Click Rate
The click rate or click-through rate (CTR) indicates the relationship between the number of clicks on an ad and the number of ad placements (so-called impressions). It thus determines how efficient advertising banners or sponsor links are on a website. With the help of software, it is possible to determine how many users view an advertising banner and how many of them respond with interest by actually clicking on it. The click rate is given as a percentage. It is obtained by multiplying the number of clicks by one hundred and dividing it by the number of times the banner was displayed. So if a particular banner ad is displayed 100 times, and the banner is clicked on once, then the click rate is 1 percent.
The benefits of click rates
The click rate is important for any company that advertises on the Internet. It is an important tool for estimating the performance of certain keywords or ads. A high click rate is a good indication that users rate an ad banner or ad as relevant, useful or interesting. It also helps to assess whether an ad is already successful or whether it still needs to be optimized. After all, no one wants to invest money in advertising that does not reach the customer.
Sources of error with click rates
Click rates are a successful means of objectively assessing the efficiency of advertising. However, it is important to remember that various sources of error can distort the results. A certain percentage of false clicks, which can have various causes, must always be taken into account. Newer forms of advertising that are superimposed on a web page are sometimes clicked on by mistake with the aim of removing them. Impatient people click on an ad multiple times until it finally appears. And others may click on it again later in the day when they have more time to look at it at their leisure. With mobile devices like smartphones, the so-called “sausage finger problem” adds to the difficulty. There is sometimes so little space on the narrow screen that the user often clicks on an ad by mistake.
Click rates in e-mail marketing
Click rates are also used in e-mail marketing to measure the success of advertising. This is the ratio between the number of emails sent and the number of clicks on links contained in the emails. Click rates for email marketing are generally higher than for advertising on websites. There is a special problem with newsletters. The basis for the click rate can either be the number of recipients or the number of people who actually open the newsletter. Which in the latter case can increase the click rate considerably.
