Best Buy is transforming its in-house advertising unit into a business designed to help consumer goods manufacturers, even outside of its current electronic partners, find customers.
Best Buy Ads will help other businesses leverage the customer insights the retailer gains through its national reach, Best Buy said Tuesday. It will also help turn Best Buy’s stores, websites and apps into advertising platforms for other businesses.
“With Best Buy Ads, we are able to leverage the unique relationships that only Best Buy has with its customers,” company president Keith Bryan said in a statement.
Using Best Buy Ads, consumer product manufacturers can purchase sponsored products and display ads on BestBuy.com and in-store video ads using televisions and computer monitors.
Best Buy will also provide services to reach customers through channels external to the electronics business, such as search ads on popular online search engines, offsite video ads and social media ads.
“Technology is all around us – it’s in our cars, our kitchens, and more than ever, the way our families work and learn at home,” Bryan said. “With Best Buy Ads, brands can be there alongside our customers as they adapt and live their lives.”
Best Buy Ads will replace what was previously called the Best Buy Media Network.
Best Buy — like other big companies like Target — has operated an in-house creative advertising team for years. In 2018, its in-house marketing team led a brand overhaul that included a new logo, which hadn’t been changed in almost 30 years.
In its announcement, Best Buy said extended services will provide another revenue stream for the company, though it didn’t set an expectation for its size or amount.
In its most recent fiscal quarter ended Oct. 30, Best Buy’s overall revenue rose about 0.5% to $11.9 billion. Comparable sales increased by approximately 2%.
