Catalina and Volta Forge Strategic Partnership to Bring Measurable Digital Out of Home Campaigns to More Brands

By Plugging Into Volta's Leading EV Charging & Media Network, Catalina Expands Reach of Its Place-Based Media Offering

Volta Taps into Catalina's Media Measurement Capabilities for Customers Like Dole

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla., June 7, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Catalina, which offers shopping behavior insights on virtually all U.S. households through its rich, real-time shopper intelligence platform, is establishing a strategic partnership with Volta Inc. (NYSE: VLTA), an industry-leading electric vehicle ("EV") charging network powering vehicles and commerce.

Volta's EV charging stations, equipped with large digital display screens, are strategically located steps from the entrances of popular retail, grocery, and entertainment venues. These premium placements influence consumers' shopping lists with eye-catching content presented on a sustainable medium within the uncluttered parking lot environment. Its rapidly growing network currently creates more than 900 million monthly impressions via 4,600+ digital ad screens in 39 Designated Market Areas (DMAs) across 26 states.

Volta places its EV charging stations at businesses where millions of qualified consumers spend their time and money, such as Walgreens and Ahold Delhaize, both of which are part of Catalina's extensive retailer network, as well as locations like Amazon Fresh, Tanger Outlets, and Six Flags. Catalina's measurement services enable Volta to directly determine incremental sales lift at the store level for retailers and brands that run campaigns on its ad platform. This detailed view into how the Volta Media™ Network increases shoppers' spend unlocks a critical understanding of digital out of home's impact on conversions, equipping advertisers with data that informs effective media strategies.         

"With their focus on sustainability and ability to communicate with shoppers literally steps away from the point of purchase, Volta brings a unique inventory source to Catalina's place-based media offering and we've already begun to see clients like Dole lean in," said Tiffany Southwell, VP of Out of Home Media at Catalina. "It's exciting to see Volta embracing the innovative idea of out of home as a performance marketing vehicle by leveraging our measurement services to prove the efficacy of their media."

"Catalina's deep understanding of measurement for out of home media allows us to prove measurable incremental sales for our clients," said Brandt Hastings, Interim CEO and Chief Revenue Officer at Volta. "Their ability to quickly measure a campaign against the sales metrics that matter empowers clients to think about our media in the same way they think about digital advertising and to confidently shift budgets accordingly."    

A recent campaign jointly executed with Dole Fresh Foods is another early indicator of the partnership's power. Dole wanted to drive incremental sales lift and grow category share during a key selling season. Eye-catching marketing creative showcasing multiple Dole products was deployed on Volta Media screens near entrances of specific grocery locations. Catalina's unique measurement capabilities revealed that the campaign delivered an 8% sales lift and increased category share by 8.5%, demonstrating Volta's effectiveness in converting shoppers into buyers.       

"Catalina continues to be an essential and trusted partner for a variety of our business needs, and we are impressed by what they and Volta deliver together. The concise and point-blank delivery of data to spotlight sales conversions and buyer response further simplified the out of home metrics and underscored the value Volta Media provides," said Kellee Miller, Director of Shopper Marketing at Dole Food Company, Inc.    

Catalina was able to show the impact of Volta's media for another recent campaign, this time for a leading fast casual restaurant whose products are also sold in stores. As a result of the prominent marketing messages displayed across Volta's media screens, the brand achieved a 15% sales lift with an incremental Return on Ad Spend (ROAS) 29% higher than Catalina's average for out of home media campaigns.

Catalina is a leader in shopper intelligence and highly targeted in-store, TV, radio, podcast and digital media that personalizes the shopper journey. Powered by the world's richest real-time shopper database, Catalina helps retailers, CPG brands and agencies optimize every stage of media planning, execution and measurement to deliver $6.1 billion in consumer value annually. Catalina has no higher priority than ensuring the privacy and security of the data entrusted to the company and maintaining consumer trust. Catalina has operations in the United States, Costa Rica, Europe and Japan. To learn more, visit www.catalina.com or @Catalina on Twitter.

Volta Inc. (NYSE: VLTA) is an industry-leading electric vehicle ("EV") charging network powering vehicles and commerce. Volta's vision is to build EV charging networks that capitalize on and catalyze the shift from combustion-powered miles to electric miles by placing stations where consumers live, work, shop, and play. By leveraging a data-driven understanding of driver behavior to deliver EV charging solutions that fit seamlessly into people's daily routines, Volta's goal is to benefit consumers, brands, and real-estate locations while helping to build the infrastructure of the future. As part of Volta's unique EV charging offering, its stations allow it to enhance its site hosts' and strategic partners' core commercial interests, creating a new means for them to benefit from the transformative shift to electric mobility. To learn more, visit www.voltacharging.com.  

This press release includes forward-looking statements, which are subject to the "safe harbor" provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements may be identified by words such as "feel," "believes," expects," "estimates," "projects," "intends," "should," "is to be," or the negative of such terms, or other comparable terminology and include, among other things, statements regarding Volta's strategy and other future events that involve risks and uncertainties. Such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements contained herein due to many factors, including, but not limited to: intense competition faced by Volta in the EV charging market and in its content activities; the possibility that Volta is not able to build on and develop strong relationships with real estate and retail partners to build out its charging network and content partners to expand its content sales activities; market conditions, including seasonality, that may impact the demand for EVs and EV charging stations or content on Volta's digital displays; risks, cost overruns and delays associated with construction and installation of Volta's charging stations; risks associated with any future expansion by Volta into additional international markets; cost increases, delays or new or increased taxation or other restrictions on the availability or cost of electricity; rapid technological change in the EV industry may require Volta to continue to develop new products and product innovations, which it may not be able to do successfully or without significant cost; the risk that Volta's shift to including a pay-for-use charging business model and the requirement of mobile check-ins adversely impacts Volta's ability to retain driver interest, content partners and site hosts; the EV market may not continue to grow as expected; and the ability to protect its intellectual property rights; and those factors discussed in Volta's Registration Statement on Form S-1, under the heading "Risk Factors," filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), as supplemented by Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, and other reports and documents Volta files from time to time with the SEC. Any forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on which they are made, and Volta undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this press release.

SOURCE Catalina