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October 20, 2025
Are Consumers Actually Warming Up to Sponsored Ads?
In a turn which authors termed as shoppers warming up to sponsored ads launched by retail media networks (RMNs), a recent Bain & Company report titled “Retail Media: The Gift That Keeps on Giving” indicated that U.S. consumers were exhibiting growing acceptance of this advertising stream.
“With growing acceptance of sponsored ads across generations, advertisers and retail media networks can go bold this season,” a Bain graphic proclaimed.
That sentiment appeared to be evident in the data presented: In 2025, a majority (61%) of respondents stated that they don’t mind seeing sponsored ads for relevant brands or products, up from 47% last year; nearly half (42%) believe that the sponsored ads they see are usually relevant, up from just 24% in 2024; and more than half (53%) suggested that sponsored ads can actually be helpful when “done well,” an improvement over the 40% who said so a year ago.
Generational Divide Between Millennials and Boomers Concerning Sponsored Ads, and More Metrics
Other notable statistics from the Bain report, conducted in conjunction with Rocket ROI:
- There’s a generation divide in opinions regarding sponsored ads delivered via RMNs: Nearly three-quarters of millennials (70%) indicated they weren’t put off by seeing relevant sponsored ads, while only 54% of baby boomers said the same. Gen Xers and zoomers fell comfortable in between these two poles.
- In terms of growth tactic rankings, retail media enjoyed a third-place position. E-commerce took the No. 1 spot, followed by marketing and media more broadly. In fourth was shopper marketing, and trade came in fifth.
- Ad buyers are lining up: Ad buyers project an increase of 11.6% in total spend with RMNs in 2025 versus 2024.
- However, consolidation in terms of preferred RMN spend is happening: Instead of six RMNs being the figure cited by ad buyers in 2024, that figure has dropped to 5, with consolidation of networks playing at least some part in calculations.
These figures echo results coming from an also-recent Zappi poll which found that consumers were showing increased acceptance of ads writ large (also echoing the age gap tied to ad enjoyment as a whole) — and perhaps more importantly, that humor, relevance, and creativity were the major drivers between the best ads and those deemed less attractive.
“To start, many consumers enjoy advertising that helps them discover new products, stay informed and find good deals — and they appreciate entertaining, funny or creatively relevant ads,” Zappi’s Katie Sweet and Kelsey Sullivan outlined.
“But it’s humor and relatable content that are Americans’ most valued aspects of advertising, with strong visuals and appreciated brands also boosting appeal,” Sweet and Sullivan added.
Discussion Questions
Do you believe that consumers are actually warming up to sponsored ads, broadly speaking? Why or why not? What concerns remain?
What lessons can be learned by the apparent consolidation of RMN spend? Is it simply a matter of networks merging, or are ad buyers getting choosier about where they park their dollars?
What is behind the claimed generational divide when it comes to sponsored ads? Why are millennials more favorable toward the ads than Gen Z or Gen X, in your estimation?
Poll
Loading …BrainTrust
Jeff Sward
Founding Partner, Merchandising Metrics
Doug Garnett
President, Protonik
Frank Margolis
Executive Director, Growth Marketing & Business Development, Toshiba Global Commerce Solutions
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This is an odd thing to survey consumers about because the questions, by their nature, can only be general and completely lack context. That context includes the relevance of the ad, where and how the ad is placed, and so forth. The honest answer is that sponsored ads are OK if they are not overly intrusive and if they have a degree of relevance to the consumer. To that end, plastering a store with advertising (digital or otherwise) is still not a good idea as it distracts and annoys customers.
And as for RMNs in general — they are not the silver bullet some think they are. Many retailers have simply jumped on the bandwagon, seeing them as a way to drive some cheap incremental revenue. The problem is that there’s a limited budget for marketing spend, and not every RMN is going to see huge success. Many will be very niche (nothing wrong with that), but the real rewards will accrue to retailers that can deliver the audience — and that means Amazon, Walmart, and a handful of others.
Consumers are gradually warming up to sponsored ads—but only when they’re relevant, transparent, and additive to the shopping experience. Shoppers increasingly recognize that well-targeted ads can actually help them discover new products or deals, especially in retail media environments where they’re already in a buying mindset. Still, trust and intrusiveness remain key concerns; when ads feel manipulative, interruptive, or out of context, they can quickly undo progress in consumer acceptance.
The consolidation of retail media network (RMN) spending reflects a maturing marketplace. Advertisers are becoming more selective, prioritizing fewer networks that deliver clear performance, better targeting, and seamless measurement. It’s not simply networks merging—it’s brands demanding accountability and ROI. The winners will be those that connect retail media impressions directly to real sales and shopper behavior rather than simply adding more ad inventory.
As for the generational divide, millennials tend to be more receptive because they’ve grown up with digital advertising and see sponsored content as part of the discovery process. Gen Z, on the other hand, prizes authenticity and is less tolerant of overtly promotional content, while older shoppers are more traditional and value transparency. Ultimately, the lesson for brands is simple: respect the audience, personalize with purpose, and ensure every sponsored ad genuinely enhances the consumer journey rather than distracting from it.
Sponsored ads – whether on tv at 6am or running 24/7 in a store – are always met with more hesitancy than traditional ads, because these sponsored ads are trying to look more legitimate than they really are. They’re ads, designed to appeal to emotion, and get you to buy more – no amount of celebrity cameos or doctors you’ve never heard of will change this fact. I would venture to guess that sponsored ads see a lower ROI than traditional, when you factor in their higher costs to produce.
The idea consumers are “warming up” to the ads is entirely wrong. That’s a broad conclusion of intent unjustified by what we are seeing. Rather, it is impossible for consumers to avoid them — so they are adapting behavior and putting up with them. Unfortunately, neither retail ecosystems or advertisers are paying attention to the destructive effect they are having on the overall experience of customers as that destruction lies hidden behind “advertising metrics” implying perfection.
I’m with you on the semantics: “abject surrender” was my word choice.
Wish I’d thought of that one… I think you nailed it.
I do think relevant ads can be genuinely useful for shoppers, especially now that personalization has improved through cookies and AI. As these tools evolve and ad placements become smarter and more timely, more consumers will likely warm up to sponsored ads.
Welcome to the “Pseudo-Agency” problem in retail media. The Bain report’s optimistic framing that consumers are “warming up” to sponsored ads fundamentally misreads the situation. Consumers aren’t developing affection for advertising; they’re adapting behavioral patterns to navigate increasingly unavoidable commercial environments. When you can’t complete basic shopping tasks without encountering sponsored content, survey responses shift from resistance to acceptance. This is adaptation under constraint, not a manifestation of preference.
The consolidation from six to five preferred retail media networks isn’t about advertiser sophistication—it’s about platform dominance. Amazon, Walmart, and a handful of others are capturing the real rewards because they control enough consumer attention to justify spend. More critically, this consolidation creates the infrastructure prerequisite for what comes next: platform-controlled AI agents that transform overt advertising into algorithmic pseudo-advocacy.
The “warming up” narrative should concern anyone who understands what’s coming. We’re not building consumer enthusiasm for AI-mediated commerce. We’re conditioning acceptance of pseudo-agency infrastructure that will be exponentially harder to challenge once behavioral patterns crystallize around platform-controlled agents. The window for choosing authentic consumer agency over sophisticated advertising evolution is compressed and closing. Every retailer celebrating improved sponsored ad metrics should be asking: Are we building sustainable competitive advantages, or are we deepening our dependence on platforms that will eventually disintermediate us entirely?
I would not confuse “warming up to” with “learning to ignore” or “learning to tune out” or “learning to tolerate”. What does “warming up to” even mean? Where is the data on the wonderful ROI of RMN? Do RMN’s drive incremental growth or is it market share shift to the advertisers? And there are no downsides anyone wants to talk about?
I have no doubt that RMN’s will continue to grow. They will absolutely weave themselves into the retail fabric. The big question is…will they be effective in the metaverse…???