• by Laurie Sullivan , Staff Writer @lauriesullivan, April 25, 2023

Ad spend slowed on retail media sites in Q1 2023, compared with the holiday 2022 quarter.

Sponsored Ads spend showed 9.50% decline quarter-over-quarter (QoQ). The fourth quarter of 2022 saw the biggest holiday shopping season ever for Amazon, Walmart, and other top online marketplaces among Pacvue clients, so the decline in ad spend during Q1 2023 was expected.

But there is an upside to all this.

The silver lining in Pacvue’s data report, released Tuesday, is that the cost-per-click (CPC) for Sponsored Product and Sponsored Brands ads, for the most part in all categories covered, fell QoQ and year-over-year (YoY). Click-through rates (CTR) held steady or increased.

Pacvue, a commerce platform, released its Q1 2023 data report Tuesday. It showcases Q1 ad performance, trends and insights across Amazon, Walmart and Instacart.

For brands looking to get a glimpse into advertising and trends on retail media sites, Walmart Connect Sponsored Ads CTRs rose by 29.51% QoQ and rose 172.41% YoY in Q1 2023.

CPCs fell by 6.25% QoQ in Q1 2023, representing a total decrease of 26.83% YoY. Sponsored Ads return on ad spend (ROAS) rose 3.73% QoQ and 80.54% YoY.

Instacart Sponsored Ads' CTRs rose 3.41% QoQ and 2.91% YoY in Q1 2023, while CPCs fell to $0.89 in Q1, a 6.32% QoQ decline, but showed a 4.71% increase YoY.

Instacart Sponsored Ads' ROAS rose by 11.91% QoQ, after falling for three consecutive quarters, and rose 6.45% YoY.

Daily advertising spend on Instacart fell by 23.28%. QoQ for Instacart Sponsored Ads in Q1 fell 7.9% YoY. The CPA for Instacart Sponsored Ads was $1.06 in Q1, which showed a decrease of 6.19% QoQ, and an increase of 7.07% YoY.

The report also shows that Instacart’s use of viewable impressions instead of display impressions -- beginning January 1, 2022 -- led to a drop in impressions and an increase in CTR and eCPM.

Pacvue also released category trends. The Grocery & Gourmet Food category saw CPCs fall for Sponsored Products ads, while ROAS and Spend grew slightly QoQ.

The Beauty & Personal Care category saw a decrease in Spend and CPC, and an increase in ROAS for Sponsored Products QoQ. 

For the Beauty & Personal Care category, Amazon Sponsored Products CPCs saw a 16.6% decrease from an average CPC of $1.63 in Q4 of 2022 down to an average CPC of $1.36 in Q1 of 2023.

The average ROAS for Amazon Sponsored Products represented an increase of 12.9% up to an average of $3.15 in Q1.

Ad spend on Sponsored Products decreased by 7.22% QoQ in Q1 2023. CVR for the Beauty & Personal Care category grew for Sponsored Products in Q1, increasing by 3.63% QoQ at an average of 22.8%.

The Pet Supplies category saw an increase in spend and CPCs for Sponsored Products QoQ in Q1 2023. Amazon Sponsored Products CPCs rose 9.47% QoQ to an average CPC of $1.85. The average Amazon Sponsored Products ROAS saw a 4.9% decrease QoQ to an average ROAS of $4.28.

Ad spend on Sponsored Products increased 24.64% QoQ in Q1 2023.

CVR for the Pet Supplies category fell for Sponsored Products in Q1, falling by 3.82% QoQ at an average of 23.4%.