As a publisher, page RPM is one of the most important metrics needed to accurately measure your site’s ad revenue performance.
In this article, we will do a deep dive into RPM, helping you to understand what it is, why it’s so important, and how you can improve it.
What is Page RPM?
RPM is an acronym for “revenue per mille,” or revenue per one thousand impressions (mille is Latin for thousand). It measures how much your site generates for every 1,000 pageviews.
Simply put, the metric tells you how much money you can expect to generate for every 1,000 pageviews you receive.
Why is Page RPM Important?
Page RPM is important because it helps you understand and measure the effectiveness of your website’s ad monetization performance.
Your RPM enables you to predict future earnings and evaluate your site’s performance over time. If your RPM decreases over time, this could indicate potential challenges with your ad setup or shifts in audience behavior, which would need addressing.
RPM also acts as a guide for optimization. By experimenting with different ad placements, types, and formats, and monitoring the impact on RPM, you can fine-tune your ad strategy to maximize revenue.
Additionally, if you’re deliberating between different ad networks or monetization companies, RPM can help compare them.
How to Calculate Page RPM
To calculate RPM, use the following formula:
RPM = (estimated earnings / number of pageviews) * 1,000
For instance, if your estimated earnings are $4,000 from 1,000,000 pageviews, then your RPM will be $4.
($4,000 / 1,000,000) * 1,000 = $4
In other words, for every 1,000 pageviews you can expect to earn $4.
RPM vs CPM
The biggest difference between RPM and CPM is that RPM is a metric geared to publishers whereas CPM is a metric geared to advertisers.
As noted above, RPM is a publisher metric that measures how much money a site makes for every 1,000 pageviews.
CPM (cost per mille) on the other hand, is the amount an advertiser pays to have their ad shown 1,000 times.
As a publisher, you should primarily be using RPM as the metric to gauge the effectiveness of your site’s ad setup.
That being said, RPMs don’t encapsulate the whole picture.
RPMs don’t account for user experience and viewability because RPMs are based on all of the page’s ad units regardless if they received impressions or not.
That’s why CPM is also important, because it’s directly correlated to the ad quality as it measures impressions.
Which Metrics Can Affect Page RPM?
There are many factors that can influence your Page RPM. Here a several of them:
- User Engagement: User engagement has a direct impact on your page RPM. The more a user interacts with your site and its ads, the higher the chance of revenue generation.
- Traffic Source: Traffic originating from different sources can have varying qualities. For instance, organic traffic (from search engines) typically has a higher engagement rate than social media traffic, potentially leading to a higher RPM.
- Ad Quality: The quality and relevance of ads displayed on your website can significantly influence your RPM. High-quality, relevant ads are more likely to be clicked on by users, leading to higher revenue.
- Device Type: Mobile users might interact with your website and its ads differently compared to desktop users. Consequently, the device type can influence your page RPM.
- Geographical Location: Advertisers value traffic from certain regions more highly, due to differences in purchasing power, consumer behavior, etc. Therefore, a site with traffic from tier 1 countries will yield higher RPMs than a site with traffic from tier 2 countries.
- Seasonality: Advertisers often increase their spending during certain times of the year (i.e. holidays or back-to-school seasons), which can affect your page RPM.
How to Improve Your RPM
Here are ten ways you can improve your RPM.
For a more in-depth explanation, check out this article on increasing your RPM.
- Implement header bidding (and optimize it)
- Use interstitial ads
- Improve your ad placements
- Use native ads
- Use high performing ad units
- Increase your site speed
- Improve your ad viewability
- Use ad refresh
- Utilize video ad units
- Partner with a Google-certified partner
Increasing Your RPM with Adnimation
As a Google Certified Publishing Partner (GCPP) and Google AdX Partner, Adnimation has a proven record of helping publishers increase their RPMs.
Our monetization experts use a blend of advanced technology and a customized approach for each publisher that helps maximize RPM and maintain consistently high results
To learn more how we can help, get in touch with our experts today for a free consultation.
