For the fourth year in a row, Kroger Precision Marketing—the retail media business of the Kroger Co. powered by 84.51°—is one of an elite group of media publishers to achieve platinum certification from the Trustworthy Accountability Group (TAG).
As the world’s leading program to fight criminal activity and protect brand safety in digital advertising, the 700+ member TAG community includes the world’s largest and most influential brands, agencies, publishers, and ad tech providers. TAG advances its mission by connecting industry leaders, analyzing threats, and sharing best practices worldwide.
“Kroger Precision Marketing has demonstrated its digital marketing leadership by achieving TAG’s rigorous certifications in all three program areas: upholding brand safety, eliminating ad fraud, and combatting malware,” said Mike Zaneis, CEO of TAG. “By implementing industry best practices across TAG’s program areas, Kroger has shown its commitment to a safe, transparent, and crime-free digital advertising supply chain.”
TAG Platinum Certification reflects how Kroger Precision Marketing is leading the way in retail media accountability through its ongoing dedication to transparency and responsibility. With more than 2,000 CPG brands as clients, KPM works to keep the highest safety standards in the media ecosystem.
“Digital marketers need to earn consumer trust every day,” said Cara Pratt, SVP of Kroger Precision Marketing. “The next generation of ad-supported media must be consumer-centric, and the standards we’re upholding through TAG are foundational for improving the user experience.”
Kroger was one of only 23 companies—including just two retail media networks—to recently receive “TAG Platinum” status by successfully obtaining all three of TAG’s certification seals:
- Brand Safety Certified: The Brand Safety Certification program aims to minimize the risk of advertising being placed on inappropriate or unsafe digital media, protecting the reputation and integrity of advertisers. By promoting industry-regulated brand safety standards and transparency, the program helps to ensure ad budgets are spent prudently.
- Certified Against Fraud: The TAG Certified Fraud Program is a coordinated approach to effectively combat fraud. By setting standards and encouraging legitimate participants in the supply chain to meet them, the program has demonstrated success in reducing fraudulent invalid traffic to below 1% in TAG-certified U.S. channels. By comparison, non-TAG Certified Channels have 35.71% higher in fraud, according to a 2022 TAG report.
- Certified Against Malware: TAG has partnered with industry leaders to design the Certified Against Malware Program, providing companies with a roadmap for taking on the complicated issue of malware in advertising. Certification requirements include designating a compliance officer, annual training, employing effective malware detection and removal services, and post-mortem reviews.
This certification follows other industry recognition for the retail media network. A recent survey of brand managers conducted by The Path to Purchase Institute (P2PI) ranked Kroger Precision Marketing as the #1 retail media network for audience, measurement, and traffic-driving capabilities. Survey results appear in the P2PI 2023 annual trends report.
“We’ve proven that retail media can make advertising more relevant and helpful for shoppers, while at the same time more effective and safe for brands,” Pratt said. “These recent survey results and our TAG Platinum status affirm how we are raising expectations for the digital advertising industry.”
About Kroger Precision Marketing
Kroger Precision Marketing (KPM) is the retail media business of Kroger. Powered by 84.51° data science, and Kroger’s popular loyalty card program, KPM connects customers to brands through engaging moments that inspire purchasing online or in-store. Kroger Precision Marketing closes the loop between media exposure and store sales to make brand advertising more addressable, actionable, and accountable. Learn more at KrogerPrecisionMarketing.com.
