At PEAK Week 2025, Jeff Daniel of The Trade Desk took the stage to deliver one of the event’s most anticipated keynotes: “The Future of Retail: Turning Data into Hits.” His message was clear: to truly unlock the power of retail data and drive business growth, the industry must break down silos and embrace collaboration.

Using a playful metaphor of K-Pop Demon Hunters (a fictional pop group that fights demons by day and tops the charts by night) Jeff framed retail’s biggest challenges as opportunities for harmony. Just as a successful pop group relies on rhythm, timing, and coordination, the future of retail media depends on moving from fragmented efforts to a seamlessly choreographed strategy.

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Four Strategic Imperatives for Growth

Turning retail data into “hits” requires transformation across four key areas: alignment, audience strategy, integration, and measurement. Each one demands partnership between agencies, brands, and retailers.

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• 1. Unified Alignment: The first step toward progress is eliminating silos. Agencies, brands, and retailers must plan together, not in isolation. Success starts when everyone is working toward shared goals, using consistent metrics and ROI expectations. This alignment helps teams decide whether to play offense (growing household penetration) or defense (increasing buy rate among existing customers).

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• 2. Audience Harmony: Next comes building smarter, more intentional audiences. Gone are the days of basic targeting; the future lies in layered, deterministic data that reflects real consumer behavior. Combining deterministic retail data (actual purchase patterns) with broader audience signals allows marketers to reach the right consumers with precision. When multiple data sources are blended (such as retailer and third-party segments) marketers often find less than 20% overlap¹, uncovering entirely new opportunities for unduplicated reach and growth.

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• 3. Choreographed Journey: Retail media must also evolve beyond the lower funnel. True impact comes from connecting the entire customer journey (from awareness to conversion) using retail data at every step. Agencies can define the role of each channel (i.e., CTV for awareness, onsite for conversion), while brands bring together shopper and national budgets into a single, unified plan. When planning is coordinated, consumers experience cohesive storytelling rather than repetitive or disjointed messaging: maximizing both effectiveness and efficiency.

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• 4. Business Outcomes: Finally, success must be measured through a unified lens. Rather than fragmented KPIs and reports, agencies and brands should align on one measurement framework that connects performance to business results. That means evaluating campaigns not just on ROAS, but on what truly matters: growth, share, and awareness. Full-funnel measurement includes both real-time insights (like sales lift, new buyers, and household penetration) and post-campaign evaluations that assess brand and retailer lift. When measurement is unified, teams can see the full picture and optimize toward meaningful outcomes.

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Want a deeper dive? Check out Mogl’s Retail Media Guide for practical tips on activating data, integrating channels, and measuring full-funnel impact.

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Your Next Hit Awaits

The future of retail media is integrated, intentional, and powered by rich data. Ready to turn your retail strategy into a certified “hit”? Connect with a Mogl representative to learn how retail media can drive your brand’s next stage of growth.

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Sources:

1. Emarketer (2025)

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