General Mills Activates Albertsons' New Off-Site Retail Media
Albertsons Cos. retail media arm has launched an off-site commerce capability designed to minimize the distance between inspiration and purchase — and General Mills is among the first brands to put it into action.
The solution, powered by “Add-It” technology, allows shoppers to add products, recipes, coupons or offers directly to their Albertsons digital carts from off-site media placements, including display and shoppable content, with connected TV (CTV) and social integrations coming soon.
The launch follows a broader industry trend where retailers are racing to move beyond "brand awareness" ads toward "shoppable" formats that provide more definitive ROI. By integrating Add-It into off-site display and shoppable content, Albertsons Media Collective (AMC) is attempting to capture consumer intent at the point of inspiration, rather than relying on consumers to remember the product during their next login or store visit.
Chex's Peanuts-Themed Holiday Promotion
General Mills’ Chex cereal brand recently utilized the technology by applying it to a multi-unit holiday promotion. The campaign paired holiday nostalgia through limited-edition Peanuts-themed packaging with a “buy three, get a free tin” incentive and a festive recipe to boost seasonal sales, per a statement shared with P2PI.
Typically, a multi-unit promotion requires a shopper to navigate to a landing page and manually add three distinct SKUs to their cart. The "Add-It" integration automates this by bundling the three required products into a single "add-to-cart" action from the initial ad unit.
The execution highlights how off-site retail media is evolving beyond awareness-driven targeting to direct shopping action, enabling shoppers to add products to their carts instantly wherever they discover them.
AMC said the new capability is rooted in observed shopper behavior and designed to create a more intuitive, seamless experience across channels.
“This latest collaboration reflects our core belief that retail media should add value, not complexity, to the shopper experience,” Evan Hovorka, vice president of product innovation at Albertsons Media Collective, said in the statement. “Through this new technology we’re unlocking a new era of frictionless commerce where inspiration seamlessly leads to action.”
For General Mills, the activation aligns with a broader focus on simplifying the path from inspiration to purchase, particularly during high-traffic moments like the holidays. It also highlights a growing demand from CPG brands for retail media networks to provide more than just "passive impressions."
“At General Mills, we’re always looking to make the path from inspiration to purchase seamless for shoppers,” added Janine Cushman, customer marketing manager at General Mills.
Reflecting a Broader Shift in the Market
Albertsons positioned the Add-It solution as a foundational technology that will support future off-site experiences and emerging commerce formats, as retailer media networks continue to expand beyond owned-and-operated properties.
As brands look to capture shopper attention earlier in the journey — across content, display and streaming environments — the ability to translate those moments directly into cart activity may become an increasingly important differentiator in retail media performance.
