2026 Shopper Marketing Predictions: What’s Shaping the Next Era of Commerce
2025 became the year retail media matured from rapid ramp-up to operational reality. Artificial intelligence rewired everything from creative production to product discovery. In-store retail media scaled, but also exposed fragmentation. Measurement needs intensified. And consumer behavior shifted as loyalty became harder to win and consumers became more empowered, less predictable and increasingly guided by algorithms and AI agents.
Against that backdrop, shopper marketers enter 2026 facing a mix of transformation, tension and uncertainty: the need for connected measurement, a shift from ROAS to long-term value, the rise of AI-native commerce and continued disruption across discovery channels from connected TV to social to in-store.
We asked industry leaders across the ecosystem to share the trends they believe will define the year ahead.
Retail Media & Commerce Media Evolution
Retail media’s next stage is less about scale and more about sophistication. Experts anticipate continued growth but more scrutiny, more pressure on performance and a stronger demand for simplicity and integration.
"2026 will mark retail media's evolution beyond a ROAS obsession toward sophisticated frameworks like ROMO (return on marketing objectives) that measure what actually drives long-term business outcomes: incremental growth, customer lifetime value and brand equity across the full customer journey,” said Zach Darkow, senior director marketing activation & measurement at The Home Depot. “The networks that lead the pack will be those that help advertisers connect upper-funnel brand building with lower-funnel conversion, demonstrating impact at every stage rather than obsessing over last-click attribution.”
"The most successful retail media programs will be shopper‑first by design, balancing near‑term performance with durable relationships built on trust," said Pat Copeland, general manager of commerce media at Moloco.
“AI is remaking the retail media supply chain: Media buying, optimization, forecasting and creative production are moving to AI-driven workflows that operate at speeds and granularity no human team can match,” said Eric Brackmann, vice president, commerce media at Koddi. “Retailers that build for this shift will see faster yield, lower cost-to-serve and more predictable performance.”
“Retailers are moving beyond ‘running ads’ to building connected media ecosystems — integrating data, creative and measurement in one loop,” said Regina Ye, CEO and co-founder of Topsort. “In 2026, retail media will be treated more like a performance system than a media product. You can also expect dynamic, shoppable video, in-app commerce and AI-generated creative to redefine engagement. Retailers will experiment with multimodal formats across connected TV, chatbots, and voice assistants to meet consumers where discovery happens.”
Data, Measurement & Attribution
Measurement conversations in 2026 will be less about models and more about meaning, including proving value across the full journey while simplifying the operational chaos.
“In 2026, CTV will finally bridge the gap between reach and relevance,” said Chris Hogg, chief revenue officer at Publicis Groupe’s Lotame. “As identity resolution and interoperability take center stage, marketers will unify audience data across platforms to build more connected experiences that drive measurable growth. The next era of CTV isn’t about more impressions; it’s about deeper engagement and smarter activation that convert engagement into outcomes.”
“Brands already struggling to integrate metrics from multiple online and social channels will now face even more fractured reporting — apples to oranges to bananas on performance and ROI,” said Brett Banner, senior vice president of strategy at Wayvia (formerly PriceSpider). “Eventually, we will see solutions emerge that unify tagging, traffic visibility and spend optimization across agents, social, retail media and brands’ websites. Platforms that can give brands that single pane of glass will become indispensable.”
“The future of retail media lies in clean, transparent use of first-party data,” said Topsort's Ye. “AI will make personalization possible without invasive tracking, enabling smarter targeting that earns consumer trust instead of exploiting it. The retailers who master privacy-conscious monetization will lead the charge in defining the next phase of data-driven growth.”
AI, Personalization & Automation
If 2024 and 2025 were years of experimentation, 2026 appears poised to power creative, predict intent and increasingly shape the shopper journey.
“In 2026, AI will make commerce better and more personalized for consumers, but radically more confusing for brands,” Wayvia's Banner said. “Marketing teams will have to deal with a flood of shopping agents and AI commerce solutions operating along the path to purchase. Each of these will be its own quasi-channel, sucking up time and resources, and it won’t be easy for brands to choose which to focus on.”
“AI will not take over every purchase all at once,” Koddi's Brackmann said. “It will surge first in categories where it materially increases consumer confidence, like electronics, travel and bigger-ticket retail. These are environments where shoppers want clarity on tradeoffs and fear making the wrong decision. That said, there are some categories where basic product recommendations and subscriptions already handle the convenience layer well enough and there’s limited incremental confidence for AI to unlock. Retailers should stop preparing for a world where AI replaces every cart and instead double down on the categories and missions where AI can create breakthrough value today.”
"The next wave of AI won’t just optimize media, it will reshape how creative is built, versioned and scaled across channels in real time,” said Rob Deichert, chief operating officer at TripleLift. “On CTV, where attention is scarce and expectations are high, bold, interactive; native-feeling formats will continue to outperform repurposed TV ads, because they capture consumer imagination in moments when viewers are actively shifting context and mindset. CTV’s trajectory is toward a fully addressable, outcome-driven channel where great creative is the primary differentiator."
Shopper Behavior & Loyalty Trends
Shoppers in 2026 will be more empowered, more AI-supported and less predictable. Loyalty will require relevance, transparency and value at every touchpoint.
“The funnel isn’t dead — it’s evolving into a living feedback system,” said Heather Campain, VP of growth strategy at Epsilon. “In 2026, marketers will move beyond reach toward responsiveness and resonance, where every click, comment and cart will help brands listen harder and react smarter. The future of the funnel is about learning and iterating in real-time.”
"The next era of loyalty won’t be bought; it will be earned,” Moloco's Copeland said. “In 2026, retailers will rebuild shopper trust through transparent measurement, consistent value and connected experiences that reward consumers beyond the transaction.
