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As you design your marketing campaign, you may hear the term "impressions." Impressions are the number of times a specific ad gets displayed. It may be displayed in a sidebar, on social media, or as part of a search engine campaign. The goal of an impression is to get the ad out there. It does not matter if the consumer takes action with it or not. Many consumers may not even take note of those ads as they scroll past them. Nevertheless, digital impressions can help substantially improve your ROI.
1. Impressions tell you how many people are actually seeing your ad.
In some cases, you may find that your advertising reach isn't as broad as you initially thought. For example, you may have not allotted an adequate budget for your campaign, or you didn’t place your ad where it needs to be in order to maximize your results. Many businesses find that their struggle to achieve advertising success comes from an inadequate ad budget or from spreading their ads too thin, rather than focusing on the most effective platforms for your business. Tracking the number of impressions can give you a better idea of how many people actually see your ad, enabling you to adapt your campaign accordingly.
2. Comparing impressions to actions can help you determine the effectiveness of your ad.
Impressions can give you a basic idea of how many people viewed your ad. Actions, usually clicking on the ad, can let you know how many consumers were impacted by that ad and are ready to take action because of it. If you notice the number of impressions increasing, but the number of actions decreasing, you may realize that your ad isn't as effective as you had hoped or that it does not contain the information your target audience needs in order to make a buying decision. By keeping a close eye on these metrics, you can adapt your ads to increase your ROI.
3. Impressions can give you a better idea of how many times each consumer views a specific ad.
Impressions track every time an ad pops up, regardless of how many times the same user sees your content. Reach, on the other hand, measures the number of unique views of a specific piece of content. By tracking impressions, you can get a better idea of how many times consumers are seeing your content. For example, imagine that you created a social media post that has 1000 impressions, but a reach of just 300. Each consumer has, therefore, viewed the ad an average of 3.3 times.
Having a consumer view the same ad multiple times is not necessarily a bad thing. Often, customers need multiple contacts with your business before they're ready to make a purchase from your business, especially if they're making a big purchase or need to do more research before they make a purchase decision. You can increase the number of impressions consumers see of a specific ad in order to help move them toward a purchase or decrease the number of impressions customers receive as you get a better idea of exactly what it takes for consumers to make a purchase.
4. Tracking impressions can give you a better idea of how many ad views are effective for your target audience.
How many times do people need to see your ad before they're ready to make a purchase? Consumers may develop more confidence in your business the more often they are presented with your ads, especially if they see them across several platforms. The number of impressions needed to encourage consumers to make a purchase may differ based on what you're selling, the type of ads you produce, and even how many competitors your customers also engage with.
5. Increased impressions can help raise brand awareness, leading to increased ROI.
Consumers often make purchases from the brands that are top-of-mind when they're ready to buy. In many industries, consumers may not make purchases on a regular basis. Real estate agents and automotive dealerships, for example, may see consumers much less frequently than grocery stores or hobby shops. Your goal, however, is to create enough impressions that consumers will recognize your brand and think of you first when they are ready to make a purchase.
Impressions are one metric among many that can help make up a successful digital marketing campaign. By working closely with a media partner, you can get a better idea of the exact metrics and key performance indicators you need to track across the course of your campaign. This strategy can allow you to create more effective ad campaigns that will ultimately expand your reach and increase your ROI from future campaigns.
