Buying intelligence reshapes how Retail Media measures value
The rise of Retail Media is opening a new dispute in advertising: turning purchase data into intelligence capable of activating media and measuring results.
WARC estimates that global Retail Media investment will reach US$196.7 billion in 2026 and US$223.4 billion in 2027, equivalent to 15.2% of total global advertising investment. In Latin America, EMARKETER projects that the market will more than double between 2025 and 2029, driven mainly by Brazil and Mexico.
The channel’s growth raises a question about how to leverage the intelligence behind Retail Media. During its first stage, the conversation focused on inventory: new spaces within marketplaces, retailer websites and applications close to the point of purchase.
However, the model’s potential also lies in the signals shoppers leave behind: what they search for, what they buy, where they shop, how frequently they shop, the value of their basket and what behaviors precede a conversion.
Offsite takes purchase signals beyond the retailer.
These signals make it possible to move from segmentation based primarily on demographic data or stated interests to one built on actual behaviors and purchase intent.
This is where buying intelligence emerges, understood as the ability to turn purchase, search and contextual data into concrete decisions about which audience represents an opportunity, which channel is the right place to reach it, what the right moment is and how to measure the impact on the business.
In this new stage, offsite is no longer a tactical extension and becomes an opportunity to use, outside retailer environments, the signals generated within them. The value of this data emerges when it enables the activation of relevant audiences beyond the site, app or marketplace where they originated, while maintaining the connection with the behavior that generated them.
This makes it possible to use purchase insights and intent to make decisions across social, video, display, CTV or DOOH. It is not simply about replicating an ad in more places, but about transferring a more precise understanding of the shopper to different spaces within the media ecosystem.
For retailers, the model makes it possible to extend the value of their data assets beyond onsite inventory and turn them into an additional source of traffic and value for their digital and physical properties.
For brands, it means using knowledge of their buyers in broader, consistent and measurable omnichannel actions, with deterministic signals to build and optimize awareness and consideration strategies according to the maturity and objectives of the product or service.
Regional fragmentation requires connecting data and media.
The challenge is particularly relevant in Latin America, where purchases take place simultaneously across marketplaces, supermarkets, specialty stores, apps, local retailers and last-mile or quick-commerce services.
For a regional brand, developing isolated strategies within different Retail Media Networks does not necessarily make it possible to understand what happens across those environments.
The goal therefore becomes to connect the ecosystem, integrating shopper intelligence, multi-retailer and omnichannel activation, together with measurement capable of showing what happened after an impression or a click.
For years, digital campaigns were evaluated mainly through impressions, reach and clicks. Commerce Media can bring this measurement closer to the business through indicators such as sales, ROAS, store visits, purchase frequency and incremental sales.
Specifically, the shift involves transforming purchase data into actionable intelligence.
Juan Pablo Suarez, VP of Retail Media at MiQ: “The true value of Retail Media does not lie in having more spaces to place advertising. It lies in understanding the signals consumers leave throughout their journey and turning them into decisions: who to reach, where to do it, when and how to measure whether that investment actually generated value for the business.”
This approach requires combining artificial intelligence, data and human expertise. Technology can process large volumes of signals and detect patterns, while business knowledge makes it possible to turn them into relevant decisions for each brand.
This is the approach behind MiQ Commerce: turning users’ purchase behavior signals into omni-retail and omni-channel strategies to deliver quality traffic, conversions and incremental ROAS, leveraging Retail and different channels.
Measurement connects buying intelligence with the business.
The goal is to close the loop between buying intelligence, media activation and business outcomes. In this model, offsite does not compete with onsite, but makes it possible to take retailer intelligence into spaces where consideration is also built and demand is influenced.
Retail Media has already established itself as a relevant destination for global advertising investment. Its evolution now points toward leveraging purchase signals as a source of intelligence for marketing, with the ability to activate them beyond the digital point of sale and measure their effect on the business.
The evolution of the sector, ultimately, consists of building a more complete view of the shopper and using it to make decisions throughout their purchase journey.
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