As tighter margins, limited tech resources, and evolving consumer behavior reshape retail, brands are on the hunt for smart ways to boost revenue without disrupting the customer experience.
Fluent’s VP of Partner Success, Katie Carlson, sat down with Total Retail Editor-in-Chief, Joe Keenan, to reveal how retailers can flip the checkout from a simple transaction into a high-impact, revenue-driving moment.
In this Q&A, Katie draws on her dual experience as both a brand-side retail media leader and tech partner to share practical strategies for scalable revenue growth.
What you’ll learn:
- How to unlock incremental revenue with low-lift, high-impact tactics
- Best practices for monetizing checkout and confirmation pages
- Balancing revenue goals with brand safety with customer trust
Read the full Q&A for expert insights →
TL;DR
- Checkout is a missed revenue opportunity
- Post-purchase offers = high intent, low friction, real value
- Tech partners should make monetization feel seamless, not risky
- Customer trust hinges on relevant and native experiences
- Don’t rely on DIY—lean on partners who can plug in fast
The Q&A: Katie Carlson on Turning Checkout Into a Revenue Driver
Q: You’ve moved from brand-side marketer to tech partner. What inspired that shift?
I spent years leading retail media at Overstock.com and Bed Bath & Beyond, where we built much of our technology in-house.
That gave me firsthand experience with the challenges retailers face—limited tech resources, competing priorities, and the constant pressure to drive revenue without compromising the customer experience.
Fluent was a natural next step. I wanted to solve the same problems—but this time as a partner who can plug in and help teams move faster.
“Having walked in their shoes, I’m uniquely positioned to be a strong advocate for our retail partners.”
Q: Fluent helps brands monetize the checkout experience. How is that moment evolving for retailers?
Traditionally, the checkout page was seen as purely transactional—get the customer through as quickly and cleanly as possible. But today, leading retailers are realizing that checkout isn’t the end of the customer journey. It’s a high-value, monetizable moment.
It’s no longer just about closing the cart; it’s about maximizing the value of every transaction while still delivering a clean, seamless customer experience.
“Conversion is still critical—but so is delivering added customer value. And if you can drive incremental revenue in the process, it’s a win-win.”
Q: What are some opportunities retailers often miss at checkout?
Post-purchase is a high-intent moment—the customer just bought from you, they trust you, and their credit card is still out. With the sale already complete, there’s no risk to conversion, making it an ideal time for value-driven engagement through loyalty offers, upsells, or relevant partner promotions.
“Post-purchase is one of the best moments to engage customers. Retailers are leaving money on the table by treating checkout as the end of the journey. “
Q: What does “low-lift, high-impact” monetization really look like?
It starts with tech that’s easy to implement. At Fluent, we can get a partner live with about an hour of work. There should also be little to no operational lift on an ongoing basis. And the solution has to deliver real value—incremental revenue for every order, without hurting the customer experience.
“Retailers don’t always need to spend more to earn more. Sometimes, it’s about optimizing what’s already in front of you.”
Q: How do you preserve customer trust while still monetizing effectively?
Here are a few best practices that top-performing partners follow:
- Prioritize relevance: Use real-time insights to serve the right offer at the right moment
- Keep it native: Creative should blend seamlessly into the checkout experience
- Create a value exchange: When offers feel like a thank-you or bonus, they build trust
- Test and learn: A/B test creative, formats, and targeting to see what resonates
- Set guardrails: Define what types of offers and advertisers align with your brand
- Measure sentiment: Track both performance and experience metrics (e.g. conversion rates, bounce rates, NPS, and customer reviews)
Q: What would you tell your past self as a brand-side marketer?
Don’t be afraid to pilot something new, especially if it’s low-risk and high-reward. You don’t have to build everything in-house—lean on your partners, ask the tough questions, and make them earn your trust.
“The right tech partner should make it easy to say yes—and deliver real business value from day one.”
Ready to Make Your Checkout Work Smarter?
- Listen to the full conversation on the Total Retail Tech Insights podcast here
- Explore Fluent’s monetization solutions to turn checkout into a scalable revenue driver here
Check out more resources to get fluent in:
Commerce Media | Post-Transaction Advertising | Non-Endemic Revenue