We have compiled benchmark rates from past years by amalgamating data from multiple advertisers. These numbers are useful to get an idea of what ads might cost based upon actual experience of other advertisers.
Historical Cost of Banner Advertising
Aggregate PPC data for a portfolio of several dozen clients
| Metric | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cost per mille (CPM) | $1.71 | $1.06 | $0.85 | $0.86 | $0.91 |
| Sample Size: Impressions | 33 million | 62 million | 1,150 million | 270 million | 360 million |
| Clicks | 257,095 | 343,000 | 4.4 million | 750,000 | 670,000 |
| Click Through Rate (CTR) | 0.78% | 0.55% | 0.39% | 0.28% | 0.18% |
| Average Position | 1.1 | 1.4 | 1.4 | 2.2 | 2.4 |
| Invalid Clicks | 48,800 | 50,000 | 950,000 | 110,000 | 60,000 |
| Invalid Click Rate | 19% | 15% | 21% | 15% | 9% |
Because our advertisers and their goals change from year to year, some changes may be due to internal reasons, rather than external market conditions. Please be careful when drawing conclusions from this data. In 2016 we saw a continuing trend toward remarketing on the Google Display Network. By targeting users who had expressed an interest in the topic, click through rates increased, impression consumed decreased, and the advertising became more profitable for both the buyers and the sellers. Another recent trend is that we have stopped custom designing banner ads. Instead we have been using Google’s image ad building and responsive ad builder tools to rapidly create ads. We have found that these ads outperform custom designed ads. In addition, they cost less to produce and avoid production delays.
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