The way brands understand consumers is shifting because the data feeding those insights is changing. Retailers, platforms, and even financial networks are opening new types of information that show what people really buy, when, and under what influences. That should, in theory, make decision-making faster and more grounded. In practice, it also adds new questions about quality, privacy, and how much of this data anyone truly needs. 

1. Retailer data sets the baseline 

Retailers with large loyalty programs offer brands a detailed view of what shoppers buy, where they buy it, and how marketing or promotions influence those choices.  

Walmart’s Scintilla, Tesco’s Media & Insight Platform, and Kroger Precision Marketing are just some examples of how first-party retail data helps brands plan activity and measure real sales impact. These systems are turning point-of-sale data into live insight engines that close the gap between marketing and commercial teams. 

1. Clean rooms close the loop  

Tools such as Amazon Marketing Cloud (AMC) and Google’s Ads Data Hub help teams see how ads influence sales without exposing personal data. They use anonymized, event-level signals to reveal which ad sequences lead to purchases, which products bring in new customers, and how long it takes for a campaign to have an impact.  

In AMC, brands can also look at patterns such as gateway products, cross-sell behavior, or how Subscribe & Save offers build long-term value. Case studies show companies using these insights to improve targeting and reduce wasted spend.  

1. Clouds connect the pipes 

As data spreads across more systems, companies are using cloud collaborations to connect it securely. Partnerships like NIQ’s clean room on Snowflake and PepsiCo’s work with AWS show how brands are creating governed environments where marketing, sales, and research teams can access consistent data. The goal is not storage, but faster, safer sharing of insight across teams and markets. 

Cloud systems also standardize privacy and quality controls, reducing the time spent cleaning data and improving confidence in what it means. 

1. AI improves speed, not quality 

AI is now part of nearly every stage of the insight process, from data cleaning and survey verification to predictive modeling. It can flag unusual patterns faster than humans ever could, but it also introduces new risks if used without transparency or context. 

Research from ESOMAR confirms that organizations need structured frameworks to evaluate AI-based research services. Major brands are experimenting carefully: Unilever, for example, is using AI to summarize consumer feedback and detect emerging themes, but decisions remain human-led. 

1. Real-time customer panels add the why 

Retailer and transaction data tell you what happened. Real-time customer panels explain why. Retailer-hosted communities that survey verified buyers are raising the bar on response quality and relevance. Walmart’s Customer Spark Community compared its verified shoppers with four industry panels and reported far fewer unusable responses and richer open-ends from its own customers. It’s a practical example of getting a cleaner “why” from people who actually shop the category. 

Teams can bring the same idea into their broader insight stack with always-on tracking that applies real-time quality controls and connects to retail and clean-room signals. Delineate provides a continuous read on brand and campaign sentiment that lines up with what sold and where, so decisions move faster and stay grounded in evidence. 

1. Retail media reshapes measurement 

Global retail media spend is set to pass $300 billion by 2030, up from about $184 billion in 2025, which is large enough to change how brands plan and prove impact. Independent forecasts point the same way, projecting retail media to reach roughly one-fifth of global ad spend by 2030, reinforcing why consistent methods and privacy-safe analytics are now a priority. 

As retail media becomes one of the biggest drivers of consumer behavior, traditional tracking often misses what happens in the moment. The Delineate consumer-centric, episodic model captures real-time reactions to retail media and brand activity, linking how people feel with what they do. 

• Walmart Scintilla: verified shoppers, better answers 

Walmart’s insights ecosystem now brings together first-party behavioral signals and verified-shopper feedback. In an open case study comparing the Customer Spark Community with four industry panels, Walmart reported far fewer unusable responses and more thoughtful open-ends from verified shoppers (including 0% “gibberish” responses vs. 10% in a generic panel), a practical illustration that representative sourcing improves decision quality. 

And it’s not only diagnostics. Scintilla-powered insight has been used to accelerate innovation with supplier partners. For example, DUDE Wipes used verified-shopper insight during concept and pack work for a kids’ line. It shows how a cleaner “why” can translate into decisions that show up on the shelf. 

Why it matters: Verified buyers improve the quality and relevance of “why” data, which helps concepts, claims, and packs travel better into the aisle. 

• Kroger’s 84.51°: audiences that deliver results 

84.51° routinely shows how retailer first-party audiences outperform generic segments offsite and onsite. In one recent published analysis, Kroger Precision Marketing audiences delivered 5.1x higher sales per 1,000 households and 3.9x higher household penetration offsite versus non-KPM audiences, while improving on-site engagement.  

Why it matters: First-party loyalty data builds audiences that work across channels, and retailers can show which ads led to sales (something third-party cookies can’t do anymore). 

• Amazon Marketing Cloud: event-level insight you can act on 

Brands use AMC to analyze privacy-safe, event-level data and see which ads and products drive people to buy. P&G’s Oral-B refined its Amazon Ads strategy using AMC insights, reducing waste and improving conversions. Amazon Publisher Cloud builds on this by helping brands reach premium publishers and connected TV audiences through AWS Clean Rooms, without sharing personal data. 

Why it matters: You can see which ads and sequences influence shoppers, how long it takes for results to appear, and use those insights to plan the next campaign with confidence. 

• Tesco: shopper truth that drives growth 

Nestlé’s Winning Weekends campaign with Tesco reached 5.8 million customers and delivered an 11% sales uplift. Stores that combined POS with digital SmartScreens performed best, showing a 33% vs. 15% uplift compared with POS-only locations. For emerging brands, Halo Top used Tesco’s retail media and loyalty audiences to become the retailer’s #2 luxury ice cream in just six months. These are clear examples of how connecting shopper data with in-store media can drive measurable results. 

Why it matters: When audience planning is built on real shopper behavior, you can link media exposure to measurable sales outcomes at store level. 

• Target Roundel: extending reach with first-party proof 

Roundel connects brands to 165M+ Target guests and now places 30%+ of partner media off Target’s owned properties (social, streaming, premium publishers), while keeping first-party audience quality and closed-loop reporting. Programmatic access spans 50+ premium publisher partners via its marketplace.  

Why it matters: You can scale beyond a single site without losing the advantages of retailer data, useful as third-party cookies fade and offsite becomes a bigger share of retail media. 

• PepsiCo + AWS: connecting data at global scale 

PepsiCo partnered with AWS to build a unified data foundation that connects information from sales, marketing, supply chain, and consumer insights into a single cloud environment. The goal is to make data easier to access and use across markets, reducing silos and enabling faster collaboration. PepsiCo says the platform has already helped improve forecasting, optimize marketing, and speed up innovation cycles. 

Why it matters: Whether at store level or global scale, brands that connect retail, media, and operational data can move faster and base every decision on consistent, trusted evidence. 

• Delineate Proximity: the live “why” aligned with sales 

The Delineate Proximity® platform delivers always-on consumer feedback with real-time quality controls and daily delivery, so teams can line up the “why” with sales and media reality. In partnership with The Coca-Cola Company, Proximity tracks up to 1,000 campaigns a year across 40 always-on markets (up to 55 in any year), feeding a standardized dashboard for in-flight decisions. A client testimonial on the case page cites at least a 25% lift in campaign effectiveness thanks to the ability to adjust on the fly.  

Why it matters: A continuous, validated read on the “why” shortens the path from signal to action and keeps decisions grounded in evidence. 

The way we understand consumers is changing fast, and so is the work of insights teams.  The job now is not to collect more data, but to connect it and turn it into action. 

• Focus on quality, not quantity. Verified buyers and clean data make insights stronger and easier to trust. 

• Bring the pieces together. Retail, media, and consumer data often sit in different places. The real advantage comes when they line up to tell one clear story. 

• Move fast, but with context. Real-time data helps only when it’s clear what it means and what to do with it. 

• Build translators, not just tools. Technology helps, but people who can explain what the numbers mean for the business are the ones who make data valuable.

The strongest insight teams use data sources in a clear order: observe what happened, understand why, then decide on what comes next. Together, these steps form a continuous loop between evidence and action. 

Find out how Delineate can help your CMI team connect real-time consumer understanding with the data that drives better, faster decisions.