Financial services brands have spent decades optimizing for the right moment: the mortgage search, the credit card comparison, the tax deadline. The assumption is that these decisions happen at a desk, on a phone, or in front of a laptop.

But most people making those decisions also shop for groceries every week. And the grocery store, it turns out, is a more financially active environment than most finserv marketers have accounted for.

In Q1 2026, Grocery TV surveyed 600 verified grocery shoppers about their credit card ownership, banking behavior, mortgage status, tax filing, and overall financial confidence. The findings complicate a few assumptions worth revisiting.

The credit card market is less saturated than it seems

On the surface, the numbers suggest a crowded category. More than four in five respondents carry at least one credit card, and more than a third carry three or more. Legacy bank brands such as Chase, Capital One, Bank of America, Amex, and Discover still hold a firm grip on most wallets. Among cardholders, 83% carry at least one card from a traditional institution.

However, the cards shoppers own don't tell the whole story.

When we asked shoppers what would drive their next card choice, the priorities shifted meaningfully from what drove their current one. Low or no annual fee jumped 15 points to become the top priority at 54%. Sign-up bonuses nearly doubled, increasing from 13% for their current card to 27% for a future one. Fraud protection grew from 20% to 31%.

These movements suggest a shopper who is more deliberate and more incentive-driven at the point of acquisition than their existing portfolio would indicate. The cards they have aren't necessarily the cards they want next.

Confidence doesn't mean satisfaction

Two findings from the study stand out: 73% of shoppers feel confident managing their finances, and 65% are the primary spending decision-maker in their household. By most measures, this is a financially engaged audience.

Yet their next card priorities center on better fees, bigger sign-up bonuses, and stronger fraud protection. Confidence, in other words, isn't the same as contentment. It may actually be the precondition for switching: shoppers who feel in control are more likely to actively evaluate their options, not less.

For financial brands, high-confidence shoppers represent an opportunity to meet consumers with the right message at the right moment.

The mortgage market has more open doors than it appears

Marketers often treat housing as decided before a shopper is reachable, assuming the lender relationship is locked in once a search begins. The data tells a different story.

Among the 11% of respondents who are actively planning to buy a home, 27% haven't chosen a lender yet. Chase and credit unions lead among those who do have a preference, but the category is highly fragmented, and the lender relationship is still unresolved for a meaningful share of buyers.

Meanwhile, among current homeowners with a mortgage, no single servicer breaks 10% market share, and 17% of homeowners don't know who services their mortgage at all. The post-close relationship is, for many borrowers, essentially nonexistent.

That fragmentation is an opportunity. The shopper who hasn't picked a lender yet is still reachable, and grocery is a channel that reaches them weekly.

The store is already a financial environment

It's worth stepping back from the category-specific findings for a moment.

The grocery store has always had a financial dimension: budgets, trade-offs, impulse decisions. What the data reinforces is that the shopper making those decisions in the store is also, in many cases, the same person navigating a credit card switch, planning a home purchase, or filing taxes. Impulse purchases are common: 78% make them at least sometimes, and 51% don't strictly follow their shopping list. These are people in an active decision-making state.

Financial services brands haven't historically thought of grocery as a relevant environment. The category skews toward performance channels like search, direct mail, and affiliate, where intent is explicit and trackable.

But intent isn't the only moment worth owning. Familiarity, trust, and top-of-mind awareness are built in the spaces between active searches, in the environments where people spend time regularly.

The grocery store is one of those environments. The data suggests the audience is there. The question is whether financial brands are ready.

See how Grocery TV helps financial services brands connect with financially engaged shoppers.

If you think shoppers have already made up their minds before they enter the grocery store, the latest research suggests otherwise.

Our 2026 In-Store Perception Report found that 95% of shoppers make at least half of their purchase decisions while they're in the store, and nearly two-thirds have made a purchase after seeing an in-store ad. The findings challenge one of retail media's most persistent beliefs: that in-store advertising reaches shoppers too late to influence behavior.

We asked Marlow Nickell, CEO and co-founder of Grocery TV, and Andrew Lipsman, independent retail media analyst, to share their perspectives on the findings, the misconceptions they believe still surround in-store media, and what brands should take away from the research.

Does in-store advertising actually influence purchase decisions?

According to Nickell, the latest data leaves little room for doubt.

"Shopper receptivity increased across every major store zone compared to our 2023 study," says Nickell. "Digital display formats saw an average 10-point increase in positive customer experience ratings, climbing from 41% to 51%. That momentum is reflected in behavior as well, with 62% of shoppers saying they've purchased something after seeing an in-store ad."

Nickell says the findings put one of retail media's biggest myths to rest. "Brands that think in-store is only a last-mile reminder are undervaluing the channel. Shoppers are already in a buying mindset, surrounded by the products being advertised. In-store also delivers an average of 49% incremental reach on top of existing media plans."

Are younger shoppers really engaging with in-store media?

Generational differences are much smaller than many marketers assume.

"Only an eight-point gap separates the most and least receptive age groups," says Nickell. "There's also a persistent narrative that Gen Z is a digital-only generation, but 55% shop in-store at least once a week, and more than half have purchased something after seeing an in-store ad."

What this tells us is that brands that dismiss physical retail as a way to reach younger shoppers may be overlooking one of their strongest opportunities.

But who brands reach is only part of the story. How in-store media is designed matters just as much.

Why do some in-store ad formats perform better than others?

The research suggests shoppers respond best to advertising that complements the shopping experience rather than interrupts it.

"They all share the same problem: they come between the shopper and the product," Nickell says of lower-rated formats like digital cooler displays, shelf blades, and shelf talkers. "In the aisle, shoppers are task-oriented, and anything that slows them down or blocks their view creates friction."

Lipsman points to the industry's experience with the Cooler Screens platform as an example. "The biggest customer experience issues occurred when digital displays conflicted with merchandising or prevented shoppers from easily seeing products. The lesson is simple: don't let media come between shoppers and what they're trying to buy."

Do shoppers want personalized ads in-store?

Not in the same way they expect personalization online.

"Personalization assumes an individual experience, and the store is a shared one," says Nickell. "What shoppers responded positively to was relevance to the environment, things like promotions and contextual content that make sense given where they are in the store."

Lipsman adds, "People are comfortable with personalized ads on personal devices because those experiences remain private. Public displays are different. Contextual relevance is often a better form of targeting because it respects shoppers' privacy while remaining highly effective."

What should marketers take away from this research?

For both experts, the message is clear: shopper expectations around in-store media are evolving.

"Retailers that have been hesitant to invest in in-store networks can feel much more confident," says Lipsman. "The research shows shoppers are receptive, especially when brands focus on formats that enhance rather than disrupt the shopping experience."

Nickell sees the findings as a turning point. As he puts it, "The question shifts from whether it belongs in the mix to how much of the mix it deserves."

Download the 2026 In-Store Perception Report to explore the complete findings and see what they mean for your retail media strategy.

Regional grocery environments are becoming a more important part of the retail media conversation. For years, most retail media attention has centered on national retailers and massive scale. Bigger networks, broader reach, and larger datasets often dominate the conversation, but brands are increasingly looking for something more nuanced than reach alone.

What we’re seeing is that context matters more than ever. In-store retail media is evolving beyond questions like “How many stores?” or “How many screens?” Advertisers are looking more closely at shopper behavior, store loyalty, and the trust people place in the environments where they buy.

The store itself matters, not just as a place to transact, but as a setting shaped by habits, routines, and community. That’s part of what makes regional grocers increasingly valuable.

Why regional grocery environments matter

Grocery shopping is deeply habitual. Many shoppers visit the same stores weekly — sometimes multiple times per week — making those stores familiar environments tied to routine and trust.

Regional grocers, in particular, often reflect the preferences and identities of the communities they serve in ways that feel distinct from big national chains. Merchandising, product selection, store layout, and shopper behavior can vary meaningfully from one region to another.

This variation creates opportunities for brands to show up in environments that feel contextually relevant rather than generalized. For advertisers looking to capture authentic attention, regional can mean strategically valuable, not small.

Brands care about impressions, of course, but they also care about timing, mindset, and proximity to purchase. In-store retail media gives advertisers a way to reach shoppers while they’re actively making decisions in the environments they already trust.

What the Raley’s rollout signals about the future of retail media

The recent launch of The Raley’s Companies’ in-store retail media network with Grocery TV highlights how these trends are playing out. The rollout spans 208 stores across California, Nevada, and Arizona, including banners such as Raley’s, Bel Air, Nob Hill, Bashas’, Food City, and AJ’s Fine Foods. Many of these banners have deep regional roots, including stores curated for Latino and Native communities.

Part of what makes regional expansion increasingly viable is how quickly retailers can now stand up in-store retail media capabilities. Raley’s Vice President of Digital Commerce, Zac Wilson, noted that what may once have taken years to build was launched in a matter of weeks.

The speed of the rollout points to a more mature in-store retail media infrastructure. As retailers increasingly treat in-store media as a strategic capability rather than an experimental add-on, regional expansion becomes more feasible than it once was.

The next phase of retail media growth

For advertisers, regional relevance and aggregated scale no longer have to be tradeoffs. The biggest growth opportunities may not lie solely with the largest national chains. Regional retailers are emerging as key players in the media landscape because they offer something many brands are actively looking for: trusted environments, loyal shoppers, and high-intent moments close to purchase.

National reach still matters, but advertisers may increasingly prioritize context alongside scale. The future of in-store retail media may depend as much on connected regional networks as on one-size-fits-all national reach.

Explore the In-Store Retail Media Playbook for practical guidance on planning, measuring, and scaling in-store campaigns.

We sat down with Britt Polihronis, Chief Operating Officer at Hy-Vee's RedMedia, to talk about how the regional grocer built out its retail media network, what's working for brands in store today, and where the channel is headed.

Hy-Vee isn't a small operation. With 338 stores and over 10,000 screens, the Midwest grocer has built one of the more mature in-store retail media programs in the country. Britt Polihronis has been at the center of that build, bringing an agency background from her time at Merkle and a clear point of view on what it takes to build an in-store program that performs for the retailer, brands, and shoppers alike.

We talked to Britt about the evolution of Hy-Vee's network, how brands are (and aren't) using in-store screens effectively, and why she thinks measurement is still the most important unsolved problem in the channel.

From side hustle to strategic capability

Hy-Vee's retail media journey started about seven years ago, like most networks, as one piece of a broader omnichannel program. Three years ago, the company made a deliberate decision to treat it as a major investment, not an ancillary one.

Britt joined two years ago, as the network was moving from launch into growth mode. She describes her first year as stabilization: building the right foundation, understanding what suppliers actually needed, and making sure brands had reason to keep investing. The second year shifted to measurement, tying every campaign back to sales outcomes.

The differentiator Britt points to most is Hy-Vee's relationship with merchandising. "We always start with the cost of goods," she says. "Then we have strong merchandising support, and we amplify everything through retail media, including screens, onsite, and offsite. If all of those are working together, success is inevitable."

For Britt, in-store screens aren't a standalone channel; they're the final layer of a campaign that's already in motion.

What brands are getting wrong

Brands are generally willing to test in-store, but Britt thinks most are still treating screens like any other awareness channel, running banner-style creative without thinking about the point-of-purchase context.

"In-store messaging needs to align with everything the shopper has already seen, but it also needs to do something specific," she said. "It's not just a rinse and repeat of a banner ad on a screen. It really needs to focus on a clear, cohesive message."

Her other consistent observation: brands get stuck on zone placement. CPG brands often want to restrict campaigns to the aisle where their product lives, missing the opportunity to drive shoppers toward that aisle from other parts of the store. Britt pushes for testing in produce, front-end, dwell zones like pharmacy and checkout, and anywhere a shopper is already paused.

The health market section has been especially effective for Hy-Vee. "There's a little education needed for shoppers to make that final purchase decision," she said. "Being right there at the point of purchase, with the product on screen in a big way, seals it."

The measurement gap

Britt is direct about the hardest thing in in-store retail media right now: proving it worked.

Hy-Vee has strong results to point to. A chip brand campaign across 130 stores drove a 15% in-store sales lift and nearly an $8 ROAS. But Britt is more interested in the cases where measurement is harder, particularly newer categories, emerging brands, and health and wellness products where purchase behavior is less predictable.

"Someone's going to have to take the leap with us in those categories," she says. "We'll be there with them."

Longer term, she sees measurement, personalization, and deeper integration as the three areas that will define where in-store media goes. On personalization specifically, Britt is clear-eyed about what that means in a physical store context: not one-to-one targeting, but regional and contextual relevance. Weather-triggered messaging, local cultural moments, store-level audience context.

"I would not want a screen to say 'Hey Brittany, we noticed you have chips in your cart,'" she said. "But if it's telling me the pollen count is high and I should pick up eye drops, that's a different thing entirely."

On working with a partner vs. building internally

Some retailers are managing their in-store screens themselves. Britt's view on that choice is practical: Hy-Vee needed to move fast, and building the technology internally would have slowed everything down.

"We needed a partner that could build with us, with an interface that let all sides operate within the same environment," she said. Working with Grocery TV meant Hy-Vee could run its own media alongside RedMedia campaigns, while also accessing national and localized brand dollars that wouldn't have come through a self-built system.

Her advice for retailers still figuring this out: treat in-store as a strategic capability, not just a technology investment, and recognize that internal strength and external expertise aren't competing choices.

The In-Store Playbook covers what brands need to know before their first campaign, from zone strategy to share of voice. Get the playbook.

The in-store environment is becoming a more influential moment for brands, especially as shoppers grow more receptive to advertising during the purchase journey.

Across Grocery TV’s network of screens in 6,700+ grocery stores nationwide, shoppers are engaging with in-store media in ways that are driving both discovery and action. To better understand what’s resonating, we surveyed over 1,000 U.S. grocery shoppers on how they perceive and respond to in-store advertising today.

The findings show strong engagement across demographics. Nearly two-thirds of shoppers said they purchased an item after seeing it advertised on an in-store screen, while preferences around content, format, and placement varied significantly by age and income.

Inside the report:

• Which in-store formats and placements drive the strongest shopper response
• How content preferences shift across demographic groups
• Why in-store screens are becoming a growing driver of brand discovery and unplanned purchases

Financial services brands are under pressure to find differentiated reach. Search and social are table stakes, and the brands that stand out are finding ways to show up in the physical world, in moments that matter to consumers.

In-store retail media is one channel where that's happening. Grocery TV CEO Marlow Nickell joined Marketing Millennials’ Daniel Murray and Fintech Takes’ Alex Johnson to talk about why fintech brands in particular are leaning in, and what's working.

Why fintech gravitates toward advertising in the store

Fintech companies are digitally native by default, which creates a real brand-building problem. Most fintech apps look and feel similar, and the best ones are designed to stay out of the way.  That scarcity of brand touchpoints pushes companies toward channels with physical presence.

Consumers treat financial services as one of the highest-stakes product decisions they make. Physical presence, even through a screen at checkout, builds a kind of trust that digital alone struggles to create.

"Fintech is dismissive of bank branches, but also secretly jealous of them," Johnson said. "It's a huge benefit to have that social proof with a physical presence in the communities you're trying to serve."

Grocery stores are a natural fit for that reason. Grocery TV's network spans 6,500 stores across 120 retail partnerships, reaching about 95 million shoppers weekly, and the person doing the shopping is typically the household decision-maker.

"Money is very much on the mind," Nickell said, "in terms of what they're buying, and for their whole household experience, generally."

The open wallet moment

There's a meaningful difference between reaching someone on the couch and reaching someone at checkout: one is a passive moment, the other is active.

Johnson called it the difference between closed and open wallet moments: "Being able to influence someone in that open wallet moment is a much more influential place to be. There are very few moments where you can reach a customer at that exact point."

The checkout aisle averages about four and a half minutes of dwell time. Nickell pointed to credit card companies running point-back promotions there as one of the clearest use cases: "You've usually got a couple of cards in your wallet. It's a really obvious and natural time to say, hey, make sure you use this card because we're going to help you with extra cash back on groceries."

What makes targeting work without cookies

In-store retail media doesn't rely on cookies or personal identifiers. Audience data comes from store-level mobile panel data: traffic patterns, frequency, and demographic composition that allows for accurate segmentation without the privacy friction of online tracking.

Where someone shops is predictive of a lot of other things about them, and fintech companies already think this way. A brand targeting young high earners is going to find them in different stores than a brand targeting middle-income earners in mid-size cities. "By picking a set of stores," Nickell said, "you know you're going to reach the audience you want with pretty high fidelity."

A six-week campaign Grocery TV ran with a financial health app showed 82% lift in brand rating, 72% lift in recommendation intent, and 34% lift in unaided brand awareness, all measured against a control group. Those results were significantly higher than what the brand saw across its other digital channels, and it has scaled investment since.

Getting started

For brands considering a first test, Nickell recommends starting with a tightly scoped objective, a defined audience subset, and a campaign window of at least six weeks, ideally a full quarter.

"People shop once a week," he said. "If you want 10 to 14 exposures, that's going to take two to three months." Most inventory is available programmatically through major DSPs, with the option to move into curated PMP deals as investment grows.

The store reflects the community it serves. For fintech brands trying to reach a specific segment of consumers in a moment when money is genuinely on their mind, that's a harder combination to replicate anywhere else.

Want to reach household decision-makers while their wallets are out? See how Grocery TV works for finance brands.

The Raley's Companies has launched an in-store retail media network with Grocery TV across 208 stores in California, Nevada, and Arizona. The rollout spans the company’s banners including Raley’s, Bel Air, Nob Hill, Bashas’, Food City, and AJ’s Fine Foods, enhancing the in-store promotional experience by connecting directly to shoppers at the point of purchase.

The launch advances another element of Raley’s full-funnel retail media strategy focused on rising demand for integrated in-store and digital campaigns. Brands can now reach shoppers closer to the moment they discover new products and make purchase decisions.

“Our retail media business has been evolving quickly, and in-store was the clear next step," said Zac Wilson, Vice President of Digital Commerce, The Raley's Companies. "With the Grocery TV partnership, what could have taken years to build, we were able to stand up in a matter of weeks. Speed is critical in an ever-evolving and fast paced industry. That speed, combined with their ability to help us build advertiser demand as we grow, is critical to a successful partnership. Together, we're creating an in-store retail media experience that feels cohesive for both our brand partners and our shoppers.”

The Raley’s Companies serve a broad cross-section of shoppers across the West, including brands directly serving and curated for Latino and Native communities with deep regional roots. For brand partners, the network offers scaled access to distinct audiences within established, high-frequency grocery environments.

“The Raley’s Companies have built deep trust across the diverse communities they serve throughout the West,” said Marlow Nickell, co-founder and CEO, Grocery TV. “That trust, combined with strong store traffic, creates a powerful in-store environment for brands. We’re proud to support Raley’s as they expand their retail media capabilities and to welcome Bashas’ back to the Grocery TV network.”

The addition brings Grocery TV's platform to more than 6,700 stores across more than 120 retail partners, continuing a run of regional expansions that includes Hy-Vee, Giant Eagle, Northeast Grocery, and ShopRite.

Discover how Grocery TV helps 120+ retailers independently operate their own in-store retail media networks.

In-store retail media delivers an average 49% reach boost when added to campaigns, yet many brands are still testing this channel for the first time.

That's changing fast. More brands are realizing how much physical retail stores shape purchasing decisions, and their confidence in bringing in-store into the mix is growing.

In this playbook we cover:

• How In-Store Advertising Works: See how in-store media's reach compares to other major channels, grabs attention, and drives performance.
• Overcoming Investment Hurdles: Tips on where to source budget and get your team on board.
• Planning, Execution & Measurement: Better understand strategic placement across store zones, choose the right buying method, and measure from brand lift to sales attribution.
• Creative Best Practices: Insights to help your ads stand out and perform better.

This playbook gives you the frameworks and data you need to build effective in-store campaigns, whether you're launching your first test or hoping to make this a key part of your strategy.

Ready to reach your audience where 90% of purchases happen? Grab the In-Store Retail Media playbook and start creating campaigns that drive results.

With growing pressure to make every media dollar count, incremental reach has become a key metric for understanding how to drive real growth.

In partnership with sample provider MFour, Grocery TV surveyed 500 consumers to measure behaviors across different channels and assess how effectively in-store retail media reaches unique audiences.

The study calculated incremental reach against individual channels and across all channels. The results revealed how in-store media not only broadens campaign coverage, but also connects with entirely new audiences—expanding impact, not just impressions.

In-Store Retail Outperforms All Other Channels

Compared to single-channel campaigns, in-store retail media delivered:

+96.2% incremental reach when added to a display/online video campaign

+57.3% incremental reach when added to a campaign using linear TV only

+39.4% incremental reach when added to an onsite-only campaign

On average, pairing in-store retail media with any other channel increases campaign reach by 49%.

To view incremental reach across all channels view the report here.

Where Attention and Purchase Intent Align

Unlike most media channels, the grocery store delivers a rare combination of authentic attention and high-intent behavior. It’s one of the most frequently visited channels—second only to social media—but with a crucial difference: shoppers are in decision-making mode. In-store retail media also ranked highest in influencing consideration and purchase intent proving the value of the channel.

In-Store Media is an Essential Part of Your Media Plan

• Reach the unreachable: Grocery advertising delivers incremental reach from traditional channels like display and linear TV making it an essential part of your plan.
• Capture authentic attention: Consumers are most receptive to advertising in the grocery store as it is useful and serves an immediate purpose.
• Drive conversion where it counts: Put your brand in front of customers where purchase intent and consideration are highest.

View the full report to get a closer look at the research proving in-store retail media’s ability to reach new audiences and influence real-world buying decisions.

We’re thrilled to be #57 on Inc.’s list of the fastest-growing private companies in the Southwest. Collectively, the 137 companies on this list had a median growth rate of 106 percent and added 13,809 jobs and $15.9 billion to the region’s economy from 2021 to 2023.

What This Recognition Means to Us
When we started this company, we didn’t know exactly where it would take us. Like many founders, we had big ideas and a strong sense of possibility, but the path was uncharted. What we did know was that we wanted to build something lasting that would allow ourselves and others to do the best work of their careers.

Being recognized for our growth means a lot, not because of the award itself but because it represents hard work from a small but mighty team. Clocking in at just under 50 people, we’ve consistently shown we can punch above our weight and command the attention of iconic brands and retailers. While being a lean team comes with challenges, I can genuinely say that every person wove their talents into the fabric of where we are today.

When we won this honor in 2024, we described ourselves as on the cusp of defining the category. In the last year, our team sunk their teeth into the challenge of modernizing retail media for the grocery store. In response, we’ve felt our customers and industry embrace in-store retail media; we’re no longer on the cusp; we’re in it.

Now, we’re partnering with the customers we used to dream about. That’s exciting because it validates our vision and means the work matters. Our customer focus and glass-half-full mindset have been foundational to our company ethos. It takes resilience to figure out what’s best for our customers and how to make it happen without losing positivity.

Every time we win a new award, it’s hard to believe. As a founder, these are the external validators you crave but have no idea if you’ll ever achieve in the early days. So, thank you to our team and customers for believing in what we’re building and trusting us. And to those who might join us one day—we’re just getting started!

Working at Grocery TV
In addition to being recognized by Inc., Grocery TV was ranked #24 on Built In's list of The Best Startups to Work for in the U.S. earlier this year. To join our award-winning team, check out our job openings here.

Meet our newest retailers

• Grocery TV and Hy-Vee Partner to Power One of the Largest In-Store Retail Media Networks in U.S. Grocery
• Grocery TV is Selected by Giant Eagle to Scale Its In-Store Retail Media Netwo

As we settle into 2025, we’re reflecting on our momentum and the milestones shaping Grocery TV’s growth. Last month, we were recognized on Built In’s 2025 Best Places to Work list for the second year in a row—an acknowledgment of the culture we’re building and the talented team behind it.

This year, we landed in multiple categories:

• #2 in Austin for Best Startups (size 0-100)
• #14 in NY for Best Startups (size 0-100)
• #24 in US for Best Startup to work (size 0-100)
• #41 in Austin for Best Places to Work (all company sizes)

These recognitions reflect the foundation we’ve built, but more importantly, they set the stage for what’s ahead.

Driving in-store retail media forward

In 2024, in-store retail media experienced tremendous growth, and Grocery TV was at the forefront of that momentum, helping shape how brands and retailers connect with shoppers where it matters most. We hit major milestones that set the stage for what’s next:

• Expanded our network to 5,000+ stores
• Launched a partnership with Hy-Vee and Giant Eagle
• Released our In-Store Media Playbook to help retailers launch their own retail media network

These accomplishments strengthened our role in shaping in-store retail media, but more importantly, they amplified our gratitude for our dedicated team, who consistently show up for our customers and have shaped our product into what it is today.

Rooted in Austin, growing in NYC

We’re proud to be recognized in both of our city hubs this year. With a growing Media Sales and Marketing presence in NYC, we’re building stronger connections in the media world while expanding our reach. (And yes, New York, if you’re looking for your next role, we’re hiring!)

Meanwhile, Austin remains home. We recently moved into a brand-new, custom office on the Eastside, designed to foster collaboration and keep our roots strong. Plus, we’re still celebrating another big win — landing at #19 on Austin Business Journal’s Fast 50 list last fall, recognizing the fastest-growing companies in Central Texas.

Culture that fuels growth

These recognitions aren’t just about what we’re achieving in the industry — they’re about the culture we’re building at Grocery TV. We set high expectations for our team and back that up with competitive pay, meaningful benefits, and opportunities for growth.

We’re a salary-transparent company with a clear leveling framework, above-market compensation, full benefits, and an annual learning and development stipend to support long-term career growth.

But building a strong culture starts long before day one. Our hiring process is intentional and transparent — from clearly scoped roles with 30/60/90-day goals to proactive communication and honest feedback at every stage. It’s an approach that’s led to a 100% candidate satisfaction score, even from those we didn’t extend offers to.

What’s next

As we continue to scale, our focus remains clear: build a strong, thoughtful team and continue shaping the future of in-store retail media.

Interested in joining our team? Check out our careers page to explore open roles.

Grocery TV’s modern take on the traditional entrance display

The Ironman you love, now upgraded

When you think of signage in the store, you probably imagine the traditional Ironman: a static, yet effective way to communicate with shoppers. Grocery TV's Digital Ironman takes what already worked and elevates it, giving the entrance a clean look and feel, while also making it easier for retailers to push out in-store messaging and garner shopper attention.

How does it benefit retailers?

Leading retailers such as Giant Eagle, Homeland, and Redner’s use Grocery TV’s Digital Ironman to upgrade their entrance experience.

Why retailers love it:

• Fits right in: We offer several attachments that allow you to choose the model that works for your store layout.
• Made to last: Our digital displays are constructed with durable materials to reduce the need for frequent replacements season after season.
• Cost-effective: Instantly update in-store promotions and save on printing costs.
• Shopper-friendly setup: Provide shoppers with utility (cart wipes or printed circulars) and the opportunity to discover product promotions at the start of their visit.

Maintain the integrity of your shopper experience

Store entrances set the tone for the shopping experience.

💡When asked about replacing print advertising with a digital display at the entrance, 87.5% of shoppers were receptive, stating a digital display would improve or maintain their store experience.

Welcome the shopper in a more impactful way:

• Capture attention: The Digital Ironman ensures that your brand messaging, promotions, and new products are prominently displayed where they matter most.
• Deliver relevant messaging: Eliminate long wait times for print and shipping. Ensure your messaging is always timely by instantly updating in-store promotions through our simple Content Management System (CMS).
• Drive sales with high-impact visuals: Engage shoppers with dynamic content that guides them toward in-store offers and deals.
• Modernize your store: Elevate your overall store look and keep up with the evolving needs of shoppers by adopting digital signage in your store.

💡Shoppers are receptive to in-store retail media that is creative, informative, and saves them time or money.

Customizable options for every store

We understand that each store and its customers are different, which is why we offer personalized options to fit your needs:

• Circular Attachment: Perfect to display printed circulars alongside digital promotions, allowing a seamless mix of traditional and digital marketing.
• Sanitizer Attachment: Provides shoppers with a convenient cart wipe station at the start of their shopping trip while displaying key messaging.

💡 Grocery TV conducted an in-store shopper perception survey where the Digital Ironman with sanitizer attachment earned the highest customer experience rating—nearly 90% of shoppers had a positive or neutral response.

Built to last

The Digital Ironman is a durable, long-term solution for your store:

• Minimum 5-year lifespan: Constructed with sturdy materials that will last you season after season.
• Hassle-free installation and maintenance: Our nationwide operations team takes care of installation, upkeep, and troubleshooting and is stationed throughout the US for in-person support when you need it.

No cost to you

The best part?  We cover all CapEx and OpEx costs for the Digital Ironman making it even easier to say yes.

55% of retailers note that CapEx requirements are their biggest barrier to taking the next step to modernize their stores. We handle all of the complexities of standing up in-store media so you can focus on what matters—serving your customers.

We also work with national advertisers to drive ad revenue, which is shared with retailers to provide an additional revenue stream—making every store more profitable.

💡 Did you know?

In-store retail media outperforms every other major media channel in terms of ad experience and ad attentiveness.

Create value for your store and your shoppers

Ready to upgrade your store entrance? Get in touch with us today to learn how Grocery TV’s Digital Ironman can enhance your in-store marketing and drive shopper engagement.

Sources: Grocery TV In-store Brand Playbook 2024, Grocery TV Digital In-Store Shopper Perception Survey 2023

‘Tis the season for being in the store. From back-to-school to Christmas, the holiday season drives foot traffic (and spending) in brick-and-mortar stores.

Fall through Christmas is a busy time of year for grocery stores as people prepare for food-focused gatherings, which makes Food and Beverage the second largest holiday spending category in the U.S.

Brands looking to reach their audience while they’re out and about have the opportunity to make an impact where, according to eMarketer, 80% of holiday purchases are expected to occur–in brick-and-mortar stores.

So, how can brands take full advantage of in-store advertising during the fall holidays? In this article, we’ll talk about how you can incorporate grocery store advertising into your holiday marketing campaigns to drive results, whether your products are sold directly in grocery stores or outside the four walls. We’ll give you examples of how brands are reaching their audiences in grocery stores, and we’ll also provide some insight into shopper behavior and habits this season.

What is In-Store Retail Media?

Before we dive into how to best position your brand for success during the holiday season, let’s first clarify what in-store retail media is.

In-store retail media networks use digital signage in retail environments, like grocery stores, to deliver informed and targeted marketing campaigns. In-store retail media combines the mass reach of TV advertising, the audience targeting of digital advertising, and the stopping power of out-of-home advertising.

For these reasons and more, the numbers point to the store becoming an increasingly important part of the retail media landscape in the coming years, with eMarketer predicting in-store retail media spend to increase by 46.5% from 2023 to 2024 and represent over $1 billion in spend by 2028.

There are a number of different types of in-store retail media formats from kiosks to TV screens that allow brands to target their audience in brick-and-mortar stores, where 85% of all sales and 94% of grocery sales occur. Here’s an example:

A brand interested in grocery store advertising might, for instance, run their video advertisement on an in-store retail media network spanning multiple grocery retailers in several DMAs. They could launch this campaign through a major DSP like The Trade Desk or directly through the in-store retail media network.

The video captures the attention of shoppers waiting in line or actively perusing the aisles of the store. If the brand is interested in understanding the full impact of the campaign, they might conduct a brand lift study to determine the percentage increase in shoppers aware of their brand using a set of test and control stores.

Fall Holiday Season is In-Store Advertising Season

While the store's reach is consistently strong throughout the year, specific hours, days of the week, and holidays see bumps in foot traffic.

Increase in Foot Traffic in the Fall

The fall season is the biggest season for foot traffic in grocery stores. The fall season includes heavy-hitters like:

• Back-to-school
• Halloween
• Thanksgiving
• Christmas

Typically, foot traffic starts to build a few days before a major holiday. We recommend brands start advertising at least a few weeks ahead of the holiday to increase the odds that they are top of mind or on the shopping list when the main event hits. Brands have the opportunity to tailor their creative to the mindset of the shopper at different points in the lifecycle of a major holiday (discovery/inspiration leading up to the holiday vs. purchase in the days before the holiday).

Shoppers are More Receptive & Attentive to In-Store Media

It may not come as a surprise that people are more open to advertising in an environment where they intend to make a purchase.

Research has shown that people are more receptive and attentive to advertising formats that don’t disrupt the audience’s experience.

What’s more, in-store advertising tends to make a more profound impact on shoppers than other channels. 87% of consumers, in one survey, indicated that they feel receptive and positive toward in-store advertising. During a time of year when consumers are faced with advertisements nearly everywhere they turn, brands that can stand out using in-store advertising–and reach people when they’re actually paying attention or are receptive to those ads–can rise to the top.

Grocery Shoppers also Cross-Shop in Other Businesses

The impact of advertising in a supermarket extends beyond the four walls of the store. The same person who visits a supermarket, on average, 7 times a month will also visit nearby businesses, and other retail locations like electronics stores, quick-service restaurants, or big-box stores. In fact, we know from Placer.ai data that 68% of Grocery TV’s audience will also visit a Walmart within a 90 day window. Because of this, retail brands outside of the grocery store can also leverage this touchpoint to drive foot traffic from holiday shoppers.

Grocery Shoppers are Everywhere

Virtually everyone goes to the grocery store at least once in a while. Brick-and-mortar grocery stores offer brands a unique opportunity to target any audience they’d like in the highest-trafficked retail environment.

With the power of Grocery TV’s in-store retail media network, brands can segment audiences by demographic, shopping behaviors, and more, then deliver tailored advertisements.

What’s more, those who shop at grocery stores most often also tend to be those whose perceptions of brands and products are most crucial.  The in-store audience also influences other household purchase decisions. That means that the people reached by supermarket advertising are also responsible for making other household purchase decisions such as insurance, credit cards, and automobiles.

Fall Holidays Affect Purchase Behavior

Certain product categories depend on the huge boost that they get from specific holidays. This year, for example (according to The Numerator Holiday Trends Consumer Study 2024):

• 79% of US consumers plan to buy candy for Halloween
• 72% of consumers plan on buying gifts before Christmas
• 81% of US consumers will buy food for Thanksgiving

How Brands Can Leverage In-Store Retail Media Over the Fall Holiday Season

Almost 50% of media impact comes from the quality of the creative that you use. Especially in a colorful and eye-grabbing grocery store environment, you want your brand’s creative to stand out. You can ensure the effectiveness and quality or your creative by:

• Using clear, concise text to send a message early on in your creative
• Including your brand’s logo featured prominently during the whole ad, so that people know who it is coming from, regardless of when they start watching
• Using imagery that evokes an emotion or creates a need
• Creating contextual creative that fits in the environment around it (recent estimates show contextual advertising to be 32% more effective than demographic targeting)
• Using videos and movement to really grab passerby’s attention
• Using existing creative, repurposed for in-store retail advertising

Here are some examples of how brands use the above tips to make the most of the Grocery TV media network:

Native Content Opportunities

In between advertising and retail content, we run GTV-produced entertainment content. This keeps shoppers engaged especially in areas of the store like the check out and pharmacy where dwell times are higher.

For brands looking for a more contextual or natural way to get their brand in front of shoppers, native content allows them to embed their products, services, and brand into entertaining trivia, cooking tips, or recipe videos. The above example demonstrates how an orange juice brand could offer shoppers a recipe to make gingerbread house icing and include their own product in the recipe.

By running seasonal native content, brands have the opportunity to delight shoppers and enhance their in-store experience while imbuing their brand in their weekly routine.

Contextual Advertising Suited for Fall

Brands can always benefit from considering the context in which their advertisements will be viewed, but this may be particularly true during a peak time like the fall holiday season. There are two goals to aim for when considering contextual advertising:

1. The messaging incorporates the grocery environment
2. Messaging is tailored to specific store areas

For instance, a candy company might display a map of where their candy bars can be found in the store near its entrance. Then, at the checkout, they may run creative that says something like “Need a snack while you wait?” to tailor the advertisement to the in-store environment.

Weather and climate–cold days, snow, rain, longer nights, etc.– are also important contextual factors to consider during the fall. Brands can even take things to the next level with weather-based dynamic ads.

Grocery TV can detect the weather outside and use that information to choose which version of an advertisement to share. Brands make different creatives that are tailored to different climates, and Grocery TV uses input from The Weather Channel to know which ad would be best received according to the local weather.

This ad from Stella Artois uses graphics or a ski slope to bring about a craving for a glass of the Belgian beer with its snow-like foam.

Advertise Using Holiday Traditions

Many of the people in grocery stores around the holiday season are in the store looking for something particular– and that “something particular” is usually related to the holidays. If you incorporate this knowledge into your advertising campaigns, then shoppers are more likely to feel related to the content and interested in its subject matter. You don’t have to be selling candy around Halloween to relate directly to the people who are in the store to buy candy.

For example, Chase made this advertisement targeted toward the 81% of US consumers buying food for Thanksgiving:

Venmo used this ad campaign to appeal to grocery shoppers who may wonder about what gifts to get their family members for Christmas.

People buying and receiving new phones for Christmas will also need new phone networks. Verizon tailored their advertising creative to the holiday season, while pointing out that they are the #1 network in the local area.

Again, you’ll notice that none of those three brands have products that are directly sold in grocery stores, but they all used the feeling of holiday cheer to get the attention of store-goers who, statistically, cross-shop and influence all other household purchases.

Key Takeaways

• The fall season represents "primetime" in stores as shoppers increase visitation around major holidays.
• The majority of purchases still occur in brick-and-mortar stores, highlighting the importance of this channel in driving conversion.
• The people who visit grocery stores have influence over all household purchases, and they cross-shop in other businesses.
• Shoppers like in-store media. It’s non-invasive, interesting, and fun.
• To further engage shoppers, brands can partner with GTV to produce native content such as recipes, fun facts, and trivia.
• Brands can also use dynamic triggers like weather to further tailor their in-store creative.

With the rise of in-store digital media, retailers are challenged to seamlessly integrate digital touchpoints while managing costs and improving customer experience. The In-Store Retail Media Playbook offers guidance on how to navigate these complexities and turn retail media solutions into a powerful revenue stream and positive customer experience.

As the role of in-store advertising evolves, retailers are tasked with balancing customer experience, infrastructure investment, and monetization. The In-Store Retail Media Playbook helps retailers to:

• Manage retail media networks: Insights on setup, maintenance, and selecting high-impact digital surfaces that attract attention without disrupting shopping.

• Enhance customer engagement: Approaches for creating content that resonates with customers, from promotions to visually engaging displays.

• Optimize CapEx and OpEx: Advice on managing costs, including phased rollouts and repurposing existing displays to minimize expenses.

• Capture new revenue streams: Methods to attract brand partnerships and leverage programmatic advertising solutions, making in-store media a valuable part of your revenue strategy.

Explore the playbook for actionable strategies to elevate your retail media network approach.

No matter where you’re from or who you are, you probably set foot in a physical store every week. And while print advertising has existed in grocery stores for years, it wasn't until more recently that in-store advertising was digitized, which has both grown its impact and expanded access for both endemic and non-endemic brands.

In-store retail media allows brands to reach their audience, build loyalty, and drive conversion with digital advertising located right where they shop--in physical stores. Playing a part of the next wave of retail media, in-store retail media is transforming the experience of brick-and-mortar stores, providing retailers with a near real-time opportunity to update in-store content, while also giving brands the chance to reach their audience while they're in a buying mindset.

What is In-Store Retail Media?

In-store retail media refers to digital marketing that happens inside physical retail stores. Sounds counterintuitive, right? While brick-and-mortar stores might seem separate from the world of digital media and advertising, they’re actually an untapped gold mine.

Historically, the store has been limited as an advertising medium. Static in-store ads involve long planning cycles and are primarily limited to endemic brands and promotion-based. With digital in-store advertising, brands can easily target and launch dynamic campaigns in real-time to shoppers similar to how they would for online advertising.

Today, technology has transformed the average store into a versatile and highly influential location. Smart carts, digital displays, and even in-store audio are all ripe with opportunities for advertisers looking to reach consumers.

What's more, modern in-store advertising can accomplish objectives across the funnel with the ability to measure everything from brand lift to foot traffic to sales lift. Different from its print predecessor, digital in-store advertising blurs the lines between brand and performance marketing, providing an impactful brand experience, while also in many cases driving sales.

The Power of In-Store Retail Media in Action

Spotify

Let’s take a look at a real-world example of how strategic in-store retail media can impact audiences.

Spotify ran a campaign on Grocery TV’s network reminding shoppers to check out their app just before they got into their cars. The strategy was simple: reach consumers at a quiet moment in the middle of their busy day and contextual messaging that speaks to what they’re doing next (driving home or completing other errands).

Land O'Lakes

Another example is Land O'Lakes, which used contextual messaging that made light of where the shopper is at in their store visit, the checkout. Even though shoppers might not actually leave the line to go back for another item, they might be more likely to remember the ad and the brand because of the tailored messaging. What Land O'Lakes also did well was prominently featuring their brand, product, and how the product could be used in the ad.

Key Benefits of In-Store Retail Media

In-store advertising is redefining retail media and how brands approach their media mix. Its specific benefits address current industry challenges and unlock new opportunities to connect with audiences.

How, where, and when you present your message is just as important as what it actually says.

In-store retail media capitalizes on these moments and positions your brand in front of your audience when they're in a buying mindset or quite literally able to turn around and purchase your product.

The grocery store also offers the brand safety other channels may lack. It's family-friendly and often considered the center of a community, where you bump into friends and neighbors. This plays a role in how your advertising is perceived.

Place your brand in a context that resonates with consumers

When a consumer visits the store, they have one clear goal in mind: to buy something. Advertising that supports them on this journey is not only more effective, but more likely to be perceived positively (and thus acted on).

Placing contextually relevant ads in the store, where consumers are in a buying mindset, yields better results than any other advertising channel in terms of its effect on experience. In fact, one Grocery TV survey found that 87% of consumers were accepting or positive toward in-store advertising.

In other words, in-store advertising is perceived more positively by consumers because it enhances their experience at the store. On the flip side, other ad channels that consumers typically visit to be entertained are more disruptive to their experience.

We also know that consumers are more likely to pay attention to in-store media than other advertising channels. This is especially impactful when we consider that contextually-relevant in-store ads have an impact even beyond a consumer’s initial trip to a retailer.

Brands should also consider the context of the grocery store in the consumer's broader purchase journey. For example, we know that 70% of Grocery TV's audience visits Walmart within 90 days of their visit, offering brands the opportunity to influence cross-shopping decisions.

Reach more people with greater efficiency

The loss of third-party data identifiers and decline of linear TV has pushed marketers to find new ways to reach their target audience. In-store retail media allows you to simultaneously reach massive audiences and specific demographics.

Nearly 1 in 4 Americans are reached on Grocery TV’s network, which means almost 80 million consumers are within a brand’s reach.

In addition to reach, visitation frequency is a major draw for particular types of retail like grocery. A 2022 Gallup report notes that 82% of people visit the grocery store at least once a week which results in an average of nearly 7 visits per month.

In addition to traffic far greater than online, brick-and-mortar stores offer brands access to key household decision-makers. This includes hard-to-reach audiences like millennials and Gen-Zers, who are less exposed to traditional advertising vehicles (like commercial breaks on TV).

What's arguably most important to note about the in-store audience is that they're not solely responsible for making decisions on their groceries. They are often the decision maker for a variety of household purchases such as insurance, healthcare, and automobiles.

Build awareness within specific segments or demographics

In-store advertising offers brands targeting demographic, geographic, and behavioral targeting capabilities that allow brands to hone in on their specific audience.

Let’s turn to an example of this in action. The growing base of Hispanic shoppers in the US – and their immense purchasing power – has prompted many brands to shift their strategies and better understand how best to stay top of mind with this audience.

In-store retail media allows brands to run multicultural advertising campaigns in both geographic areas that over-index on the Hispanic population as well as culturally relevant retailers like El Rancho or Cardenas.

The Hispanic audience is also unique in that it places more value on the in-person shopping trip than other demographics. In other words, Hispanic shoppers prefer in-store shopping over other mediums. Both endemic and non-endemic brands can cater to this preference, offering tailored advertisements that showcase the benefits of their products while consumers are already at the point of sale.

How to Implement In-Store Retail Media into Your Strategy

Once you’ve decided that in-store retail media is the right move for your brand, how can you go about implementing it into your advertising mix? Be sure to keep these key considerations in mind.

Consider the Funnel

Think of in-store advertising as a full-funnel medium. It can target consumers at every step of their journey:

• Awareness: Shoppers become familiar with your brand, keeping your messages top of mind.
• Consideration: Your brand stands out from the rest thanks to targeted campaigns that meet consumers where they’re at just when they’re thinking about what to buy.
• Conversion: Consumers are encouraged to buy a product or inspire action on other platforms.

Measure & Optimize

Make it a priority to understand what works for your media campaign and what doesn’t with the right performance metrics. In-store retail media channels have the ability to measuare a range of KPIs like store visits, app or site downloads, sales, etc.

With Grocery TV’s retail media network, you get access to data partnerships that help you enhance the planning, execution, and measurement of your campaigns. Grocery TV helps brands track details like:

• Brand lift (brand awareness, consideration, recall, etc.)
• Foot traffic attribution
• Sales lift
• Web conversions (incremental web visits, sign-ups, etc.)

The Bottom Line

In-store retail media may still be relatively new, but it’s already making a name for itself as a highly efficient and versatile advertising channel.

Whether you’re an advertiser or a retailer, you can benefit from delivering meaningful messages to your consumers when they're most open to them.