Christmas Day is less than a week away, but some consumers are still chipping away at their lists. That’s why Walmart, Target, Best Buy, and Dollar General are announcing last-minute holiday deals for consumers seeking the perfect gift.

For brands, working with influencers was once an experimental addition to their media plans, but growth in influencer marketing spend is now outpacing its digital and social counterparts, per our forecast. While influencer partnerships still account for a significantly smaller part of the media mix, their growth is a sign that the industry is maturing—and more legacy advertisers want in.

The office of the Delaware State Bank Commissioner granted its approval, leaving just stakeholders and federal regulators to decide the deal’s fate.

Traveling for the holidays? Here are four episodes of our "Reimagining Retail" podcast for your listening pleasure.

RFK Jr.’s pharmaceutical ad ban could affect $22 billion in ad spending: A business-friendly Trump administration could hamper RFK’s plans to cut D2C advertising.

Mobile ad spending reaches $203 billion: Desktop grows steadily, but its share falls below 25%, reflecting the continued platform shift.

Retail media is now being adapted by companies in other verticals: Financial services and travel companies are among those launching commerce media networks in a bid to monetize their first-party data.

Brands focus on AI as creative ally: The technology's role in fostering innovation and cost savings augments human touch.

Limited-time sale pricing was the top factor contributing to US shoppers’ most recent online impulse purchases, according to September 2024 data from Gale Group.

Here are three strategies retailers can learn from big tech players to pump up on-site ad revenues.

The martech landscape is shifting from prompt-based AI to more sophisticated autonomous systems. Agentic AI—artificial intelligence that can independently execute tasks, make decisions, and learn from interactions—represents a significant evolution in how marketing teams can operate and scale their efforts.

Consumers are very aware of ads that they think were served to them using behavioral targeting.

Private labels gather steam: Consumers are buying more private label products than they were a year ago—seeing them as being on par with name brands.

Recent Supreme Court rulings could aid TikTok: The high court will rule on the platform’s ban months after it made strong statements about government interference with digital free speech.

On today's podcast episode, we give out some 2024 retail awards for the most must-visit store, the Gen Z darling, the best innovator, the small stuff worth sweating award, and the comeback story of the year. Listen to the conversation with our Senior Analyst Sara Lebow as she hosts Principal Analyst Sky Canaves, Vice President of Content Suzy Davidkhanian and Senior Analyst Blake Droesch.

From Temu’s rise to their interest in dupes, Gen Z prioritized affordability and convenience in 2024. Gen Z consumers also showed interest in in-person shopping, but crowded stores may be limiting their trips to brick-and-mortar retail.

Ad buyers will see a year of agency changes, privacy problems, AI innovations, and media network competition in 2025. Here are five charts to help media planners prepare for the year ahead.