MikMak and retail media: what is no longer enough for brands

MikMak-style platforms have played a genuine role in the evolution of retail media. They have helped brands make their campaigns more shoppable, connect content with distributors and monitor part of the buying journey more effectively. The point is not to claim that these solutions are no longer useful. That would be too simplistic and inaccurate. The real issue is that modern retail media now requires more than a link to a retailer or a dashboard of clicks. Brands want to understand what happens after exposure, after the click and before the sale.

In practice, the same issue appears frequently. A brand launches a campaign. The media generates visibility. The format is interactive. The consumer clicks. Then the analysis becomes unclear. Which retailer actually captured demand? Was the product available? Was the click useful? Did the campaign generate strong intent or only curiosity? This is where the limitations of MikMak or similar platforms can appear. The issue is not always the activation itself, but the depth of performance management behind it.

Shoppable media is no longer enough on its own

Shoppable media was long presented as a simple answer to a genuine problem: reducing the distance between inspiration and purchase. In principle, this is relevant. A banner, video, social post or landing page can become an entry point toward a retailer. This is better than passive media, but it is not enough.

Modern retail media is no longer limited to making an asset clickable. It needs to connect a message, product, distributor, availability, sometimes a price, and actionable measurement. If one of these elements is missing, shoppable media performance remains difficult to prove. Teams know that the user clicked, but they do not necessarily know whether the journey genuinely moved the brand closer to a sale.

Shoppable media should therefore be designed as a complete journey rather than a simple interactive format. This point is particularly relevant when media activation needs to be connected with retail performance.

Measurement is often still too focused on clicks

The second point of friction is measurement. Many historical commerce media or where-to-buy platforms provide useful indicators such as impressions, openings, clicks and retailer exits. These metrics matter, but marketing teams now expect a more business-focused reading.

A click toward a retailer does not tell the whole story. It does not show whether the retailer was relevant. It does not confirm that the product was available. It does not prove that the landing page was correct. It does not indicate whether the user was genuinely close to purchase. For a CPG brand, this distinction matters greatly. Retail media budgets are increasing, CMOs need to justify their decisions and sales teams want to see the impact on distributors.

This is why retail media measurement is becoming more demanding. Reporting should not only prove that the setup was used. It should help teams understand what deserves to be strengthened, corrected or stopped.

Retailer data is becoming critical

A third common limitation is the quality of retailer data. A platform may display partners, but if the underlying data is weak, decision-making remains fragile. Brands need to know which distributors capture intent, which products stand out, where availability declines, which markets perform and which campaigns genuinely guide demand.

Without actionable retailer data for brands, retail media remains dependent on a partial view. Media teams can show that they generated attention. Retailers often retain the transactional data. The brand is left in the middle with a blind spot between exposure and sale.

Reliable data is therefore essential for optimization. This comparison also shows why descriptive monitoring is no longer enough for brands seeking actionable insights.

What brands should compare

When a brand looks for a retail media platform alternative, it should not only compare marketing promises. It should compare genuine management capabilities. A strong solution should help teams activate, measure and improve performance, not simply redirect users.

The real challenge: connecting media, intent and indirect sales

Modern retail media requires greater discipline. A campaign can no longer be judged only by its level of exposure. It needs to be connected with purchase intent and then with a performance reading across distributors. This is particularly important for brands that do not sell directly. They need intermediate signals to understand whether their investments are genuinely creating commercial value.

This is where MikMak-style platforms may show their limitations if they remain too focused on activation. The real need is not only to create a path toward a retailer. It is to understand what that path produces: which products generate interest, which retailers capture demand, which channels trigger action, which out-of-stock situations create friction and which campaigns deserve more budget.

Intent-focused KPIs provide a more useful reading than a simple retailer exit rate. They help teams distinguish casual activity from signals that are closer to a potential purchase.

When Click2Buy better addresses the need

Click2Buy becomes particularly relevant when a brand wants to go beyond one-off activation. The platform connects digital touchpoints with distributors while also helping teams understand the resulting behaviors: products viewed, selected distributors, channels generating intent, high-performing campaigns, availability and journey quality.

This approach is better suited to brands that want to turn retail media into a measurable growth driver. Brand websites, campaigns, newsletters, social networks and landing pages are no longer only visibility assets. They become entry points toward retail transactions, supported by actionable data.

This makes it possible to move from digital retail activation to performance management. This example highlights why simple redirection is no longer enough when brands need deeper control over the journey.

What we recommend in practice

Before looking for an alternative to MikMak or a similar platform, clarify the actual problem. If the only objective is to make a few media formats more shoppable, an activation solution may be enough. If the objective is to measure retail media impact, track intent, optimize retailers and defend ROI, a more complete platform is required.

• Check what the platform actually measures after the click
• Review the quality of the retailer data provided
• Verify the ability to integrate availability and reliable redirections
• Assess reporting by product, retailer, market and campaign
• Make sure teams can act on insights rather than only view them

The distinction matters. MikMak-style platforms have helped the market move forward, but expectations have changed. Modern retail media now requires greater data clarity, stronger intent measurement, deeper retailer management and a clearer connection with actual performance. A platform that only connects media with clicks may become insufficient. A platform that connects media, intent and retail becomes far more useful for brands.