LiveRamp enables retail media networks to measure Meta campaign performance

LiveRamp announced expanded measurement capabilities on October 23, 2025, enabling retail media networks to analyze how Meta advertising campaigns perform against first-party sales data. The new functionality operates through the LiveRamp Clean Room, a data collaboration platform that allows retailers to connect Meta campaign results with their own sales information.

Retail media networks can now access attribution insights showing how Meta campaigns drive sales, orders, and return on ad spend across different campaigns, brands, and products. The measurement system works by connecting Meta's advertising platform data with retailers' first-party customer information in what LiveRamp describes as a privacy-safe environment.

Many retail media networks already use LiveRamp to send sales data to Meta for campaign optimization during active campaigns. The October 23 announcement extends these capabilities by adding post-campaign measurement tools. LiveRamp plans to introduce additional features including incrementality analysis, halo effect measurement, and new buyer insights in future updates.

Major retailers implement Meta measurement through LiveRamp platform

Albertsons Media Collective has implemented the expanded Meta measurement capabilities. "With LiveRamp's expanded Meta insights, we have improved the visibility and accuracy of lower-funnel results," said Evan Hovorka, VP of Product Innovation at Albertsons Media Collective. "We did this by connecting audience-targeted Meta campaigns directly to item level sales with greater precision and speed."

Hovorka emphasized that the system uses privacy-preserving solutions to ensure customer data remains protected and anonymized throughout the measurement process. The integration connects Meta campaigns to item-level sales data, providing detailed performance metrics for specific products rather than aggregate campaign results.

Target's retail media arm, Roundel, has also adopted the measurement system. "Clean room measurement of Meta ads with LiveRamp allows us to combine Target's first-party guest insights with Meta's platform ads data in a privacy-safe way," said Guthrie Collin, VP of Product Management at Roundel. The system gives advertisers what Collin described as greater confidence in performance metrics.

Clean room technology enables cross-platform measurement

The LiveRamp Clean Room operates as a neutral data collaboration environment where different parties can analyze combined data sets without directly sharing raw information. Retail media networks have increasingly adopted clean room technology as third-party cookies phase out and privacy regulations tighten.

Clean rooms process data through privacy-preserving techniques that allow aggregated analysis while preventing individual-level data exposure. When a retail media network connects its sales data with Meta campaign data inside the LiveRamp Clean Room, the system can calculate metrics like conversion rates and return on ad spend without either party accessing the other's raw data.

LiveRamp positions itself as a neutral intermediary in these data collaborations. Unlike platforms that operate their own advertising businesses, LiveRamp provides measurement infrastructure without competing for advertising dollars. This neutrality matters to retail media networks that work with multiple advertising platforms and want consistent measurement across different channels.

Retail media networks seek better measurement as budgets grow

The retail media sector reached $52.44 billion in the United States during 2024, according to projections from industry analysts. Growth in retail media spending has created pressure on retail media networks to demonstrate clear return on investment to brand partners.

Retail media networks typically operate advertising platforms that allow consumer goods brands to buy ads on retailer websites and apps. Amazon pioneered this model, but traditional retailers including Walmart, Target, Kroger, and Albertsons have all launched retail media businesses in recent years. These networks leverage retailers' first-party data about purchase behavior to target advertising.

However, brands also run campaigns on platforms like Meta that occur off retailer properties. Connecting these off-site campaigns to actual retail sales has posed measurement challenges. Traditional digital advertising attribution relies on cookies and device identifiers, but privacy changes have limited these approaches.

Technical infrastructure supports privacy-safe data matching

The LiveRamp system uses what it calls a data collaboration network to enable measurement across different platforms. At the technical level, this involves pseudonymized identifiers that allow matching between datasets without exposing personal information.

When a retail media network wants to measure Meta campaign performance, it uploads pseudonymized sales data to the LiveRamp Clean Room. Meta provides campaign exposure data using its own pseudonymized identifiers. LiveRamp's infrastructure matches these identifiers and calculates aggregate metrics like total sales driven by Meta campaigns.

The matching process occurs through cryptographic techniques that prevent either party from seeing individual-level data about customers. Results come back as aggregated statistics showing campaign performance across groups of customers rather than individual purchase behavior.

LiveRamp operates what it describes as a neutral data collaboration platform that works across multiple publishers and platforms. According to the announcement, this neutrality gives retail media networks confidence that measurement remains consistent across different advertising channels.

Attribution measurement addresses multi-platform advertising challenges

Brand advertisers typically run campaigns across multiple platforms simultaneously. A consumer might see ads on Meta, search for products through search engines, visit retail websites, and make purchases in physical stores. Determining which advertising touchpoints influenced the final purchase presents complex attribution challenges.

Attribution modeling has become more difficult as tracking mechanisms like third-party cookies disappear. Advertisers have turned to clean room technologies and first-party data collaborations as alternative measurement approaches.

The LiveRamp measurement system attempts to address these challenges by connecting retail sales data directly with advertising platform data. Rather than tracking individual consumers across platforms, it uses aggregated analysis to show correlations between ad exposure and purchase behavior.

Retail media networks benefit from this measurement because it helps them demonstrate value to brand partners. Brands gain visibility into how off-site advertising drives on-site or in-store purchases. The system provides what LiveRamp describes as item-level attribution, showing performance down to specific products rather than just overall campaign metrics.

Future capabilities target incrementality and cross-brand effects

LiveRamp plans to add incrementality measurement capabilities in future updates. Incrementality analysis attempts to determine which sales would have occurred without advertising exposure. This helps advertisers understand whether campaigns truly drive additional purchases or simply reach customers who would have bought products anyway.

The planned halo analysis feature will measure cross-category purchase effects. When consumers see ads for one product, they sometimes purchase related items from the same brand or category. Halo analysis quantifies these spillover effects that standard attribution models miss.

New buyer insights will track when advertising campaigns reach customers making first-time purchases versus repeat buyers. This metric matters to brands trying to acquire new customers rather than just driving repeat purchases from existing buyers.

LiveRamp describes these upcoming features as tools that will help retailers and suppliers "benchmark performance and prove the full value of their media strategies." The company operates from headquarters in San Francisco with offices worldwide.

Timeline

• October 23, 2025: LiveRamp announces expanded Meta measurement capabilities for retail media networks through its Clean Room platform
• Ongoing: Retail media networks already use LiveRamp to send sales data to Meta for in-flight campaign optimization
• Coming soon: LiveRamp plans to add incrementality analysis, halo effect measurement, and new buyer insights
• Related context: Retail media expected to reach $129.93 billion by 2028
• Related context: Clean rooms become essential infrastructure for retail media networks
• Related context: Privacy changes continue reshaping digital advertising measurement approaches

Summary

Who: LiveRamp, a San Francisco-based data collaboration platform provider, working with retail media networks including Albertsons Media Collective and Target's Roundel. Brand advertisers and consumer goods suppliers also participate in the measurement system.

What: Expanded measurement capabilities that allow retail media networks to analyze Meta advertising campaign performance by connecting Meta campaign data with first-party retail sales data inside the LiveRamp Clean Room. The system provides attribution insights showing sales, orders, and return on ad spend at the campaign, brand, and product levels.

When: LiveRamp announced the expanded capabilities on October 23, 2025. Many retail media networks were already using LiveRamp for in-flight optimization, and the company plans additional features including incrementality and halo analysis in future releases.

Where: The measurement occurs through the LiveRamp Clean Room, a cloud-based data collaboration platform. Retail media networks operate across the United States, with implementation examples from Albertsons and Target. LiveRamp maintains headquarters in San Francisco with worldwide offices.

Why: Retail media networks need better measurement tools to demonstrate value to brand partners as the sector grows toward projected $129.93 billion spending by 2028. Privacy changes have eliminated traditional tracking methods, pushing retailers toward clean room technologies. Connecting off-site advertising on platforms like Meta to actual retail sales helps brands make data-driven budget decisions and helps retail media networks prove advertising effectiveness.