In-app advertising has transformed from an experimental channel into a performance-driven, transparent, and essential part of e-commerce acquisition strategies.
For years, in-app advertising has been viewed by many e-commerce companies as a nice-to-have channel. Although apps offered scalability, concerns arose over transparency, cost-efficiency and measurability. Marketing leaders relied on the web because it was predictable, easy to track and aligned with established CPM and CPC buying models.
Today, that situation has shifted. In-app advertising has evolved into a performance-driven environment characterized by advanced buying models, sophisticated creative formats and increased transparency throughout the supply chain.
For e-commerce advertisers, this evolution makes in-app advertising a key part of their acquisition strategy.
From CPMs to Outcome-Based Economics
Historically, high exchange fees and CPM-based buying made in-app advertising a blunt tool.
But ad networks have evolved to optimize their models toward CPE, CPA and ROAS, which provide advertisers with a direct link between expenditure and results.
Algorithms now act like automated yield managers: If the KPI is a $25 cost-per-event or a 3:1 return on ad spend, bidding strategies are tuned to achieve that goal. This shift is what makes in-app ads competitive with established channels, such as paid search and social media. It also explains why e-commerce budgets are shifting in this direction.
Inventory Quality and Supply Chain Maturity
Supply for in-app advertising has also matured. Advertisers no longer need to navigate blindly in the open exchange. Direct relationships with SDK-driven networks and curated marketplaces have improved brand safety and transparency. This gives ad ops teams more confidence that performance results are genuine and consistent.
Meanwhile, publishers – especially in gaming – are investing in user-first monetization strategies, incorporating rewarded video and interactive formats in ways that don’t alienate audiences. For advertisers, this leads to engaged users rather than accidental clicks.
Creative as a Lever for Performance
Ad ops used to see creative as a constraint in in-app advertising. Now, it’s a lever. Dynamic creative optimization (DCO) and interactive units enable testing at scale: multiple variants, real-time iteration and audience-specific personalization within the ad itself.
For e-commerce, that could mean showing one shopper a carousel of discounted sneakers and another a promo code for skin care, all within the same rewarded video unit. The result: Creative becomes a measurable driver of CPA and ROAS rather than a static variable.
Measurement and Retargeting Alignment
One of the biggest historical challenges was measurement. The move to SKAN 4.0, aggregated reporting and stronger privacy standards have collectively driven innovation in attribution. Leading in-app networks now offer deeper post-install metrics, incrementality testing and cross-channel visibility that enable e-commerce teams to connect campaigns to actual revenue.
This also creates opportunities for smarter reengagement strategies: bringing back lapsed users into retail apps through retargeted in-app placements, supported by proof of incrementality rather than click-through assumptions.
Why It Matters for Ad Ops Teams
For e-commerce advertisers, the story isn’t just that more people use apps; it’s that the operational backbone of in-app advertising has advanced to the point where it now looks and performs like essential infrastructure.
- Buying models map to business outcomes.
- Supply chains are cleaner.
- Creative formats drive measurable engagement.
- Attribution frameworks align with privacy realities.
In other words, in-app has moved from experimental to essential.
In-App Is Now a Performance Powerhouse
The real revolution isn’t that apps are expanding; it’s that ad ops teams now have the tools to manage in-app advertising as effectively and transparently as any other performance channel.
For e-commerce brands, that means in-app is no longer just a sideline experiment; it’s a crucial engine for acquisition and reengagement.