Retail Audio Advertising Firm Vibenomics Raises $12.3M Series B
Vibenomics, an audio out of home provider that helps retailers monetize their customers’ in-store attention and advertisers reach shoppers near the point of purchase, announced a $12.3 million Series B Tuesday morning. Panoramic Ventures led the round.
Vibenomics will use the funds to accelerate product development and triple the locations in which it operates over the next 18 months. The company says it has ambitions to expand to more than 20,000 locations by the end of 2023. Vibenomics plans to increase its headcount by 25% this year.
Why is now the time for audio out of home advertising?
Audio out of home advertising is the use of audio advertisements to reach shoppers while they’re on the go. For example, P&G might buy ads in supermarkets to reach diaper shoppers and drive purchases of Pampers products.
Now is an especially ripe time for a company like Vibenomics to raise funds and expand because not just audio out of home but retail media in general is exploding. Leading retailers like Walmart, Target, and Lowe’s are rolling out extensive media networks to monetize their direct relationships with millions of customers and help brands reach customers at the very bottom of the funnel — when they’re staring at a brand’s products in a store aisle.
Retail media could take the form of audio advertisements, digital or traditional signage, or mobile notifications. It can be as simple as Walmart running ads over its storewide speakers, or it can involve programmatic technology that allows advertisers to purchase ads at scale and even target shoppers with, say, podcast ads personalized to their likely shopping behaviors.
Vibenomics is positioning itself as the “first — and only — programmatic digital AOOH solution for advertisers.” The company “introduced” multiple demand-side platforms last year. With advertisers looking for easy, scalable ways to target shoppers with the help of retailers’ privacy-compliant first-party data and retailers embracing their transformation into media companies, it appears now is the time for programmatic AOOH.
