Beyond Meta and Google: 11 Ad Networks Marketers Swear By for Cheaper, Faster Growth

Retail media is the new search: Amazon, Walmart, and Instacart to catch buyers at checkout

Think of these retail platforms as search engines that know the cart before the query finishes. Because shoppers are already browsing product pages or scanning checkout suggestions, ads on Amazon, Walmart, and Instacart hit with purchase intent dialed to eleven. That means cheaper conversion paths than blasting cold audiences on social, clearer attribution thanks to first‑party purchase data, and faster feedback loops for creative and assortment tweaks.

Start lean: pick one SKU or bundle and treat the placement like a micro experiment. Optimize the product detail page first — compelling hero shots, a value-packed bullet, and a quirky-but-clear CTA. Then test ad types that map to intent: sponsored product ads for "I’ll buy this," brand ads for "I’m comparing," and promoted placements or checkout bump creatives for impulse lifts. Small, surgical bids beat broad sweeps.

Measure like a scientist. Track ACOS and ROAS but layer in holdout tests or geo controls to spot incrementality. Use the platform’s event windows (same-day conversions matter in grocery) and stitch purchase IDs back to your CRM when possible to fuel retargeting. If you see a pattern — high CTR, low conversion — it’s probably a PDP problem; low CTR and decent PDP metrics mean creative or audience tuning is overdue.

Quick checklist: Test: one SKU, one placement; Optimize: PDP before scaling; Measure: ACOS + incrementality; Bundle: ads + coupons for checkout lift. Treat retail media like an owned performance channel: experiment small, harvest what converts, then scale the winners for cheaper, faster growth.

Native that feels like content: Outbrain, Taboola, and MGID for high scale without ad fatigue

Native networks like Outbrain, Taboola, and MGID are the little black dress of scalable performance marketing: they never go out of style and they make most creative assets look good. Instead of banging users over the head with banners, these placements fold into editorial flows so your message feels earned. The payoff is lower CPMs, longer attention spans, and far less ad fatigue when you respect the reader.

Start with a content mindset. Lead with a strong curiosity gap headline, then push visitors to a value rich landing page, not a thin product splash. Test 3 thumbnails, 2 headlines, and 2 angles per campaign; within two weeks you will know which creative family actually drives time on page and downstream conversions. Aim for CTR improvements of 20 to 50 percent before scaling spend.

Each platform has a personality: Outbrain favors premium publishers and performs well for consideration campaigns, Taboola gives large reach and nice discovery widgets that help cold audiences warm up, and MGID often wins on international, lower CPC markets. Match native creative to the publisher tone, use readable imagery, and sprinkle strong social proof or data to keep engagement up without sounding like an ad.

Want a quick way to test a discovery channel with setup done for you? Try a focused service like reddit boosting to siphon early interest into retargeting pools, then fold winners into native buys for multiplier effect. Experiment, measure attention, and let content sell the click.

CTV and audio that convert: Roku, Hulu, and Spotify turn couch time into revenue

Streaming and listening are the new commute: audiences are relaxed, attention is high, and ad clutter is lower than on social feeds. Roku and Hulu turn living rooms into premium discovery zones with CTV spots and companion banners, while Spotify captures focused ears on commute, work, and playlists. These channels often deliver lower CPMs and higher completion rates, making them an excellent play for growth that feels both cheaper and faster.

Start with creative that respects the medium. For CTV, think 15-30 second spots with a strong visual hook in the first 3 seconds and a clear visual CTA for the TV viewer. Use companion banners and pixel-enabled landing pages to bridge the TV-to-web gap. On audio, script for sound-first storytelling and include a spoken promo code or unique URL so you can attribute conversions back to the campaign.

Targeting and sequencing win the day. Layer household demo and interest signals on Roku and Hulu, then follow up with audio retargeting on Spotify to keep momentum. Test frequency caps aggressively to avoid waste and use dayparting to push offers when people are most receptive. If you want a quick win, explore self-serve tools and creative templates to iterate faster — for example, boost spotify for rapid audio campaigns that amplify awareness and drive measurable action.

Measure like a performance marketer: compare CPM, completion rate, and CPA, and prioritize creative that drives both lift and conversions. Run A/B tests on length, call to action, and offer, then scale winners with incremental budgets. Treat CTV and audio as complementary funnels — visuals to seduce, audio to sustain — and you will turn couch time into reliable revenue without the bidding wars on Meta or Google.

B2B precision targeting: LinkedIn Ads that fill pipelines

LinkedIn ads aren't a volume play — they're a precision surgical tool for B2B marketers. Start by mapping your ideal customer profile into clear audience layers: job function, seniority, company size, and account lists. Use narrow layers early to prove signal, then broaden only when conversion metrics stay healthy.

Make Matched Audiences your secret weapon: upload target account lists, retarget site visitors, and create lookalikes from your highest-value converters. Pair that with Lead Gen Forms for low-friction capture, but resist the temptation to ask everything up front — one or two qualifying fields + a compelling value prop beats a long form every time.

Creative matters: short, benefit-first headlines, one clear CTA, and social proof that speaks to the prospect's context (e.g., "How X company reduced churn by 23%"). Test three creative variants per audience segment and iterate fast. Swap single-image ads with a short case-study carousel when you're trying to move skeptical decision-makers.

On bidding and optimization, start with LinkedIn's automated bidding to collect data, then move to manual CPA targets as you scale. Optimize for leads or qualified conversions rather than clicks; ensure your conversion tracking and CRM sync are flawless so optimization learns from real pipeline impact.

Structure campaigns by ICP and stage — top accounts, warm retargeting, and intent-driven lead-gen — and apply frequency caps to avoid ad fatigue. When a segment converts reliably, scale horizontally by similar industries or subtly loosen firmographic filters. Do that, and LinkedIn becomes a predictable engine that actually fills your pipeline — not just your vanity metrics.

Game on, marketer: Unity, ironSource, and Chartboost for mobile users who spend

Think of these platforms as the arcade owners of mobile advertising: Unity, ironSource, and Chartboost sit where engaged players spend time and money. They offer formats that actually monetize intent — rewarded video, playables, and immersive interstitials — so you pay for attention that converts. Start by prioritizing rewarded placements for monetizers and testing playables for high intent acquisition; both tend to produce higher LTV than basic display. Integration via SDK is straightforward and you can run cross promotion campaigns inside publisher ecosystems to recycle high value users.

On bidding and targeting use a mix of CPI testing and early LTV signals. Run short CPI experiments to find inventory that yields high day seven retention, then switch to ROAS rules with day 7 to day 30 LTV as your north star. Turn on in app bidding and programmatic mediation to access premium buyers and avoid waste. When measurement is limited, model cohorts server side and focus on trends not single conversions. Use lookalike modeling from high value cohorts and segment by in app behavior such as purchase velocity and session depth for more surgical spend.

Creative wins on mobile. Ship a playable or 15 second reward clip that shows the first addictive loop and a clear call to action. Use deep links to drop high value users straight into purchase or the paid feature trial; reduce friction and track events that matter. Run simple A/Bs of hook, thumbnail, and CTA, and only scale creatives that lift both retention and average spend per converted user. Localize ASO assets and creatives for major markets and test reward amounts to find the sweet spot between engagement and margin.

Measure like a scientist and scale like a strategist: compare cohort LTV curves, monitor frequency caps to avoid churn, and scale winners gradually by 20 percent per day while watching CPM and D7 retention. Negotiate house placements for top titles, leverage platform analytics for audience pools, and always budget a small portion for exploration. Keep a daily anomaly alert for spikes in refunds or uninstalls and be ready to pull creative or adjust bids fast. The result is cheaper installs that turn into real spenders, not just vanity metrics.