The CPG Guys: Best in Class Performance Marketing with Ibotta’s Bryan Leach

Released: December 13, 2025
Host: Peter V.S. Bond (PVSB)
Guest: Bryan Leach, Founder & CEO, Ibotta

Episode Overview

This episode dives into the evolution of Ibotta from a consumer cashback app to a robust, data-driven performance marketing platform for brands and retailers. Bryan Leach explains how Ibotta is reshaping digital promotions through its Performance Network (IPN), innovative measurement solutions, and a focus on incremental sales and ROI. The conversation also explores partnerships with major retailers like Walmart, the shift to a culture of outcomes over fixed campaigns, and how AI and real-time data are transforming the future of CPG marketing.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Ibotta’s Evolution: From Cashback App to Performance Marketing Leader

Timestamp: 04:58–07:49

• Genesis of Ibotta: Started in 2012 as a mobile app connecting CPG brands directly to consumers through a fee-per-redemption model.
  • "We also were the first to invent the idea of fee per redemption promotions...total alignment of interests by having a fee per sale model." — Bryan Leach [04:58]
• Scaling Beyond the App: Even with millions of users, real impact required reaching consumers where they're shopping—on retailer platforms like Walmart, Instacart, and DoorDash.
• Formation of the Ibotta Performance Network (IPN): Collaboration with Walmart marked a "turning point"—pioneering digital manufacturer offers and item-level promotions at scale.

2. Building Strategic Partnerships—The Walmart Story

Timestamp: 09:12–12:28

• Unlocking the Walmart Partnership:
  • Partnership began through a personal connection with John Furner (now CEO of Walmart), leading from a podcast bike ride to a strategic alliance and Walmart’s investment in Ibotta.
  • "I approached John and said, look, you guys need to think about driving your retail media business...you're going to need people who are actually checking out with their phone number, people who are identified even though they're shopping in a store. You're not like Amazon where everybody’s logged in." — Bryan Leach [10:54]
• Driving Loyalty with Walmart Cash: The program created a digital currency system, replacing paper coupons, to incentivize at-store identification and repeat business.

3. Innovations in Digital Promotions & Measurement

Timestamp: 12:55–16:01

• Key Innovations:

  1. First to bring fee-per-redemption at scale.
  2. Creation of a network touching 200M+ consumers via retailers and new partners like DoorDash.
  3. "Live Lift" — a campaign-tied, real-time measurement of incremental sales and profitability.
  4. Third-party measurement via partners Circana and now ABCs, providing unbiased validation.

• Real-time Optimization: Unlike traditional MMM (Marketing Mix Models) with 6–12 month lag, Ibotta’s clients can monitor and adjust campaigns mid-flight.

  • "You can optimize those campaigns while they're still in flight. So that's a major innovation that is changing the conventional wisdom and showing people that promotions can drive profitable revenue." — Bryan Leach [14:35]

4. The Outcomes Era: From Hypotheses to Continuous Experimentation

Timestamp: 19:52–26:57

• Fundamental Shift: Moving from hypothesis-driven, annually planned campaigns to a data-driven, outcomes-oriented model powered by AI and constant iteration.
• Personalization & Optimization: AI enables vast numbers of experiments to fine-tune targeting and offer levels, maximizing incremental sales at the lowest possible cost.
  • "The way the whole industry is moving is toward the outcomes era. That means you define the outcome you care about... That rule is, is automatically blessed." — Bryan Leach [24:07]
• Organizational Change: Success requires companies to trust and empower agile, continuous optimization, moving away from rigid, annual budget silos.

5. Measurement That Matters: Live Lift & True Incrementality

Timestamp: 32:13–38:23

• Live Lift Explained: Rolling, campaign-specific measurement that compares statistically matched exposed vs. non-exposed audiences to quantify true incremental impact.
  • "There has never been...an at scale marketing platform in CPG that allows you to measure incremental sales on a rolling basis in the offline world." — Bryan Leach [32:13]
  • "You then look at their longitudinal purchases from that moment forward and if there is no difference between those, you know that it was pure subsidization and there was no incremental lift." — Bryan Leach [35:18]
• Third-Party Validation: Circana/ABCs studies validate results, dispelling skepticism about "grading your own homework."

6. Real-World Case Study: Liquid Death

Timestamp: 37:46–40:29

• How Liquid Death Leveraged IPN: A challenger water brand with tight margins, using Ibotta's platform to drive profitable, incremental sales and always-on rule-based promotions.
  • "At Brand week, Benoit got up on stage and said, we have no other tool like the Ibotta Performance Network and Live Lift because...they still have got to figure how to pull through consumers to a confirmed item level purchase." — Bryan Leach [38:30]
• Proof in Pilots: 18 companies have piloted Live Lift; 83% returning already with follow-on investment due to measurable results.

7. What’s Next: Agentic Shopping and the Future of Promotions

Timestamp: 40:54–43:43

• Agentic Shopping: The rise of algorithmic, AI-driven basket building (robots doing the shopping), demanding that brands optimize digital touchpoints, pricing, and metadata.
  • "Robots do not respond and decide what to put in a basket based on your search result, based on your ad, your display ad...If you figure out using math and science, what the appropriate incentive should be...that will influence the algorithm that puts your product in the basket." — Bryan Leach [41:19]
• Continued Shift to Digital & Measurement: Brands must lean into digital-first initiatives and measurement, as Gen Z and future shoppers become reachable primarily through these channels.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Measurement Innovation:
  "We added DoorDash. Yes. We also had Dollar General, Family Dollar Schnooks and others. The third innovation and the fourth most important innovation have both occurred in the last month..." — Bryan Leach [12:55]
• On Outdated Models:
  "This notion that it's not profitable to run promotions is dead wrong. Every promotion can be profitable or unprofitable." — Bryan Leach [17:44]
• On the CPG Industry's Culture Shift:
  "You can't have a culture that doesn't have that agility. You have to have a culture that is comfortable defining rules that can be ongoing guideposts for resource allocation." — Bryan Leach [25:37]
• On the Importance of Third-party Validation:
  "For over a century, digital promotions companies have been grading their own homework. And we're among them, right? But not anymore, because we were the first to introduce a partnership with Circana..." — Bryan Leach [14:54]

Important Timestamps

• [04:58] — Ibotta’s origins and the move to a seller-aligned, fee-per-redemption model
• [10:54] — The pivotal Walmart partnership, vision, and adoption
• [12:55] — Four key innovations in digital promotions and measurement
• [19:52-26:57] — Entering the "Outcomes Era," shift to real-time, AI-powered decisioning
• [32:13] — Live Lift: The new gold standard in in-flight performance measurement
• [38:30] — Liquid Death case study and how outcome-based promotions change the game
• [40:54] — Looking forward: Agentic shopping and digital transformation for CPGs

Takeaways

• Ibotta’s Performance Network sets a new standard for accountable, ROI-driven promotional marketing in the CPG space.
• Brands and retailers can now measure and optimize incrementality in real time, not just after the fact.
• AI and experimentation are moving promotions from annual planning to continuous learning and performance.
• Third-party measurement (Circana, ABCs) ensures transparency, credibility, and industry trust.
• Success in the 'Outcomes Era' requires structural and cultural change, not just technology adoption.

Further Exploration

• Connect with Bryan Leach: LinkedIn
• Learn about Ibotta & Live Lift: Ibotta Corporate Site
• Explore CPG Guys resources and events: CPG Guys

This summary is designed to provide actionable insights, context, and clarity for those who have not listened to the episode. For full details and the engaging discussion, please refer to the original podcast.