Issue 35    Tuesday, July 8, 2025

Retailers & brands are verticalizing ROI up the funnel

For years, advertising strategies drew a sharp line between upper-funnel, brand-building efforts like DSP and streaming TV, and lower-funnel search tactics designed to drive conversion. But as consumer journeys become increasingly fragmented and nonlinear, with discovery, consideration, and purchase fluidly intersecting across channels, those distinctions between brand and performance are quickly dissolving. 

This evolution is accelerating as advancements in retail media targeting, inventory, and measurement make it possible to connect every touchpoint and measure performance deterministically. ROAS alone no longer tells the full story; advertising’s influence extends well beyond the last click. Today, brands are expected to articulate the total impact of their media efforts across the funnel, connecting upper- and lower-funnel investments to both immediate returns and sustained consumer value. 

The result is a need to redefine how ROI is created and measured, and brands and retailers are making a decisive shift to verticalize ROI across the funnel. Retailers are developing the infrastructure to make every stage measurable and actionable, encouraging brands to invest further up the funnel by offering real accountability. Brands, in turn, are demanding that upper funnel spend deliver tangible outcomes, not just awareness metrics. What was once a leap of faith–connecting brand-building to sales–has become a strategic imperative, as both sides align around closed-loop measurement and a unified view of the customer journey. 

How retailers are unlocking the upper funnel

Ad revenue is now a critical growth engine for retailers like Amazon and Walmart. Amazon’s ad business alone reached $56.2 billion in 2024 and is projected to hit $69 billion this year. With advertising such a significant piece of their business, retailers must keep raising the bar to capture a greater share of brand budgets. 

The upper funnel is the next major opportunity. As streaming overtakes linear TV, retailers can offer brands access to premium closed-loop environments–something traditional media never could. Here, brands can precisely target shoppers based on real behavior and directly connect upper-funnel investment to measurable sales. As a result, budgets are shifting rapidly from linear TV to connected and streaming TV. 

To capitalize, retailers are building vertical solutions that blend high-attention inventory with advanced targeting and measurement. They’re locking in premium content partnerships and investing in the data tools that make every impression count. 

Recent partnerships highlight this momentum: 

• Amazon Ads & Roku: Access to 80 million U.S. CTV households, authenticated audience data, and seamless cross-platform reach. 

• Walmart’s acquisition of Vizio: Connecting streaming viewership with in-store and online purchase data for true closed-loop attribution. 

• NBCUniversal & Walmart: Bringing retail-level targeting and sales measurement to live sports broadcasts. 

• Additional moves–Amazon with Disney, Instacart with The Trade Desk–underscore the push to reach shoppers across every premium screen, with data and measurement at the core. 

But premium inventory is only half the story. The true differentiator is “signal”: the ability to make every impression addressable, actionable, and measurable. Clean rooms, such as Amazon Marketing Cloud, now allow brands to connect exposure to outcome with new precision. Access to five years of retail purchase data at the CID level allows brands to not only pinpoint which campaigns drive incremental sales and long-term loyalty, but additionally build AMC Audiences that will support more efficient campaign creation going forward. 

This dual focus–premium inventory coupled with robust, closed-loop targeting and measurement–is what sets the leading retail media networks apart. With a fully vertical stack, retailers can justify premium pricing, unlock new brand budgets, and become indispensable partners for growth, not just at the point of sale, but across the entire shopper journey.  

How brands are rethinking ads for the connected shopper

Upper-funnel media isn’t just about awareness anymore; it’s a direct driver of action. Today’s shopper can see your ad while streaming a favorite show, and, without missing a beat, search for and buy your product on their phone. 

This means brands need to move beyond siloed upper- and lower-funnel tactics. Every campaign, regardless of channel, now has the potential to both create and capture demand. The key is understanding how shoppers move fluidly across touchpoints and ensuring your strategy addresses the entire journey, from initial discovery to purchase. 

Advancements in retail media networks now enable brands to connect data and targeting across the funnel more effectively than ever. With access to granular SKU and CID-level data, brands can build precise audiences based on real shopper behavior–recent purchases, browsing patterns, or engagement with past campaigns. This makes it possible to deliver relevant, high-intent messaging at scale at every stage, driving returns far beyond just awareness. 

Greater data access also means more ways to measure, optimize, and understand true ROI. Brands can now track performance across engagement, conversion, and loyalty, continuously refining strategies to nurture shoppers into loyal, high-value customers. 

To fully capture this value, leading brands are: 

• Integrating upper- and lower-funnel budgets and planning: ensuring every dollar works together to reach, engage, and convert shoppers wherever they are. 

• Targeting based on consumer behavior and identity: using the wealth of available data to create impactful audiences and deliver more relevant experiences. 

• Measuring return on consumer, not just ROAS: tracking the full impact of campaigns on sales, long-term value, and true business outcomes. 

Brands embracing this connected approach aren’t just running more efficient campaigns–they’re unlocking new growth by meeting shoppers wherever and however they choose to engage. 

The Bottom Line: Verticalizing ROI is more than a buzzword–it’s the new way to grow. Brands and retailers who make every stage measurable, actionable, and connected will be the ones to shape the future of commerce.  

Emma 
Irwin

Commerce Collective Host at Flywheel

Ready to verticalize ROI across the funnel?

Featured Podcast

This Month Above The Fold
The Big Shift: Redefining ROI with return on consumer

Flywheel's annual whitepaper, The Big Shift, is back! In this episode, Patrick and Emma (co-authors of the paper) explore how forward-thinking brands are leveraging SKU+CID data to maximize their return on consumer across each retailer, every campaign, and the entire portfolio. Listen in to discover why the future belongs to brands that verticalize ROI, treat CIDs like annuities, and use real behavioral signals to fuel long-term growth.

Additional Resources

Meet shoppers where they stream with Amazon STV

Explore the latest tactics and best practices for brands looking to maximize reach and ROI with Amazon Streaming TV. This video breaks down how to leverage Amazon’s premium inventory, advanced targeting, and closed-loop measurement to drive real business results across the funnel. 

Amplifying Amazon STV with AMC insights & audiences

Learn how to build high-impact Amazon Streaming TV campaigns that do more than grab attention–they drive action. This video covers creative testing, smart audience targeting with AMC Audiences, and how to measure what really matters (from branded searches to new-to-brand purchases). 

Cannes Lions 2025: Redefining ROI, the evolving role of AI, and the power of data connectivity 

At the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, one message came through loud and clear: commerce, content, and retail media are now inseparable. To win in this new landscape, brands must verticalize ROI—maximizing value across every retailer, every consumer, and every touchpoint.