It’s a commerce media world—and we’re all just living in it.
Today, PayPal announced that data from its three platforms/apps—PayPal, Venmo (payments), and Honey (coupons and cash-back)—will now be available for offsite ad targeting, in a new offering called… drumroll, please: Offsite Ads. Publicis Media will be the first agency to gain access on behalf of its clients.
According to the company’s press release, Offsite Ads offer “a new way for advertisers to tap into the power of PayPal’s transaction graph and reach millions of consumers across the open web.” The company also emphasizes that the data powering the new offering is “actual purchase data across millions of merchants,” which will be used to improve targeting precision—and, with it, campaign performance.
Why This Matters:
PayPal is quickly becoming a key player in commerce media, a growing category of companies that aren’t traditional retailers but are building massive ad businesses just the same, using their data and inventory.
A year ago, PayPal launched its commerce media network, PayPal Ads, to serve ads within its own ecosystem of apps/inventory. With today’s news, it’s expanding beyond its own properties and into the open web, using its transaction data for targeting This is another signal that commerce media isn’t just for retailers anymore, and that more companies will continue to launch and grow these kinds of offerings.
Financial services companies like PayPal are especially well-positioned for this shift. They have access to vast amounts of real purchase data and own high-intent inventory (apps and websites where consumers are actively shopping or considering buying). We’ve seen others in the space work to build commerce media businesses, like Chase and Western Union. This will only continue.
Experts React:
Here’s what Dr. Mark Grether, SVP and GM of PayPal Ads had to say about the announcement on LinkedIn:
“Shopping is changing — and advertising must change with it. That means showing up across the many different platforms and screens where consumers are making purchases and doing so in a way that anticipates their needs.”
He added that: “Offsite Ads was built to do exactly that: help brands reach shoppers where they are and anticipate their intent by utilizing PayPal’s unique commerce intelligence to media across the open web.”
Our Take:
There has been some “light” skepticism lately about media networks and their effectiveness. That pressure is mounting.
To that end, beyond the benefits of offsite ad targeting for retail and commerce media companies, it’s worth considering whether expanding into the open web also serves as a long-term, “soft” hedge as media networks face increased scrutiny over performance and value. Media networks are also difficult to scale, even if you’re PayPal and own three popular apps. Enabling offsite, open web advertising can solve for this.
