Shruti Tiwari, Ogilvy: "The interconnectivity of brands’ ability to reach consumers has become even more paramount."

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Shruti Tiwari

Managing Director, North America, Head of Performance & Media — Ogilvy

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Shruti Tiwari, the dynamic and accomplished Managing Director of Ogilvy North America and Head of Performance & Media, is proficient in leveraging data-driven insights to make strategic decisions, ensuring maximum impact and market penetration. She weighs in on the expansion of retail media and the opportunities this creates for brands.

In your opinion, what has been the catalyst for this explosive growth of retail media?

The expansion of retail media is a direct result of the synergy between customer data, e-commerce, omnichannel strategies, and personalization. For example, consumer adoption of online grocery shopping will account for up to 30% of all purchases by 2030. Having a better understanding of consumer behavior advancements in data analytics and technology, including online marketplaces and social commerce, is crucial for understanding consumer behavior overall. E-commerce giants like Amazon and traditional stores like Kroger leverage customer data to provide highly targeted advertising. Amazon has mastered the art of using search and purchase data for product recommendation systems, while Kroger's precision marketing has set a benchmark in personalized customer experiences, leading to an enhanced retail media platform.

Retailers are becoming media owners. How will this impact brand strategy and media planning?

As the traditional separation between point of sale and media channels is blurring thanks to social commerce, brand strategy must account for the emotional and cultural nuances of evolving shopping behavior. The richness of this data allows brands and their agency partners to develop content strategy based on specific moments – pushing for rich creative integration and content at scale. As far as media planning, this shifts into considering multiple platform management from planning and buying, working with feed management, inventory availability, retailer-specific data, and platform algorithms.

For many brands, media buying is still fragmented. Working with Partners like bigcommerce or feednomics to help centralize the disparate nature of different commerce enviroments allows brands to better integrate their products, inventory and third-party apps. With two-thirds of online purchases occurring on third-party marketplace platforms, interconnectivity of brands’ ability to reach consumers has become even more paramount.

What opportunities do AI and CX data offer brands in the customer journey?  

AI can analyze vast amounts of data to predict customer behavior, enabling brands to craft personalized experiences and develop relationships. AI combined with data offers insights into customer preferences allows for tailored communications, product recommendations and bespoke experiences. For Spotify, we used AI to transform music into amazing artwork to create unique and sharable customer playlists. We’ve used AI to give a voice to small businesses in India and generated “shops for the shopless” with Cadbury.

For Nestlé’s La Laitière, we created an experience using AI to reveal and discover artwork outside of one of the world’s most famous paintings.

There are so many exciting ways to use AI to enrich relationships and design deeper and more meaningful brand, business and consumer connections… and this is just the beginning. 

What kind of retail experiences do GenZ and GenA value?

Most prefer brands that stand for social causes and offer a blend of online and offline experiences. Nike has successfully tapped into this trend by offering immersive experiences in their flagship stores while also integrating their online SNKRS app to create a community around sneaker culture, appealing to these younger, tech-savvy generations. According to The Pew Research center, an estimated 50% of GenZ and GenA are also more likely to engage with brands on social media, relying on their social network to make recommendations, or using social media to discover new products.

How can brick and mortar locations evolve so that they remain relevant in a digital world?

To remain relevant in the digital era, brick and mortar stores must become experiential hubs that offer more than just transactions. They should provide unique, interactive experiences that cannot be replicated online. For example, Apple's stores serve as community spaces for learning and exploration, enhancing their product ecosystem. Additionally, integrating technology like augmented reality (AR) for virtual try-ons, as done by Warby Parker, or using in-store navigation apps can enhance the physical retail experience and merge the convenience of digital with the tangibility of in-store shopping.