Are your click-through rates (CTR) what they should be?
How would you know!? Especially if you’ve never asked the question, “What Is A Google Click Through Rate)?”
In this article, I’m breaking down CTRs by channel and giving you tips on how to improve yours.
What We’ll Cover:
- What click-through rate (CTR) is and how to measure it
- Why CTR is dependent on industry
- How seasonality affects CTR
- How content affects CTR
- CTR for SEO
- CTR for PPC
- CTR for Display ads
- CTR for email
- CTR for social media
- Click-through rate FAQs
Special attention should be paid to click-through rate. But to get an accurate read, you need to be aware of what numbers you’re looking for.
Which is why I’m breaking down what is a good click-through rate, and how you can amp up your CTRs across multiple marketing channels.
Watch A Video On Click Through Rate Or Read Below
What is a Good Click-Through Rate?
Your click-through rate (CTR) refers to the ratio of how many users click a specific link to the total number of users who view it.
The ratio would look something like this:
User Clicks : Total Views
It measures how well your link – whether it’s a Google ad or Facebook copy – attracts people to your website.
So what is CTR, and what does it look like? For example, the formula for click-through rate would be:
Total clicks/Total impressions = click-through rate.
You’ll most commonly hear CTR mentioned regarding paid ad campaigns. But in reality, your click-through rate is an important metric in all your marketing efforts, including email, pay-per-click marketing, social media, etc.
Anything that includes a link – paid or not – should be measured to know if your efforts are truly paying off.
CTRs let you know how well your ad or content is drawing users to your website.
And when it concerns ads, Google draws from your historical click-through rate to determine your Quality Score and Ad Rank.
n a nutshell, it’s a pretty big deal.
So, what is a good click-through rate, and how do you find it?
Luckily, finding yours isn’t complicated. Most services will tell you your exact CTR in your analytics reports.
From there, it’s a matter of determining what the averages are, and how yours are performing in comparison.
Why A Good Click-Through Rate is Dependent On Industry
As you’ll see momentarily, industry has a huge impact on click-through rates.
Good Click-Through Rates are Dependent on Industry
Across all marketing channels – email, PPC, social media, etc. – the rates vary widely between separate industries.
That’s because your industry has a hand in most factors of your marketing strategy, from your target audience to your click-through rate. Understanding the industry you’re in is a crucial element to understanding what is a good click-through rate.
Why Seasonality Matters with Click-Through Rates
You may have noticed that your traffic fluctuates throughout the year. At times, demand for your product or service may seem much higher than others.
For example, B2B’s tend to see a drop-off towards the end of the year. Similarly, holiday or time-of-year related industries like chocolates experience a hike around Valentine’s Day or Halloween.
This makes it a better opportunity to run ad campaigns and send newsletters, and therefore results in higher click-through rates.
To avoid the recessions, make sure you adjust your marketing timelines to target national holidays and important dates in your industry. Identify your opportunities, and make them most of them through marketing.
Once you see why this matters, you won’t be asking, “What is a good CTR?” You’ll be asking why you didn’t learn about it sooner.
Why Content Matters
When thinking about what is a good click-through rate, it’s important to understand that content can make or break your CTRs.
Because in order to click on something, users need a reason. That’s your content’s job – to catch reader’s attention and pique their curiosity just enough for them to click.
Your content is your sales pitch, and when done correctly it will motivate your readers to take the desired action. In this case, that’s a click.
The kind of content you use will have a high impact on click-through rate as well.
For example, as a channel Facebook doesn’t have the highest overall CTR. That honor goes to Twitter, with a 2% CTR.
Facebook video ads, however, have a 2.21% CTR, making it even higher than Twitter.
That’s because video is at the top of the game when it comes to content, and including it in your ads can have a dramatic effect on your click-through rate.
What is a Good Click-Through Rate for SEO?
What’s the ultimate goal of any SEO? A high placement in the organic search results.
What is a Good Click-Through Rate for SEO?
So, what is a good click-through rate for SEO?
Unsurprisingly, first page results see the highest CTRs. In our own study of 5,000 queries, we found the following click-through rates for each page:
- Position 1 – 20.5%
- Position 2 – 13.32%
- Position 3 – 13.14%
- Position 4 – 8.98%
- Position 5 – 9.21%
- Position 6 – 6.73%
- Position 7 – 7.61%
- Position 8 – 6.92%
- Position 9 – 5.52%
- Position 10 – 7.95%
A good click-through rate therefore really depends on which page your link appears on, and the best way to improve your CTR is to work to improve your rank.
How to Improve Your CTR for SEO:
- Put together a list of quality, competitive (but not too competitive) keywords
- Focus on quality content, both on and off-site
- Develop a link-building strategy
What is a Good Click-Through Rate for PPC?
Now, you’re probably wondering what is CTR and how does it apply to pay-per-click ads?
In a study released by Wordstream they found that across all industries, the average CTR for a search ad is 1.91%.
Good Click-Through Rates for PPC
Of course, results vary widely across industries. For example, dating and personal services are well above the average with a 3.40% click-through rate. Finance, B2B, Consumer Services, and Technology also fare well, with a 2.65%, 2.55%, 2.40%, and 2.38% average CTR, respectively.
On the flip side, industries like legal services, ecommerce, and industrial services struggle with CTRs when it comes to search.
Obviously, these are only averages. To discover what is a good click-through rate, you’ll want to hit a number that’s above average in your industry.
For PPC, anything CTRs between 3%-5% will put you in the good range.
How to Improve Your CTR for PPC:
- Include special offers
- Use powerful CTAs
- Use long-tail keywords to reach more specific audiences
- Use Google Ads extensions such as seller ratings and sitelink extensions
What is a Good Click-Through Rate for Display Ads?
That same Wordstream study revealed that the average display ads CTR is 0.35%.
In fact, the averages across all industries are significantly lower than that of a search ad – but don’t panic. Because display ads are better bottom of the funnel, brand awareness campaigns, it’s to be expected.
If you happen to be in the tech industry, you’ll likely find the most success with display ads. They boast an average click-through rate of .84%, the highest of all industries studied.
Advocacy and dating/personal services all saw above-average display ads CTRs, both coming in at .52%.
Employment services saw the lowest average at just .14%, with B2B services behind it at .20%.
So what is a good click-through rate when it comes to display? You’ll probably want to fall in the .5%-1%.
How to Improve Your CTA for Display Ads:
What is a Good Click-Through Rate for Email?
Email has some of the highest rates when it comes to CTR (so if you don’t already have an email marketing strategy, I highly recommend you get on it.)
Overall, average email marketing click-through rates hover just below 4%, according to a study by MailChimp. However, a similar study by Constant Contact produced much higher CTRs.
Some of the differences can be attributed to industry. For example, MailChimp’s broad Travel/Transportation industry returned a 2.17% CTR, while Constant Contact’s more specific Automotive Services industry received an 8.30% CTR.
Once again, success varies by industry; MailChimp’s Hobbies tend to see the highest CTR with 5.13%, while Constant Contact’s Publishing industry returned a 13.67% CTR.
How to Improve Your CTR for Email:
- Use a clear call-to-action (CTA)
- Make sure you’re using a responsive design
- If you include images, make sure they load
- A/B to test to find which content is most effective
What is a Good Click-Through Rate for Social Media?
In this case, what is a good click-through rate will depend yet again on which social media channel you use.
Twitter sees the highest overall CTRs, with an average of 2%. LinkedIn is on the opposite end of the spectrum with just a .06% average CTR.
Instagram (.94%) and Facebook (.72%) land in the middle.
What is a Good Click-Through Rate for Social Media? Twitter takes the lead with a 2% CTR.
The discrepancies in the numbers are similar to what you see in search vs. display ads; the intent of the user is different, as well as the intention of the ad.
LinkedIn, for example, isn’t widely known or used for advertising purposes; rather, its focus is on business relationships and networking.
And as I mentioned above with Facebook video ads, it’s important to keep in mind that not only do CTRs vary by channel, but by ad type.
In 2018, the average CTR on Instagram ads saw a significant increase of 41%. Companies spent approximately $7.91 for every thousand impressions (CPM), and $1.41 per click. This led to a 0.52% CTR for Instagram ads.
Also in 2018, Pinterest CTR held on strong. A study by Fat Stacks blog took a look at 20 Pinterest accounts. It showed that the average Pinterest CTR is about 0.22%. This also varies depending on industry.
Youtube is another social media platform that can give you high CTRs. As of now, the average YouTube CTR varies from 2% to 10%. To understand your YouTube CTR, you need to be able to understand your audience, where they are coming from, and what they want to see.
How to Improve Your CTR:
- Use more powerful CTAs
- Create urgency in your content, and use gated content to encourage click-throughs
- Use action words; “download,” “sign-up,” etc.
- Incorporate images that grab readers’ attention
- Avoid using clickbait images and headlines
Click-Through Rate FAQs:
1. How Can I Improve My Average Click-Through Rate With Video Ads?
If you want to boost your average click-through rate with video advertising, it is important to keep your ads short, simple, to the point and interesting.
Viewers want instant gratification and they want to be able to access what you’re advertising effortlessly. So, user experience is extremely important.
Another thing to consider when creating your video ads, is that many viewers could be watching your ads on their mobile device with the sound off. Make sure you create an ad experience that relays your message with or without sound.
These tips all play into understanding what is a good click-through rate and that which will improve your results.
2. How Does My Average Click-Through Rate Affect My PPC Quality Score?
When it comes to pay-per-click advertising, your average click-through rate is a very significant factor to its success.
The higher your click-through rate, the higher your Quality Score. The higher your Quality Score, the lower your costs to maintain and/or improve your ad position.
3. Can Having A High Average Click-Through Rate Ever Be A Bad Thing?
Actually, yes. There are certainly times when too much of a good thing is bad for business.
If you are having high click-through rates on irrelevant keywords, then you are just wasting away ad spend without receiving any benefit.
What is a good click-through rate? It’s not scoring high marks on irrelevant keywords. You want to hit the nail on the head for keywords that also lead to a high conversion rate.
You may also be getting high click-throughs on relevant keywords that are far too expensive. In this situation, the cost can be so high that you barely break even, or worse you lose money, even if the customer converts.
4. How Can I Improve My YouTube CTR?
The first thing you want to do to improve your CTR on Youtube is to avoid clickbait thumbnails and titles.
If a viewer is expecting one thing and they get something completely different after they click on your video, they will close the video. This will give you a low average view duration, and YouTube will not list your video in their “Recommended” section.
In short, keep your audience hooked by providing them with video content that they want to sit and watch.
Wrapping Up What Is A Good Click-Through Rate
Now that you have an idea of what is a good click-through rate, you’ll have a better grasp on how to measure your CTRs across the channels mentioned above.
Remember, don’t get discouraged if your CTR hovers at average or dips below.
Instead, work to improve your CTR by incorporating or improving your CTAs, types of content, keyword selection, and other elements listed in this article.
Once you do these things, you should see your CTRs begin to rise.
