[English Version] Incrementality Measurement Guide : towards more structured measurement in Retail Media

A Key Challenge in a Rapidly Growing Market

While retail media confirms its strategic role in the media strategies of both brands and retailers, performance measurement remains a major challenge—both technically and methodologically.

Among the key indicators, incrementality measurement stands out as an essential lever to assess the true effectiveness of campaigns. However, this concept is still often unclear, misunderstood, and difficult to implement consistently.

A Guide to Understand and Activate Incrementality Measurement

In response, Alliance Digitale is publishing a Guide to Incrementality Measurement to support Retail Media professionals—brands, agencies, media owners, and AdTech providers—in understanding and applying the available evaluation methods.

This document was developed by the Measurement Working Group of the Retail Media Commission, with support from the Retailers Working Group.

“Incrementality measurement cannot be viewed in a silo: it involves all stakeholders in the Retail Media value chain—from strategy to activation and performance analysis. This guide highlights the key roles of each stakeholder to ensure reliable, structured, and actionable measurement."

Florence Bréban, Co-Founder of Datagram DG and co-lead of the Measurement Working Group.

Four Key Goals to Structure Measurement in Retail Media

The Guide to Incrementality Measurement follows four main objectives:

1. Clarify existing methodologies
   The guide outlines the principles, prerequisites, strengths, and limitations of the various methodological approaches used to measure incrementality.
2. Help make informed decisions aligned with business goals
   It emphasizes that there is no one-size-fits-all method, but rather complementary approaches that should be chosen based on the campaign type, available resources, and business priorities.
3. Encourage a strategic approach to measurement
   Measurement should be anticipated as early as the campaign design phase. The guide encourages teams to consider data constraints, timing, budget, and governance from the outset.
4. Promote a shared language across the ecosystem
   By establishing a common reference framework, the guide aims to facilitate collaboration between advertisers, agencies, retail media networks, and technology partners, ultimately strengthening the clarity and efficiency of measurement initiatives.

Three Main Families of Measurement Methods Explained

The guide identifies and compares three main families of incrementality measurement methods:

• Simple comparisons: by time period, geography, or exposure;
• A/B testing: using exposed and control groups in controlled environments;
• Statistical modeling: such as Marketing Mix Modeling (MMM) or counterfactual models.

Each method is illustrated through concrete use cases, along with its application conditions, strengths, and limitations.

Three Reading Levels to Suit All Audiences

The guide is structured to accommodate varying levels of expertise:

• Level 1 – Beginner: to discover the fundamentals of incrementality measurement;
• Level 2 – Intermediate: to deepen the operational use of methods;
• Level 3 – Expert: to master advanced models and complex setups.

“The ambition of this guide is to offer a clear, accessible, and actionable framework for all Retail Media stakeholders. Our goal is to make incrementality measurement more understandable, more reliable, and more useful for driving investment decisions."

Nicolas Trannoy, Strategy & Marketing Director at Luckycart and co-lead of the Measurement Working Group

A Tool to Support the Structuring of Retail Media

With this publication, Alliance Digitale reaffirms its commitment to structuring the Retail Media. The goal is to establish a shared understanding of performance, based on rigorous, comparable, and actionable measurement methodologies—to support the long-term professionalization of the ecosystem.

Download the Guide and Take Action

The Guide to Incrementality Measurement is now available on the Alliance Digitale website. It is designed for all marketing, data, and commercial teams looking to strengthen their approach to performance in Retail Media.