In-store retail media must move beyond old OOH logic

"The future of retail media in physical stores will not be built on reach and share of voice, but on relevance, authenticity and real audience understanding in context." says Michael Lemner and Christian Bönnelyche at BizLab.

Retail media has become one of the most talked-about growth areas in commerce. But in physical stores, there is a clear risk that the market will fall back on an outdated way of thinking, where digital screens are sold using the same logic as traditional out-of-home advertising. Space, reach and share of voice.

That is the wrong path, according to BizLab.

“In-store retail media cannot simply become a new label on an old media model. The real value lies in creating relevance in the moment, in the right context and for the right audience. That is when physical retail can truly compete for advertising budgets,” says Michael Lemner, boardmember at BizLab.

Physical retail has always had a unique advantage as a media channel. Proximity to the point of purchase. But compared with e-commerce retailers have historically lacked data on who is actually in the store, how long they stay and which messages they are exposed to.

New technology is now changing that. Today, it is possible to analyse anonymised in-store visitor data in real time based on factors such as gender, age and dwell time. This makes it possible to move from generic exposure to actual audience understanding in the physical environment.

“This is a shift from selling space to selling relevant audience contacts. When retailers can understand who is actually in the store and adapt messaging accordingly, in-store retail media becomes far more valuable for advertisers and for the retailer’s own business,” says Christian Bönnelyche, Senior Advisor at BizLab.

BizLab believes the winners will not be those who simply build the largest screen networks, but those who are best able to connect physical presence in-store with data-driven communication and an improved customer experience.

This is not only about advertising. It is also about strengthening the store’s own sales, improving the customer journey and creating new revenue streams for retailers at a time when margins are under pressure.

“Physical retail sits on a major and still underestimated media asset. But to unlock that value, the industry must leave reach-thinking behind and start acting more like a modern media company. Less mass communication, more relevance, more data and greater respect for the in-store context,” says Michael Lemner.

For BizLab, the direction is clear: in-store retail media must be integrated into the overall store strategy. It should not disrupt the customer journey, but enhance it.

When the digital logic of e-commerce moves into the physical store, a new opportunity emerges for retailers: not only to measure sales, but also to understand all the visitors who do not yet convert, and to use that insight to create more relevant communication and better business outcomes.

About BizLab
BizLab develops technology for visitor insight, analytics and data-driven communication in physical environments. Through AI-powered analysis, BizLab helps retailers and other businesses better understand their visitors and create smarter, more relevant customer experiences in-store.