Retail
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The Secret Sauce to Boosting Sales In Supermarkets
If you’re a drinks brand looking to grow sales through major grocery retailers, there’s one marketing channel you can’t afford to ignore...
👉 Sponsored product ads on retail media platforms like Ocado, Waitrose, and Sainsbury’s (Nectar360).
These platforms allow your brand to appear in the exact moment a customer is searching for drinks, whether it’s sparkling wine, zero-alcohol beer, or premium mixers. And with the right setup, they can deliver serious performance: high-intent visibility, measurable returns, and full-funnel impact.
In this article, we’ll break down:
- What sponsored product ads are
- How they work across Waitrose, Ocado, and Sainsbury’s
- Real CPC and ROAS benchmarks
- Auction types and how they impact spend
- Where you can and can’t bid on competitors
- And how to build a strategy that drives measurable growth
🛒 What Are Sponsored Product Ads?
Sponsored product ads are pay-per-click (PPC) placements that show up within a retailer’s search results or category pages. Think of them as the Amazon ads of the grocery world: if someone searches “canned cocktails,” your brand appears first, even if you’re new to the shelf.
These aren’t static banners. They’re native, shoppable placements designed to drive product discovery, trial and repeat sales right in the moment of purchase intent.
🍷 Why They’re Essential for Drinks Brands
The drinks category is highly competitive. Whether you’re a heritage spirits brand or a challenger sparkling water company, your product is fighting for attention both online and in-store. And with grocery eCommerce growing year on year, your digital shelf presence is now just as important as your physical one.
Sponsored product ads help drinks brands:
- Win visibility at the top of category and search results
- Launch new products with immediate impact
- Defend your brand against competitors
- Cross-sell into relevant searches (e.g. tonics under “gin”)
- Provide measurable sales attribution to commercial buyers
The best part? Unlike many trade marketing activities, you can see what’s working in near real-time, and optimise accordingly.
🏷️ Auction Types Explained: First-Price vs Second-Price
Not all retail media platforms operate the same way. Understanding the auction model is crucial to managing your spend effectively.
- First-Price Auction: You pay exactly what you bid. So if you bid £1.00 per click and win, you pay £1.00.
- Second-Price Auction: You only pay just above the next-highest bid. If you bid £1.00 and the next highest is £0.75, you’ll pay £0.76.
This has a big impact on efficiency. In first-price auctions, overbidding can quickly burn through budget. In second-price auctions, the system is slightly more forgiving, giving you room to stay competitive without overpaying.
🙋♂️ Can You Bid on Competitors?
Simply put, no. On Citrus Ads, you can't bid on competitor brand terms or product keywords. This means your mixer brand wouldn't be able to appear above a rival when someone searches “Fever-Tree” or “San Pellegrino.”
However, on Nectar360 (used by Sainsbury’s), cross-selling is available, only when the other product can be viewed as complentary. i.e. omething that goes together,where there's a clear link between the two products. e.g. chips and tomato ketchup. HOWEVER, both brands need to not do their own versions of each others products. For instance, if Heinz did a range of chips, you coudln't cross-sell on them.
🛍️ Retail Media Comparison Table
Here’s how Waitrose, Ocado, and Sainsbury’s stack up for drinks brands running sponsored product ads:
🚨 When to Use Sponsored Product Ads
🎯 Product Launches
Get your NPD in front of relevant shoppers from day one.
🎯 Key Trading Periods
Boost performance during peak times—think Dry Jan, Summer, Gifting, or Christmas.
🎯 Brand Defence
Protect your name from competitor bids, especially on Citrus platforms.
🎯 Retailer Support
Demonstrate investment to buyers and help drive sell-through.
🔔 Best Practices to Maximise ROI
✅ Mix branded and category campaigns
Don’t just protect your name - go after general searches like “sparkling wine” or “alcohol-free beer.”
✅ Watch CPCs closely
First-price auctions mean it’s easy to overspend - monitor bids regularly and adjust for efficiency.
✅ Iterate on targeting
Update keyword lists to stay relevant and outperform competitors.
✅ Use retailer dashboards
Citrus Ads and Nectar360 provide detailed reporting. Use it to optimise placements and scale what works.
💭 Final Thoughts: Retail Media Is the New Shelf Space
Drinks brands have long fought for end caps, gondolas and eye-level space. Today, that battleground is digital, and sponsored product ads are the fast track to visibility.
Whether you’re looking to drive trials, defend your brand, or support listings with measurable performance, retail media on Ocado, Waitrose and Sainsbury’s is no longer a “nice to have.” It’s a growth essential.
The brands that learn these platforms now will win the long game, because if you’re not bidding on those high-intent searches…
Your competitors already are.