Joe Devon’s Post

Walmart’s rumored plan to acquire VIZIO went from theoretical to reality this week, with the retail giant set to pay $2.3 billion for the #smartTV manufacturer. The move will bolster Walmart’s #retailmedia offering, Walmart Connect, adding streaming capabilities that will help it attract more brand #marketing ad dollars. The deal will also allow #Walmart to add to its existing data at a time when the rapid growth of retail media has made the space more competitive and #Amazon continues its effort to get a bigger slice of the market. In this piece by Kristina Monllos, we speak to Jennifer Kohl of VML, Vinny Rinaldi of The Hershey Company, and Steven Frey of Media by Mother.

Hmm, quite big news? This will also have indirect implications on the AU market imo. The potential to disrupt and reshape the future of retail, blurring the lines between entertainment and commerce is huge. Vizio's technology with its existing retail infrastructure creates a unique proposition, combining both entertainment and commerce. It's going to set new standards and expectations for digital media experiences across CTV. Increased demand for similar functions will be seen/wanted down here. Now I wonder, what the competitive response will be from the likes of Amazon? CTV just continues to grow grow grow, and the blending of entertainment and e-commerce could serve as a benchmark for companies down here. Aussie companies may collaborate with or be influenced by Walmart's ecosystem partners? We shall see.

This is another big signal from the retail giant that is Walmart. After moving their bidding capabilities out of big ad tech and in-house in 2021, this shows things are fundamentally changing in the advertising and marketing space. If I were betting, I’d say we’re moving into an era of decentralization moving a lot of these high-fee technologies in-house. It’s an interesting contrast as addressable content shifts back into an era of curation, but it puts total control into the hands of the brand. Brands want that control, visibility and are looking for avenues to monetize customer data and drive conversion. While Walmart can afford the talent, R&D and development to make this move, the barrier to entry is incredibly high for any brand outside of the massive movers in the US market. I’m looking forward to seeing additional progress and change in this space. Fasten your seatbelt, a great deal of disruption is coming to these markets.

🛒💰📺 🤔💡 Why is Walmart spending $2.3 BILLION buying a TV set manufacturer?! To sell more TVs in their thousands of stores? Maybe. But the real answer is a bit deeper... It's to turbocharge their advertising offering by adding a CTV/video option to rival Amazon. The ability to link connected TV viewing with in store purchases and tie in Walmart's already huge pool of data and advertising options is exciting. It gives Walmart the chance to track conversions in a 'full funnel' way just like Amazon can do with Prime Video. It helps them avoid any challenges with cookies going away. 90% of America shops at Walmart every year, and its website and stores attract some 160 million visitors a week. This deal gives Walmart immediate access to over 18 million new active users on Vizio's platform along with over 500 new advertiser relationships. This fascinating deal is a sign of the times. It reveals Walmart doubling down on their retail media offering, which is soon to be more profitable than their retail business and grew 30% last year. And if they sell a few more TVs then all the better.

If traditional retailers look at Amazon as a competition only in the space of commerce or streaming media, then they are missing out on the $40B+ marketshare Amazon is building in the space of #RetailMediaNetworks and Ads across their assets. Brick and Mortar retailers are sitting on a "bigger and higher propensity" shopper traffic base in their stores - golden opportunity to enable InStore Retail Media experiences and monetize store traffic via ad revenue and store comp growth. Our laser-focused mission is to empower Retailers to capture their due share of Ad revenue and monetize store traffic - Cooler Screens Inc.

Is Walmart purchasing Vizio exciting?! A resounding yes. I’m talking BIG yes. Now the two largest retailers and two of the top ad networks can address shoppers before they ever consider a purchase event and track them all the way to when cash and goods exchange. But here are three things I hope this quickly brings: 🟢 Better data - The leap to upper funnel advertising needs to come with upper funnel data metrics (brand searches, halo sales etc) We need closed loop attribution that is easily accessible that can follow a consumer through the full funnel and see how it all works together. 🟢 Lower minimums - The retail media landscape is changing and barrier to entry needs to be low. It’s time to rethink minimums of $100k. You’d be surprised what access will do to brands and advertisers! 🟢 Self serve custom creative - Video is king. Brands are pumping out more content than consumers can handle. More access to self serve to A/B test creative to find what works! Can’t wait to see this play out. Great move Walmart Connect. Well played. #walmartconnect #retailmedia #forthepeople https://lnkd.in/dE__ngkT

Who is surprised by this? Did you know Walmart has its own radio station broadcasting within its stores? While this may seem surprising, it raises questions about the retail giant's future media ambitions. Vizio's Smartcast platform, for example, could potentially allow Walmart to integrate targeted advertising based on your viewing habits. What data could Walmart extract from viewers through this partnership? Does this signal a broader trend of retailers expanding into media platforms? How can consumers navigate the potential privacy implications? #walmart #vizio #lossofmoreprivacy

This is a great acquisition. Super Smart. I know everyone is talking about Walmart having access to the data to sell more (or better) connected ads. Sure, that IS huge given their commitment to its media business, Walmart Connect. Some are saying that retail media will be the fastest-growing ad channel across media through 2027. I don't doubt it. Still, what I really think is powerful is how the CTV data can impact product selection and pricing on shelf. More usable and insightful data creating a deeper understanding of what consumers are responding to AND having the ability to utilize those insights in what gets sold when and for how much is really powerful. (Full disclosure: Walmart is a client of @Church+State)

Roku did $3 billion in ads and services revenue alone last year. Walmart isn’t buying a TV hardware company, it’s buying a platform. By buying Vizio, Walmart hopes to compete with Amazon’s advertising business. Yet the crew in Bentonville, Arkansas knows all too well: ‘hope’ isn’t a plan. Because right now, Amazon owns the universe. Think about this. First, Walmart needs to jumpstart Vizio’s growth. And they will. Because #Walmart can walk and chew gum at the same time. The best marketing doesn’t feel like marketing. — Tom Fishburne, Marketoonist Shhhh!🫠: I’m testing our MN right now #RetailMediaNetworks #AdvertisingBusiness #ConsumerBehavior #BrandAwareness #EmergingTrends #BusinessIntelligence #ArtificialIntelligence #AI #MachineLearning Source: Fast Company ✦ ✦ ✦ Stephen Carter King Chief of Growth and Marketing and Beerconomist + CEO of Beerconomy & Co. Sherpa of beer market trends, analyses, and news [email protected] • Kings Crossing

1000% agreed with this article, this is an excellent long-term strategic play by Walmart Connect, as they double-down into TV and video advertising. VIZIO's valuable data will bolster Walmart's advertising business in a new light, given the role that Vizio data presently plays – on both the buy and sell sides, but the real headline is that with Vizio's viewing data, it aims to achieve deterministic #attribution at scale, linking household-level impression data to transaction data in a closed-loop model at significant scale. The acquisition is comparable to Amazon's efforts to boost its advertising business through Prime Video, aiming to deepen consumer engagement and create new revenue streams in advertising. And let's not forget VIZIO Ads. This shift indicates a broader innovation in the TV and video advertising market, signaling a new era of data-driven evolution. h/t Andy Brown #data #measurement #ctvadvertising #CTV