The annual Amazon Ads unBoxed event in Nashville has unveiled a transformative roadmap for advertisers, signaling a monumental shift towards a fully unified, AI-powered ecosystem. The core takeaway from the announcements is clear: Amazon is dismantling silos, augmenting human expertise with agentic AI, and creating a "crystal box" of transparency to make sophisticated, full-funnel advertising accessible and hyper-efficient for brands of all sizes.

Amazon is constantly evolving how shoppers discover and buy products. The latest innovation? Sponsored Prompts, an AI-driven retail media ad product designed to meet shoppers in the moment they ask questions — and guide them to your products. For brands, this isn’t just another ad placement; it’s a fundamental shift in how retail media works on Amazon.

Recent advances in generative AI are ushering in a new era of “agentic commerce.” Rather than typing keywords into a search bar, more shoppers are beginning to rely on natural-language AI assistants that interpret intent, sift through catalog data, and even guide the entire purchase journey. 

In this guide we’ll walk you through what SOV means in the retail media context, why it matters for brands, how to calculate and track it, and how to use it to power your growth strategy.

When you’re building a brand and working with Amazon Vendor Central (the 1-P model), one of the toughest obstacles is launching a new product when you have little to no sales history. That’s where the Born to Run (B2R) program can be a game-changer—if used strategically. At BirdDog Media Agency, our mission is to help small and emerging companies launch, build and scale successful brands. In this post, we’ll unpack what B2R is, why it matters, how brands should evaluate it, and best practices — now with hard data to reinforce the case.

Launching and proving a product on Amazon gives you three things you can’t easily fake: (1) real shopper behavior signals (search, conversion, returns), (2) a review moat and social proof, and (3) operational proof (fulfillment, returns, customer support). Treat those signals as gold when you build your DTC site or enter other marketplaces — they dramatically shorten experimentation cycles and reduce wasted ad spend.

Entering the U.S. market is exhilarating—and unforgiving. It’s the largest, most competitive consumer market on earth, with sophisticated shoppers, broad channel choices, and razor-thin attention spans. The most practical way to de-risk your launch, validate product-market fit, and scale efficiently is to start on Amazon.

In this guide, we’ll walk through the best practices for outdoor brands on Amazon and other marketplaces, and we’ll highlight three outdoor brands that have blazed their own trail using these tactics to great effect. Whether you're just getting started or scaling up, this playbook will help your brand conquer the digital wilderness.

The retail media and eCommerce space continues to be reshaped by generative AI—and now Walmart is making its boldest move yet with the launch of Sparky, its new AI-powered shopping assistant. Positioned to compete with Amazon’s Rufus and other AI-driven experiences, Sparky is more than just a chatbot; it’s a dynamic, conversational AI designed to transform how customers search, shop, and discover products on Walmart.com and in the Walmart app.

As the landscape of commerce media evolves rapidly, brands are now confronting a new wave of uncertainty: increasing tariffs, rising costs, and a macroeconomic environment full of question marks. For those selling across Amazon, Walmart, Instacart, and other top retailer marketplaces, the pressure is mounting to justify every dollar spent, all while continuing to drive growth in an increasingly competitive digital shelf.

In times like these, it's not just about spending smarter — it’s about planning with resilience, adaptability, and precision. Retail media and commerce media continue to be non-negotiable levers for visibility and sales velocity, but the way brands activate and allocate budgets must shift with the climate.

Let’s explore the strategic mindset brands should adopt right now, including five mission-critical priorities, and what lessons we can pull from past periods of disruption—like the COVID-19 pandemic—where brands managed to survive and even thrive through savvy retail media strategy.

Walmart Connect has rapidly evolved into one of the most influential retail media networks, offering brands unparalleled opportunities to reach and engage shoppers at every stage of the purchase journey. With a vast in-store and digital footprint, Walmart Connect provides an array of advertising solutions designed to drive brand awareness, conversions, and customer loyalty. In this guide, we’ll explore all of Walmart Connect’s media types and best practices for activation to maximize success.

Retail media has rapidly grown into a multi-billion-dollar industry, with retail media networsk (RMNs) now commanding a dominant share of digital ad spend. In 2023, U.S. retail media spending reached $45 billion and is projected to exceed $60 billion by 2025, solidifying its role as a key channel for brands looking to reach high-intent shoppers at the point of purchase. In this blog post, we will highlight the top 18 retail media networks, their capabilities, key differences, and best practices for brands looking to optimize their investments.

Retail media has evolved beyond traditional advertising, and data is at the heart of this transformation. Brands now have access to highly sophisticated data platforms that provide actionable insights, enabling them to optimize advertising and drive sales more effectively. Three major players leading this charge are Amazon Marketing Cloud (AMC), Walmart’s Scintilla, and Kroger’s 84.51. Each of these platforms offers unique strengths and capabilities that brands must understand to maximize their impact.

Amazon has long been at the forefront of eCommerce innovation, and its latest AI-powered shopping assistant, Rufus, is set to reshape the way consumers discover and purchase products on the platform. This new tool integrates generative AI with Amazon’s vast product catalog, offering shoppers a conversational search experience that enhances product discovery and decision-making.

Retail media has become an essential part of the eCommerce landscape, offering brands an unprecedented opportunity to connect with shoppers directly within the buying journey. With retail media spending projected to grow to $61 billion in the U.S. by 2024, competition for consumer attention has never been fiercer. To maximize ROI, brands must employ more sophisticated advertising tactics—and one of the most effective yet underutilized strategies is dayparting.

In the dynamic world of retail media, Sponsored Display ads have become a vital tool for brands to engage shoppers throughout the buying journey. Unlike other ad types, Sponsored Display ads allow advertisers to target audiences both on and off the retailer’s platform, creating opportunities for expanded reach and precise targeting.

Sponsored Brands campaigns are a cornerstone of retail media, offering unparalleled opportunities to elevate brand awareness, drive traffic, and boost sales. However, the effectiveness of these campaigns largely depends on selecting the right destination for your ads. With options ranging from brand stores to product detail pages and custom landing pages, it’s crucial to align your destination choice with your campaign goals.

Walmart’s digital transformation continues to reshape the retail landscape, with significant advancements in eCommerce and retail media throughout 2024. As the retail giant strengthens its position against competitors like Amazon and Target, understanding key performance metrics in search visibility, sales share, and retail media investments provides valuable insights for brands looking to maximize their impact on Walmart’s platform.

Retail media is rapidly becoming the dominant channel for brands aiming to drive growth in eCommerce. As we analyze the latest data from Q4 2024, mid-market and SMB brands must adapt their advertising strategies to remain competitive in 2025.