertisers expect digital-level performance and accountability in their physical –not just digital– environments, too,” said Evan Bowen, chief business officer at Placements.io. “Our integration with Vistar Media is helping close that gap. By unifying reporting, attribution, and campaign management, we help retailers deliver the metrics advertisers want and the operational efficiency they need.”

3. How do you balance the introduction of in-store advertising with maintaining a positive and non-intrusive customer shopping experience? 

It's important to note that despite the surge in digital ads, brick-and-mortar stores remain dominant in retail sales, accounting for approximately 83.7% of U.S. retail sales as of 2024 (Fit Small Business). This shows the significance of in-store environments in influencing purchase decisions.

“Despite the digital boom, brick-and-mortar still dominates the retail landscape,” said Bowen. “That’s why retailers are investing in the full in-store journey, from pre-visit inspiration to on-site signage and checkout. In-store media is no longer a silo, it’s a measurable, attributable part of the marketing stack.”

Successful retailers own their customer journey using loyalty and omni-channel content experiences, and they know their audiences inceptionally well. The in-store experience involves pre-store, in-store, and checkout customer journey, all pieces owned by the retailer in a trusted customer relationship. 

In-store signage fits neatly into the customer journey, where measurement, engagement and conversion can be attributed for the sale like all other touchpoints. Placements enables retailers to integrate in-store into their marketing stack for optimal customer experience and attribution.

4. How is your organization leveraging data from in-store media interactions to personalize advertising content and improve targeting accuracy? 

“Placements.io is focused on enabling retailers to process and activate performance data from multiple channels, including in-store, to achieve campaign optimization,” said Bowen. “Placements’ orchestration of media, customer data signals, and ad serving options make this achievable for retailers.” 

5. What metrics are used to assess the impact of in-store digital advertising on customer behavior and sales performance? 

Nearly a third (31.5%) of shoppers make immediate purchases after in-store discovery, compared to 19.1% who do so after online discovery.

The big question is did a customer see, while in-store, the signage messaging? Some technology is in place to achieve these measures, however the ‘exposed vs not-exposed’ measure has a high margin of error. The next measure is did a customer, or customers, purchase the products advertised on in-store screens while they were shopping? Product sales data shows the lift % in each store, for each product and product category, versus a holdout control basis. 

Other metrics include dwell time, interaction times with touchscreen formats, basket size and propensity to buy. Capturing this success metric with attribution to in-store signage messaging varies by partner and retailer category. 

“Yes, nearly one in three shoppers make an immediate purchase after in-store discovery, but proving causality requires more than sales lift,” said Bowen. “We look at dwell time, basket size, and touchscreen interactions, but also whether advertised products move faster in exposed stores versus control groups. Bringing these disparate signals together gives retailers a clearer picture of what’s working and why, so they can optimize for real ROAS, not just impressions.”  

6. What plans are in place to expand your in-store retail media capabilities to adapt to emerging technologies? 

“Our first step was to work with a market leader like Vistar Media working within our AdSalesOS platform to drive data and product innovation based on requirements,” said Bowen. “Our roster of retail customers have been driving our product suite with their vendor partners and advertisers, while integrating analytics into their ad decision-making and measurement.”

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