Target is expanding its ad offerings to better monetize shopping data

This is an excerpt from a story delivered exclusively to Business Insider Intelligence Digital Media Briefing subscribers. To receive the full story plus other insights each morning, click here.Target is expanding its advertising business, after rebranding its in-house media unit as Roundel (formerly known as Target Media Network), per Digiday. Target launched Target Media Network in 2016, and presented at the NewFronts for the first time this year.What it means: Retailers with e-commerce businesses, like Target — or e-tailers, like Amazon — are increasingly building out data-driven media businesses based on their first-party consumer shopping data. These companies are positioning themselves as competitive ad platforms versus other digital platforms like Google, Facebook, and Microsoft because of their customer purchase data. Retailers like Target collect this data from shoppers' engagement with their sites and mobile apps. That data can be used to precisely target consumers based on past purchases or product interest, helping brands drive customer acquisition and conversion.To make better use of its valuable data, Target's Roundel will expand opportunities for advertisers by growing its network of brands and ad agencies, and adding offerings beyond its site and stores:Target will now partner with brands beyond those that sell on its sites and in-store. Target now partners with nearly 1,000 clients across categories, but they all sell through the retailer's channels as well. The bulk of its partners are CPG brands like beauty and food and beverage (e.g. P&G, Unilever, Coca-Cola), but its portfolio also includes clients from financial services (e.g. Mastercard), insurance (e.g. Allstate), automotive, and travel. Target's current agency partners include GroupM, OMD, and Publicis.Brands will be able to buy ads across vetted partner channels. In addition to enabling on-site and in-store advertising, brands will also be able to buy across 150 “brand-safe” partner channels, including a curated list of publisher sites as well as other digital channels spanning web, mobile, or social. For example, partner channels include Pinterest, NBCUniversal, and PopSugar. The bigger picture: Among the retailers getting into advertising, Amazon is likely to gain the most traction among advertisers, followed by Walmart. That's because Amazon and Walmart each own and operate media properties beyond just their e-commerce site and app, providing additional ad environments they can exploit — Target does not. Beyond Amazon.com and the Amazon mobile app, for instance, Amazon owns Twitch, IMDb (through which it launched an AVOD platform called Freedive), and GoodReads.For its part, Walmart runs its own AVOD platform Vudu, which it claims will provide “retail-connected, premium TV” to advertisers through its Vudu Audience Extension network. And just last week, Walmart announced plans to ramp up interactive original programming featuring shoppable ads, per Ad Age.Despite inroads by rival retailers, Amazon is likely to draw the lion's share of advertiser spend and interest. Walmart is growing its e-commerce business, but advertisers know that Amazon is dominant as an online shopping platform, with now more product searches starting on Amazon than on Google search, per multiple surveys.Of the available e-comm platforms, 90% of advertisers said they currently advertise on Amazon, followed by Walmart (23%), eBay (17%), and Target (16%), per a Digiday survey of 71 media buying execs. And advertisers were also most likely to increase spend on Amazon versus other e-comm platforms: 80% said they planned to increase their spend on Amazon in 2019, followed by Walmart (20%), and Target (14%).Amazon's ad business is growing quickly, reaching $10.1 billion in 2018. Despite a deceleration in Q1, it still generated $2.7 billion from advertising, up 36% year-over-year (YoY) — marking the fifth straight quarter that ad revenue eclipsed $2 billion. Walmart is the likeliest runner-up — albeit a distant one. Interested in getting the full story？ Here are two ways to get access: 1. Sign up for the Digital Media Briefing to get it delivered to your inbox 6x a week. >> Get Started2. Subscribe to a Premium pass to Business Insider Intelligence and gain immediate access to the Digital Media Briefing, plus more than 250 other expertly researched reports. As an added bonus, you'll also gain access to all future reports and daily newsletters to ensure you stay ahead of the curve and benefit personally and professionally. >> Learn More Now