Principles
Principles of the In-Store Retail Media Framework
These are the Principles that anchor the In-Store Retail Media Framework. They are not predictions, slogans or fixed doctrine. Each one has been developed, challenged and refined through the essays in this Journal — and continues to be tested as the Framework grows.
Reality & Representation
Organizations act on representations of Commercial Reality, not Commercial Reality itself.
Organizations act on representations of Commercial Reality, not Commercial Reality itself.
No organization can observe the full complexity of the commercial environment.
It therefore relies on measurements, models, dashboards, forecasts and other representations to make reality usable for decision-making.
Those representations are necessary.
The risk begins when the representation is treated as if it were the reality itself.
Commercial Measurement
Measurement exists to improve decisions.
The purpose of Commercial Measurement is not to produce more information.
It is to reduce uncertainty around decisions that matter.
A measurement system should therefore be judged by the quality of the decisions it helps improve, not by the volume of data it produces.
Measurement should be designed around decisions, not available data.
Organizations often build metrics around the data they already possess.
The stronger approach is to begin with the decision that needs to be made, determine what must be understood, and then decide what needs to become observable.
Available data should inform measurement.
It should not define the limits of organizational understanding.
Media delivery is not commercial impact.
Proof of Play, impressions, reach and Share of Voice can describe whether media was delivered.
They do not, by themselves, establish what happened commercially because of that delivery.
Commercial impact requires evidence about outcomes and, where possible, incrementality.
Commercial Intelligence
Context can be more valuable than identity.
Physical commerce does not always require knowing who an individual shopper is.
Location, time, product proximity, category behavior, store conditions and other contextual signals can be sufficient to improve relevance and decision-making without requiring individual identification.
The purpose of intelligence is to improve commercial decisions, not merely optimize campaigns.
Campaign optimization is only one possible use of Retail Media intelligence.
The same evidence can support merchandising, category management, trade marketing, assortment, pricing and revenue growth decisions.
The value of intelligence increases when it improves the commercial system, not just the media plan.
Trust & Data
The Intelligence Moves. The Data Stays.
Retailer data does not need to leave the retailer's environment to become useful.
Where possible, intelligence should move to the data, rather than requiring sensitive first-party or transactional data to move across systems.
This changes who carries the risk of collaboration: the retailer keeps control of the data, and still benefits from the intelligence built on top of it.
These Principles are not a finished doctrine.
They remain open to challenge, and the Journal will continue to test and refine them as the Framework develops.