Albertsons Media Collective has begun a new integration with Criteo, the global commerce intelligence platform, that brings sponsored product discovery into Albertsons Cos.’ AI-powered conversational search. The integration enables brands to connect with shoppers as they plan meals, discover products and build baskets.
Through Criteo, eligible sponsored products can appear within AI-powered conversational search product carousels. The experience is designed to surface product options that are highly relevant to search queries and fit naturally within the conversation.
More than 85 percent of Albertsons Cos.’ AI-powered conversations begin with open-ended or exploratory questions, allowing shoppers to start with broader needs like planning a meal or restocking for the week and move directly to basket building.
“As shoppers use AI and conversational experiences to explore options, brands have an opportunity to put customers first by connecting them to the right products in the moments that matter,” said Jill Pavlovich, SVP of digital customer experience for Albertsons Cos.
“This integration is about creating retail media that helps customers along their shopping journey, showing up in ways that are useful and additive to their experience, while giving advertisers a new path to engage closer to the moment of purchase.”
Sherry Smith, president of retail media at Criteo, said, “Retail media is expanding, with discovery increasingly happening within AI-driven experiences. With Albertsons Cos. as our first retailer to bring sponsored products into an AI-powered shopping assistant, we are helping brands connect with shoppers in those moments of intent, setting the foundation for how retailers will monetize AI-driven discovery while maintaining control of the shopper journey.”