Platform · Metrics · CPM
CPM: Cost per thousand impressions
The auction price of attention. Read it with CTR and conversion rate, or you will optimize for cheap impressions nobody wanted.
What it is
CPM is what you pay per thousand impressions. It is the media cost of showing up. A low CPM with a low CTR is cheap wallpaper. A high CPM in a high-intent auction can still be the right buy if conversion and AOV pay for it.
Why it is worth tracking
CPM tells you whether the auction got more expensive or your creative got worse at earning the next click. Operators use it to separate media inflation from creative decay, which weekly CPA reports mash together.
How to read it
A single number is not a brief. These splits are what change the work.
CPM up, CTR and CPA stable
The auction got pricier. Creative is still doing its job. Decide on budget and bid strategy, not a panic rewrite.
CPM down, CTR down more
You bought cheaper, worse inventory or a broader audience. Cheap reach is not a win.
CPM spikes in one market only
Local competition or a festival. Isolate that market instead of changing the whole regional campaign.
What the Operator does
Diagnose, act, then draft. The stats pick the job. Brand voice stays locked.
Diagnose
The Operator reads CPM by placement and market, then checks whether CTR moved with it. That split decides “media cost” versus “creative problem.”
Act
Reallocate away from placements where CPM rose and CTR did not. Hold or raise on expensive inventory that still clears CPA. Avoid broadening audience just to lower CPM.
Draft
When CPM is high and CTR is the lever, draft stronger hooks so each impression works harder. When the issue is inventory quality, the Operator does not paper over it with more copy.
Example brief
“Meta CPM in Korea jumped during a category sale week. CTR held at 1.1%, CPA still under cap. Indonesia CPM is low but CTR is 0.4%. Keep KR as is. Draft 8 feed variants to lift ID CTR. Tone: peer-to-peer.”
Paste a brief like this into a Basis Operator. Connected account context and brand rules apply automatically.
Related metrics
Read it with these, or you will optimize the wrong surface.