SAN JUAN, PR – The traditional lines separating marketing and commerce are dissolving, forcing a realignment of roles and budgets within organizations. This shift comes as consumers increasingly dictate how and where they engage with brands, a concept one executive calls “boundless commerce.”
This change presents challenges and opportunities for brands. Companies must now adapt to consumers who can transition from awareness to purchase in mere seconds, on a single platform.
“The consumer has redefined what commerce means to them,” said George Musi, chief business officer at Horizon Media’s Night Market, in this video interview with Beet.TV. “It has taken the control away from the brands and put the control into the consumer’s hands, and now the brands have to adapt to that behavior.”
Communication and commerce collide
Historically, chief marketing officers and chief commercial officers operated in separate silos, despite both aiming to drive sales. CMOs focused on brand communication, while CCOs managed in-store promotions and retailer relationships. But now those two worlds are merging.
“The worlds of communication and commerce now have to come together to deliver communication to commerce on the terms of the consumer,” Musi said. A prime example is TikTok Shop, where, Musi observed, users can go from discovering a product to buying it within seconds, without ever leaving the app.
This fusion extends beyond social media. Traditional TV, once thought to be declining, is experiencing a resurgence as a shopping platform, he said.
The rise of retail media networks
The emergence of retail media networks is a key factor in this convergence. Retailers like Walmart, Target, and Kroger are no longer just selling products; they’re also selling advertising space, becoming media networks in their own right.
This can create tension, as CMOs see retail media as part of their domain—media buying and audience targeting. The question of whose budget funds retail media spend—marketing or trade/shopper—is a significant point of contention, and fluidity, Musi said.
Emarketer forecasts US retail media ad spend will top $62 billion in 2025, increasing by more than $10 billion year-on-year. This projection underscores the rapid growth and financial significance of retail media as an advertising channel, making budget allocation a critical issue for CMOs and CCOs.
Influencers and the future of commerce
Night Market’s technology platforms allow clients to leverage artificial intelligence to make real-time bidding decisions, helping to maximize return on ad spend. Night Market primarily serves media buyers, catering to the intricacies and demands of online advertising campaigns and programmatic marketing strategies.
The rise of what Musi calls “boundless commerce” extends to the influencer world, as well. Traditional CPM-based influencer marketing is giving way to performance-based models, where influencers earn a percentage of sales they generate.
“The historical influencer (model is) where I pay you, you promote and I pay you on a CPM,” Musi said. “The new version of influencer says, ‘Wait, I’d rather get paid on a percentage of the sales that I drive’.” This is akin to the historical model of QVC.
Ultimately, Musi is excited, but also wary, of the future of retail media. He said the shift of power to the consumer will continue to drive innovation, in technology and ideas.
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