In this episode of Unlocking Retail Media, Kevel CEO James Avery speaks with James Borow about democratizing TV advertising through Universal Ads — and why retail media networks should be thinking about Connected TV right now.
Television advertising is undergoing a transformation that mirrors what happened to digital advertising a decade ago. Self-serve platforms, minimal budgets, and API-driven measurement are no longer exclusive to Meta and Google.
In this episode of Unlocking Retail Media, Avery sat down with James Borow, a former Snapchat executive now leading Universal Ads at Comcast, to discuss how TV advertising is finally becoming accessible to brands of all sizes. Here are the five biggest takeaways from their conversation.
Television advertising still carries weight that digital platforms struggle to replicate. Borow cited a recent study showing that TV doesn't just drive direct return on ad spend, it makes all other media perform better. When consumers see a brand advertised on television, they're more likely to trust and purchase from that brand when they encounter it on social networks.
“When people see your brand on TV, there is just this perception still like, oh wow, they made it, they're on television. And then that actually basically conditions people to go ahead and be more likely to transact when your ads are shown on social networks.” — James Borow, VP Product & Engineering, Universal Ads
This halo effect is particularly valuable for smaller brands trying to compete against established players. While a TikTok ad might trigger immediate skepticism with the majority of consumers, TV placement signals credibility. Instagram occupies neutral territory, but television remains the gold standard for perceived legitimacy.
Borow explained that TV has inherent advantages: it's the biggest screen in your house, surrounded by premium content, and features unskippable ads. The only barrier has been accessibility — which Universal Ads aims to eliminate entirely.
Traditional TV advertising required massive budgets, agency relationships, and complex buying processes. Universal Ads removes all those barriers. As Borow explained "With Universal Ads, there's no minimum. You can go spend 50 bucks, just try it out, right?"
Borow then emphasized that the platform operates identically to buying ads on Meta or Snap. Advertisers who've purchased social media ads will find the interface immediately familiar. This shift matters because it allows brands to experiment with TV advertising at minimal risk, testing creative and targeting before scaling spend.
Universal Ads provides access to over 20 major publishers, including NBC, Peacock, Paramount Plus, Fox, and HBO Max. The platform runs on FreeWheel's infrastructure, which connects directly to publishers without middlemen taking margins. Advertisers pay only for ads delivered, with no additional fees or arbitrage.
This direct connection delivers surprisingly strong performance. According to Borow, measurement studies consistently show that TV advertising is "shockingly performant" once you remove unnecessary taxes from intermediaries. The main exception? When creative quality isn't up to par.
Walled gardens shot themselves in the foot by overstating attribution. When advertisers running campaigns across four to five platforms added up all claimed conversions, they discovered they had five times more sales than actually occurred. This pushed the industry toward incrementality measurement — which levels the playing field for TV.
"With incrementality, now a channel like TV actually kind of can play on the same field." said Borow. Universal Ads built reporting APIs that mirror social media platforms exactly. Companies like Workmagic, Hausand, and Measured can integrate with Universal Ads just like they integrate with Facebook or TikTok. This allows advertisers to run geo lift studies and measure TV performance using the same methodology they apply to digital channels.
Borow explained that TV ads aren't clickable (yet), but with proper incrementality measurement, that limitation becomes irrelevant. Advertisers can finally answer the question: what does TV actually do for my business? They can compare it directly against other channels using consistent metrics rather than incompatible attribution models.
This shift is critical for brands that have grown up digital-first. They're accustomed to dashboards, APIs, and data-driven optimization. Universal Ads speaks that language.
Two years ago, producing a 15 or 30-second TV ad required significant time and budget. That barrier has collapsed.
AI creative tools made TV advertising accessible to the long tail of advertisers who previously couldn't afford professional production. This democratization mirrors what happened when smartphone cameras and Instagram filters made visual content creation accessible to everyone.
"Right now you could log into Universal Ads or go to Reify or SpaceBack, like you could have a TV-worthy ad. You know, you can't do it all in one shot yet, but within 30 minutes you can have a pretty good ad that you could run today if you wanted to." — James Borow, VP Product & Engineering, Universal Ads
However, Borow stressed that creative remains the biggest driver of performance. Advertisers need to rapidly iterate — literally testing 50 variations to find winners. The beauty of TV's format is that it's essentially "a 15 or 30-second horizontal Instagram ad." The medium isn't fundamentally different; the distribution is just more premium.
When measurement studies show disappointing results, the culprit is almost always creative that doesn't resonate. But AI tools now make it feasible to test, learn, and iterate at the volume required to find what works.
Borow was direct: all retail media networks should be extending into Connected TV. They have valuable first-party data, and CTV offers a no-brainer reach extension opportunity.
"I think all of them [retail media networks] should be extending to CTV.” he explained. “They have incredible first-party data, right? Like obviously you know that, and it's just a no-brainer."
The current ecosystem is highly inefficient. Many retailers use middlemen who mark up the media while leveraging the retailer's own data. Retailers should be using platforms like Universal Ads to do CTV reach extension directly, maintaining control over their data while capturing the value it generates.
Borow highlighted specific use cases that demonstrate the power of retailer data combined with TV reach. Lyft's rider data reveals where customers travel and what they do — enabling highly relevant retargeting when those riders are at home. Someone who just went golfing should see ads for Malbon hats or Vori apparel. That contextual relevance is obvious, yet underutilized.
Similarly, Fanatics can target viewers based on their purchasing behavior around sports merchandise. A customer who regularly buys Chicago Bears gear should receive a completely different TV experience than someone who never engages with sports content. This kind of personalization is table stakes in digital advertising but remains surprisingly rare in TV.
Borow acknowledged the operational challenge: retailers essentially need to act like agencies to make CTV work. Self-service adoption through retail media networks faces headwinds because there are simply too many networks for advertisers to manage individually. But for retailers looking to extend offsite, TV should be the first place they go.
Television advertising has reached an inflection point. Measurement works. Creative production is accessible. Minimum budgets have disappeared. And the format delivers both direct performance and a halo effect that makes all other media more effective.
Borow put it simply: if you're a growing brand and you're not on TV, you're fighting with one hand behind your back. The perception of legitimacy that TV provides can't be replicated through social media alone. And with platforms like Universal Ads making TV as easy to buy as Instagram ads, there's no longer a valid excuse to wait.
For retail media networks, the opportunity is clear but requires action. Your first-party data combined with CTV reach creates unique value that advertisers can't get anywhere else. Stop letting middlemen mark up your inventory while using your data. Build direct relationships with platforms that give you control, measurement, and the ability to prove incremental value.
The future of advertising isn't TV versus digital — it's TV as digital. Platforms that understand this shift and make it easy for advertisers to act on it will capture outsized share of marketing budgets. Those that don't risk becoming irrelevant as brands discover they can reach premium inventory without the traditional gatekeepers.
For more insights like these, tune in to the full episode of Unlocking Retail Media, the podcast where Kevel CEO James Avery sits down with industry leaders and innovators shaping the future of retail advertising.
Listen to this episode with James Borow here.
