CANNES – Best Buy is betting on its deep customer relationships, high-quality data and expanding partnerships to grow its retail media business, said Jen Jensen, vice president of agency partnerships at the electronics chain.
She outlined how the retailer is leveraging its direct consumer connection, including a striking 93% customer identification rate, to deliver value to advertisers, in this interview with Dave Kersey, L’Oréal’s head of media, at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity.
“We know all the different pieces of the customer and can slice that data in lots of different ways for our advertisers,” Jensen said, highlighting the retailer’s ability to track the unique path to purchase for products like TVs or laptops, which often involve extended research.
Best Buy joins a growing number of retailers, including Amazon, Walmart and Target, expanding into media as advertisers seek new ways to reach consumers in privacy-conscious, digital environments. With its rich data, growing product assortment, and strategic alliances, Best Buy hopes to carve out a unique space in this competitive landscape.
Jensen announced plans to launch Best Buy’s third-party marketplace later this summer, a move designed to broaden product selection, drive more traffic and unlock new advertising opportunities.
“It’s going to give us different products for our customers to engage with,” Jensen said. “We also love that it opens up different ways for advertisers as well.”
Strategic partnerships fuel full-funnel marketing
In addition to building its marketplace, Best Buy is deepening partnerships to strengthen its position as a full-funnel marketing platform. One key collaboration is with CNet, the technology review site.
“CNet helps us add more to our upper funnel, while Best Buy connects closer to the sale,” Jensen explained. “It creates a really interesting customer journey for advertisers.”
Best Buy’s retail media strategy also extends to entertainment platforms like Roku and sports partnerships, including with the NFL. While Jensen declined to reveal details, she hinted at forthcoming collaborations aimed at sports enthusiasts and other niche audiences.
“We’re thinking about partnerships that bring unique value: ways to layer our data and deliver something advertisers can’t get anywhere else,” she said.
Balancing brand relevance with performance
As retail media networks grow, brands face the challenge of maintaining relevance while delivering measurable results. Jensen said Best Buy’s “customer-obsessed” approach as the foundation of its strategy.
“Everything we do has to be grounded in the customer experience. We don’t want to trade that off as we build for advertisers,” she said, crediting Best Buy Chief Executive Corie Barry with championing this vision.
“Our goal is to enhance the customer journey while giving advertisers differentiated opportunities,” Jensen said. “It’s all about creating value on both sides.”
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