Impression

In online marketing, an impression describes the visual contact of a user with a piece of content - for example an advertisement, a banner or a search result. It is important to note that it is only the display of the content, not an interaction. Clicks or other actions count separately.

The most important facts about the impression in brief:

Impression = visual contact: Content (ad, page, social post) is displayed regardless of whether someone clicks or not
Basic metric in online marketing: Basis for key figures such as CTR, CPM/TKP or reach
Not all reach is the same: Impressions also count multiple contacts, reach only unique users
Measurement methods: Log files, tracking pixels, ad server tracking, supplemented by viewability criteria
Not very meaningful on their own: only in combination with clicks, conversions or engagement does a real picture of success emerge
Optimization: More impressions through high-reach placements, large formats, targeted targeting and time-based control

What is the background to the term "impression" and what does it mean?

Where does the term "impression" come from?
The word originally comes from the French ("impression") and Latin ("impressio"), which means "impression". In marketing, the term was adopted to describe the impression that an advertisement or content leaves simply through its visibility.

What are the different meanings?
In the digital environment, the term is not unambiguous but is used in different contexts:

Ad impression
page impression
Social media impression

What do the different types of impressions mean?

An ad impression refers to the loading of an advertisement, e.g. in Google Ads, display banners or video ads. As soon as the ad becomes visible, it is counted.

Page impressions are the retrievals of page content. Even if a user loads the same page several times, each load is registered as a separate impression.

In social networks such as Instagram, Facebook or TikTok, an impression means that a post or story is displayed in the feed or in the stories. One difference to reach is that reach measures the number of unique users, while impressions also take multiple contacts into account.

How are impressions measured and technically recorded?

Counting impressions
Impressions can be technically measured in various ways. A classic method is log file analysis, in which server logs are evaluated. Also widely used are tracking pixels, small invisible graphics that track the display of content when a page is loaded. Ad server tracking, which automatically records the delivery of ads, is also standard in the advertising world.

The importance of viewability in connection with impressions
An impression is not always counted when content is technically loaded. The decisive factor is often whether the user was actually able to see the ad. The technical term for this is viewability: for an impression to be considered valid, a certain proportion must be visible - for example, at least 50% of the ad for at least one second.

Why are impressions important?

Impressions are a key output variable in online marketing. They serve as the basis for many other key figures such as the click-through rate (CTR), which calculates how many clicks are made in relation to the impressions. Billing models such as CPM (cost per mille) or the German TKP (thousand contact price) are also based on impressions.

The informative value of impressions:
A high number of impressions means that a piece of content has been played out often - but only additional data such as clicks, reach or conversions show whether it was effective. Impressions are therefore more of a starting point for analysis than a definitive proof of success.

How are impressions measured on different platforms?

In Google Ads, each display of an ad is counted as an impression. Campaigns can be billed here according to impressions, especially in the CPM model.

The Search Console shows impressions for websites in the search results. It records how often a page has been displayed - even if no one has clicked on it.

Social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram offer their own analysis dashboards. Impressions per post, story or ad are displayed there and often compared with the reach.

Which examples explain the impression?

Example 1: An advertising banner on a website is displayed 1,000 times. This means: 1,000 impressions - regardless of whether someone clicks.

Example 2: A Facebook post is viewed twice by 500 people. The result is 1,000 impressions, but only 500 reach. The difference makes it clear how important it is to differentiate between the terms.

How can you achieve more impressions?

If you want to achieve more views, you can combine various strategies. These include the selection of high-reach placements, such as prominent start pages or thematically appropriate premium environments. Large advertising formats or interactive rich media banners also increase visibility. Another lever is time-based targeting, i.e. display at peak times with high traffic. In addition, precise targeting and A/B tests can help to increase the number of impressions in a targeted manner.

What are the common terms and abbreviations used in connection with the impression?

CTR (click-through rate): Proportion of clicks in relation to impressions.
CPM / CPM: Price for 1,000 impressions.
Viewability: Visibility rate of an ad.
Unique user: Number of unique users.
Reach: Number of users reached, regardless of multiple contacts.

What conclusions can be drawn about the impression?

The impression is a fundamental key figure in online marketing because it indicates the number of visual contacts. However, it is no guarantee of success on its own. Only in combination with key figures such as clicks, conversions or reach does a meaningful picture emerge that can be used to manage and optimize campaigns.