Quotient Offers Advertisers Scale with Retail Ad Network

More players are entering the retail media space each month, making it increasingly difficult for brands to measure retail media campaigns across multiple networks in a holistic way. But executives at the digital promotions firm Quotient believe they’ve found a solution. Just this morning, Quotient launched its own retail ad network. 

The new Quotient solution aggregates individual retail media networks, so advertisers can target, manage, execute, and measure campaigns across multiple retailers through one central platform. It also gives retailers of all sizes—including smaller, regional chains—the opportunity to earn a larger share of national ad dollars by taking advantage of the scale amassed by multiple retailers within the network.

“Quotient knows that networks work, and we know that brands are comfortable buying into networks because they do it all the time for other marketing tactics,” says Henri Lellouche, vice president of retail and partnerships at Quotient. “We are uniquely positioned to address the retail media industry’s need for consolidation because of the technology solutions we have in place for programmatic activation, data integration, and media attribution.”

Retail ad networks have been dubbed the next big advertising channel, but there is growing concern about oversaturation. Lellouche says that’s not a concern that he shares because Quotient’s offering differs significantly from other solutions on the market. Quotient’s network creates audiences with a heavy focus on buying propensity—where a shopper mostly buys a category. Additionally, retailers can be added from virtually any class of trade, so they’ll get their fair share of impressions. By overlaying Quotient’s digital out-of-home (DOOH) network, Lellouche says the company has come up with a solution that is completely unique to the marketplace.

“What also makes Quotient’s retail ad network unique is its capacity to aggregate retailers onto one easy-to-buy, easy-to-execute platform that benefits all players—retailers, advertisers and consumers,” Lellouche says. “For retailers, it means they can each get their fair and equitable share of brand advertising dollars because now they are part of a scaled and high-ACV network that will attract commensurate advertiser investment. Advertisers are able to achieve scale without having to navigate a fragmented landscape of piecemeal networks, making it easier to plan, budget, execute, and measure omnichannel campaigns.” 

Propensity scoring helps Quotient deliver relevant, co-branded content according to where consumers shop, and Lellouche says shoppers benefit from personalized content that adds value to their everyday lives.

Another intriguing part of Quotient’s retail ad network involves the overall simplification of the process. Lellouche says his team has been able to streamline the overall process, since brands can now execute scaled and targeted off-site media on a single platform.

“Very few companies have the bandwidth to manage more than a handful of networks at any given time, so the advertising industry has been in desperate need of consolidation,” he says. “By aggregating retailers together onto Quotient’s network, the primary advantage is to offer advertisers scale. Once you have the scale, there’s a trickle-down simplification from how to allocate budgets to planning and activation.”

Equally important, in Lellouche’s eyes, is standardized campaign measurement. Standardized measurement gives advertisers a clearer, holistic view of how their campaigns are performing by channel, retailer, media type, and at the audience level.

“Quotient operates coupon networks, digital out-of-home networks, and social media networks, so there’s knowledge and comfort in expanding this to off-site media. Retailers already trust Quotient to properly use and protect their data—we do this every day with many retailers,” Lellouche says. “Given our expertise in targeting, delivery and measurement of promotions and media, we’re able to point these resources to campaigns across the aggregated ad network and, in doing so, bring transparency and standardization to the process.”