Click Through Rate

The CTR (click-through rate) shows how many clicks an ad/URL receives per impressions (e.g., 10 out of 1000 = 1%). Important KPI in ads, SEO & newsletters – but only valuable with conversion.

In online marketing, the Click Through Rate (CTR), also known as the click rate, is considered one of the most important Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). It is the ratio of the number of clicks (on an ad, a banner, or link) to the number of impressions. For example, if an online ad with the keyword "buy phone" is displayed with 1000 impressions and is clicked 10 times, the CTR is 1%. The click-impression ratio can be analyzed using tools like Google Search Console.

The click-through rate is relevant as a key figure in the following disciplines of internet marketing:

Search Engine Marketing (SEA, Google Ads)
Banner advertising
Display campaigns
Affiliate marketing and sponsored links
Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Internal links

For internal links, page impressions must be considered for the CTR. This means: The ratio of page views to clicks on further links is depicted in the page impressions. They indicate how many pages within a website are accessed. This KPI is also significant for newsletters: How many users actually click a link in the email and seek out the content?

CTR and SEO

In all areas related to search engines like Google, the Click Through Rate also serves to evaluate websites: The more often the URL is clicked in the result lists, the more relevant the website seems to be for the search query and for a keyword. As a result, search engines rate the website more positively in the ranking. However, it should be noted that the pure Click Through Rate is not used as a positive ranking factor in search engine optimization. In addition to the CTR, factors such as the time spent on a website and conversion play a decisive role for good placements in the SERPs. The Bounce Rate can also be an indicator. Here it becomes clear how important the interaction between SEA via Google Ads and SEO is.

The click-through rate as a metric is merely a means to an end: without a click, there is no conversion – and this is ultimately the goal of all measures and campaigns. Therefore, in planning advertising and an online marketing campaign, the aim should not be to increase the click-through rate, but rather to optimize the conversion rate. However, one does not exclude the other, but instead enforces it.

What is the average Click Through Rate?

But how many clicks are good? There is no blanket average metric for the Click Through Rate because its level depends on the advertisement medium. For example, you can talk about a CTR of 10 to 11 percent for an ad on the social network Facebook. With traditional advertising banners, the click rate value is significantly lower. Furthermore, the value of this metric often depends on the industry, type of campaign, and objectives. Consequently, it is as difficult to determine an average CTR value as it is to make comparisons. The click metric can primarily be used to internally compare advertising campaigns and marketing successes, which can lead to a quality improvement.