Uber Ads is doing well. For a company that is only two years old, Uber’s advertising business is expected to hit its $1 billion revenue goal this year, according to the company’s second-quarter earnings report released earlier this week.
Google’s reversal of its plan to eliminate third-party data and now let users decide whether they want to be tracked is unlikely to cause Uber to take its foot off the gas any time soon. Uber is positioning itself as insulated from the impact of Google cookies and is putting its value proposition around its first-party data, location-based consumer insights and global reach front and center.
“Whatever Google decides is their business,” Paul Wright, head of international at Uber Advertising, told Digiday. “The first-party data produced by the retail media networks is actually much more powerful (than third-party cookies) in terms of performance.”
From Uber’s perspective, that’s a fair position, according to three agency executives Digiday spoke to for this article. The ride-sharing app sells various ad formats, including ads that appear in Uber and Uber Eats apps, emails, cartops and in-car tablets. And in June, Uber opened the doors to programmatic shopping through its ride-sharing app. Agency executives say it’s a closed ecosystem where Uber operates within its walls, protecting it from the impact of the cookies.
“It’s absolutely bulletproof,” said Jon Morgenstern, EVP, head of investments at VaynerMedia. At least that’s the case as far as cookies are concerned, he added. “Even though the stuff got hot, the temperature rose, it’s still safe to own and operate.”
Regardless of where the cookie ends up (and how many Chrome users opt in), advertisers are still willing to invest in the growing retail media network space, which now has more than 200 competitors, according to Mimbi, a retail media intelligence platform. In particular, advertisers are struggling with the influx because dollars only stretch to so many ad networks, but that’s not stopping them from spending. According to the World Advertising Research Center (WARC), global retail media spending is set to surpass the $150 billion mark.
“Uber has a lot of valuable data, especially on a very sought-after cohort, namely Generation Z, the millennials, who are very comfortable using Uber’s platforms, whether for transportation, consuming goods or shopping,” says Jennifer Kohl, chief media officer at advertising agency VML.
Uber is not alone in its perceived isolation. Other retail media networks are likely to emulate its strategy as the fate of the cookie comes into greater focus. All of said third-party data is under scrutiny, making retailers’ first-party data gold for advertisers. And as long as retail media networks share their own customer data with advertisers to buy ads on their own media channels, they are relatively protected from the impact of Google’s third-party data, agency executives say.
“There’s no going back. The damage is done, so to speak. The disruption has occurred,” Morgenstern said, pointing to the growth spurt of retail media. “So there’s some relief (in finding alternative identifiers), but the Ubers of the world will certainly still benefit from this.”
