As a publisher, optimizing your RPM is crucial to maximizing your ad revenue.
In this article, we’ll explore 10 effective techniques to increase RPM. But before delving in, let’s make sure we’re all on the same page with the terminology.
What is RPM?
RPM stands for “revenue per mille” or “revenue per thousand,” with “mille” being the Latin word for thousand.
This metric quantifies the amount of revenue a publisher earns for every 1,000 pageviews they receive. In simpler terms, RPM indicates the expected revenue generated for every 1,000 pageviews.
Although RPM is often used interchangeably with CPM, they are two distinct metrics. As a publisher, you should be focusing on RPM, not CPM.
How To Calculate RPM
The formula for calculating RPM is as follows:
RPM = (estimated earnings / number of pageviews) * 1,000
For example, if your estimated earnings are $5,000 from 5,000,000 pageviews, then your RPM will be $1.
10 Ways Increase Your RPM
Here are 10 ways to increase your RPM:
1. Implement Header Bidding
Header bidding is a technique that allows you to offer your ad inventory to multiple demand partners simultaneously.
The more premium demand partners that are bidding for your ad space means more competition, which results in higher RPMs.
For best results, make sure to implement hybrid header bidding, which utilizes both client-side and server-to-server header bidding to maximize RPMs.
2. Use Interstitial Ads
Interstitial ads, full-screen ads that appear when the user tries to navigate to another page, are a great way to boost RPM.
According to our study, interstitial ads outperform standard banner ads by an average of 4,000%.
This is because their very nature makes it impossible for users to miss, which leads to higher engagements and makes interstitial ads desirable for advertisers. And the higher CPMs advertisers are willing to pay, the higher RPMs publishers will generate.
That being said, due to the aggressive nature of interstitial ads, they need to be implemented smartly and constantly monitored.
3. Improve Your Ad Placement
One of the most effective ways to increase your RPM is to optimize your ad placement.
You should experiment with different ad placements to determine which ones generate the highest revenue.
Ads placed above the fold tend to perform better than those placed below the fold. Additionally, ads placed near content or within content tend to perform better than ads placed in less prominent locations.
4. Use Native Ads (Content Recommendation)
Native ads, also known as content recommendation, are designed to match the look of your site’s content.
Because native ads blend in so well with the content, they tend to have a higher click-through rate and engagement rate than other ad formats.
This, in turn, leads to higher RPMs as advertisers are willing to pay more for these ads.
5. Use High Performing Ad Units
Not all ad units were created equal.
Some ad formats perform better than others, and some ad units perform better on desktop than on mobile, and vice versa.
To generate the highest RPM, use the best performing ad units.
6. Increase Your Site Speed
Site speed is a crucial factor in increasing your RPM.
Slow-loading pages can lead to a high bounce rate, which will decrease your RPM.
To improve your site speed, you should optimize your images, minify your code, and work to reduce server response time. You can also use tools like Google’s PageSpeed Insights to identify and fix any issues that may be slowing down your site.
7. Increase Your Ad Viewability
The success of an ad hinges on its viewability. After all, the type of ad unit is insignificant if a user is unable to view it.
And if users can’t view the ads, they won’t click on them. And if they won’t click on them, advertisers won’t be willing to pay high CPMs and your RPMs will suffer.
In general, in-content ads have the highest viewability since they are displayed within the content that the user is actively reading.
8. Use Ad Refresh
Ad refresh is a technique used to increase the number of ad impressions served to users by reloading the ads at specified intervals.
By refreshing ads, you can present new ads to users and increase the opportunity for them to engage with them. As a result, the increased ad inventory and user engagement can help boost your RPMs.
However, it’s important to balance ad refresh rates with user experience, as too frequent or disruptive ad refreshes can drive away users.
9. Use Video Ad Units
Video ads tend to have higher engagement rates and CPMs than other ad formats. This means that advertisers are willing to pay more for each video ad impression, resulting in higher RPMs.
Furthermore, adding video ad units can diversify your ad inventory, providing more options for advertisers and potentially attracting new advertisers to the site.
10. Partner with a Licensed Monetization Company
Partnering with a credible and effective monetization company that knows the ins and outs of website monetization is a sure way to ensure that you get the highest possible RPMs.
Google Certified Publishing Partners like Adnimation are Google’s highest level of publishing partners.
There are only a handful of such companies in the world, and partnering with a GCPP means that your’e partnering with a company that was fully vetted by Google and has a track record of success.
To learn more how Adnimation can help increase your RPMs, get in touch with our experts today for a free consultation.
