Retail media search advertising places sponsored products directly within retailer search results, connecting advertisers with shoppers based on relevant search terms. Powered by Sensor Tower’s consumer panel, we captured searches from real shoppers, and which brands are advertising against them. In a series of product keyword and category case studies, we analyzed trends, seasonality, consumer interest growth, and much more. Here’s what we found.

Beauty

Where is consumer interest growing? Predicting upcoming trends can put your products and brand at the right place at the right time, allowing you to build a presence before competition intensifies. Shoppers at Walmart searched for “niacinamide,” “salicylic acid,” and “lip stain” significantly more in 2026 YTD vs. the same period in 2025 in the beauty category. Monitoring these shifts can help brands identify when trends are starting to mature.

These trends can also help brands evaluate competition, showing which advertisers are capitalizing on growing demand for various products. For lip stain, which saw a +66% YoY increase in searches at Walmart, COVERGIRL was the top retail search advertiser in ‘26 YTD with 32% SOV. For a lower ranking brand like e.l.f Cosmetics, this view can help them determine whether a fast-growing search is still wide open, or already dominated by a leader.

Pet Food

Which searches are competitors targeting? Retail Search Insights show brands which product areas their rivals are dedicating budget to, and how many impressions they’re generating in return. In 2026 at Target, Purina PetCare, Blue Buffalo, and Mars PetCare each focused on a different mix of pet-related searches. Knowing which keywords your rivals are targeting can help your brand determine what search terms are worth adding to your campaigns.

But here’s where the claws come out. Brands can also use retail search ads to reach shoppers who are searching for a competitor by name, a strategy known as conquesting. For example: At Walmart, 2026 YTD, the brand Nutrish earned more impressions for the search term “Purina” than Purina PetCare themselves did, with the former boasting 16% SOV compared to Purina PetCare’s. 13%.All in all, 22 brands competed for the search term. In contrast, Blue Buffalo Pet Food captured a 70% impression share for its own brand, with only five advertisers competing for the “Blue Buffalo” search keyword. This serves as a warning to brands to understand how their own name is being represented in search results, and how to protect it.

The search doesn’t end here. With an estimated $69B in retail search spend and two-thirds of share expected in 2026, our Retail Media Search Insights are a crucial part of your competitive ad strategy. For more insights and case studies, download Decoding Retail Search 2026: A Data Driven Playbook for Marketers, today!