Retail Media Study Found 79% Higher Ad Spend Return

Electronics and appliance brands should factor in cross-retailer halo effects when evaluating retail media ROI.

Updated on Oct. 7, 2026 in Advertising

Bold flat-color editorial illustration of a polished chrome dial, representing the focus of market retail media spend and analytical clarity. — A new research study from Circana and Best Buy Ads indicates that retail media networks deliver significantly higher returns on advertising spend than other channels. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

Live Poll

Do you trust retail media advertisements to provide accurate information about product availability across different stores?

Circana and Best Buy Ads released research on October 7, 2026, finding that their retail media network delivered a 79 percent higher return on ad spend compared to other media channels. The analysis covered consumer electronics and appliances, highlighting how retail media impacts sales across the broader retail ecosystem.

Why it matters

The study reveals that retail media investments generate significant value beyond a single retailer's ecosystem, with nearly 16 percent of media-driven sales occurring at competing retailers. This finding shifts how operators must measure advertising effectiveness to account for broader brand equity and cross-retailer halo effects.

Best Buy Ads drove a 79 percent higher return on ad spend than other media and accounted for 10 percent of total measured brand equity value. Additionally, 16 percent of media-driven sales occurred at retailers outside the Best Buy ecosystem.

The players

Circana

A global market research firm providing consumer behavior analytics and point-of-sale data across retail industries.

Best Buy Ads

The retail media arm of the national consumer electronics retailer that offers advertisers access to consumer purchasing data.

The details

The research used marketing mix modeling to unify short-term sales data with cross-retailer halo effects and long-term brand equity. By analyzing the full-funnel impact for brands in the electronics and appliance sectors, the study demonstrates that retail media platforms function as broad market drivers rather than isolated sales channels. Operators can use this framework to better attribute success across their entire sales footprint.

October 7, 2026: Circana and Best Buy Ads released the marketing mix modeling study.

Market Landscape

This study updates the industry trend of moving toward full-funnel retail media measurement. The findings mark a departure from limited platform-specific ROI metrics toward a holistic view of how retail media networks influence brand performance across the entire marketplace.

Operators should reevaluate their marketing mix models to account for the halo effect when advertising on retail networks. Consider tracking conversion data beyond your direct platform sales to capture the full impact of retail media on your total brand equity.

The takeaway

Retail media networks act as significant brand equity drivers that influence consumer purchasing behavior well beyond the host retailer. Businesses should track cross-retailer sales performance to avoid undervaluing media investments that drive traffic to competitors.