Deliveroo partners with SMG to boost retail media offering to brands and advertisers

Deliveroo has forged a partnership with retail media player SMG to grow its advertising offering with both fmcg and non-food brands.

The partnership would mean the aggregator app can respond to “the growing need from advertisers and agencies to be present in hyper-relevant moments when consumers are most receptive”, Deliveroo said.

Deliveroo launched its advertising platform in 2022, giving brands the chance to promote products across its app, website, social media, and push notifications.

The company said it had seen strong growth for the Deliveroo Media business since launch, and its rollout to other markets. Ad revenue as a percentage of gross transactional volume increased to 1.4% in the last quarter of 2024, “good progress” towards the company’s target of 2% of gross transactional volume in 2026.

Over the past year, Deliveroo said it had improved the experience for brands with the launch of new features and enhanced targeting, increased relevance using machine learning models and launched new formats for non-endemic brands.

In 2024, this led to a 15% increase in the number of merchant partners placing ads. Some 90% of all partners who placed an ad last year returned to place another within a month.

Since launch, Deliveroo has also worked with brands including Coca-Cola, Pepsi and Heineken, as well as ITV and Sky, which had “leveraged Deliveroo’s media capabilities and audience to drive highly relevant and targeted campaigns”.

“I’m really proud of the advertising business we’ve built over the last three-and-a-half years – and the strong growth we’ve seen,” said Carlo Mocci, chief business officer at Deliveroo. “Our advertising offer is built on great fundamentals – every one of the 300 million orders we receive a year are for high-intent consumers, and each one of these orders has the potential to have an ad tied to them.

“We’ve already worked with thousands of merchant partners, and some of the world’s biggest brands – helping them to tap into specific consumer moments and drive strong returns,” Mocci added. “As we look to the future, we’ll offer enhanced user targeting, better campaign insights and new formats to advertisers.” 

SMG – which claims to be responsible for trading more than £1.9m in retail media every day – currently operates five of the largest retail media networks in the UK for Boots, Asda, Morrisons, Co-op and The Very Group. In January, it launched a world-first travel network for WH Smith in North America. In April, with Co-op’s retail media network, it launched a new offering to brands to tap its first-party data to target “curated sets of convenience shoppers” online.

Deliveroo said its seven million monthly active global users and expanded play across restaurant, grocery and now non-food retail offered “opportunities for fmcg advertisers to influence purchase decisions based on real-life needs”.

“From forgotten beers during a big game to an impromptu birthday party, to a quick grocery top-up, to DIY products, or a last-minute gift, Deliveroo Media helps brands ‘Deliver Meaningful Moments Now’,” the company says in its pitch to marketeers.

Deliveroo said Deliveroo Media offered a “compelling opportunity” for non-grocery brands across several sectors including media and entertainment, financial services, travel and technology, seeking access to a “highly valuable, loyal, and attentive audience in a brand-safe and contextually relevant environment”.

“It’s becoming increasingly clear that different commerce media networks can deliver highly differentiated and powerful opportunities, and SMG is truly excited about the potential for Deliveroo Media to leverage its position as a recognised leading hyper-local food delivery marketplace,” said Sam Knights, CEO of SMG.

“The sheer congestion of messaging in our daily lives means brands must focus on moments of true receptivity. Deliveroo Media offers brands the capability to connect in moments when it is truly meaningful. We’re excited to be using our 16 years of expertise in running media networks to maximise the opportunity for Deliveroo Media.”