CTR

One method of measuring the performance of online ads is CTR (Click Through Rate). In this article, we tell you what it entails.

What is CTR?

CTR, Click Through Rate, indicates how many people click on your ad after viewing it. You calculate the CTR by dividing the number of clicks by the number of impressions. The level of CTR depends on your place in Google’s search results.

Ads that rank highest in Google carry a higher CTR than an ad at the bottom of the search results.

It’s not just higher search engine rankings that increase CTR. Attractive text also provides this. If your ad is more attractive than another ad above yours, you may still have a higher CTR. This contributes to a higher quality score.

The importance of the Click Through Rate

Monitoring CTR is very important in SEO. This way you measure how many organic visitors click through to your website.

The goal of SEO is to generate as much organic and relevant traffic as possible. More visitors to your website is nice, but the goal is to increase your conversions.

What is a good Click Through Rate? What are the disadvantages of CPC?

It depends on the situation. Are you using paid ads? Then you pay per click to your website. A high CTR is positive for your conversion then, but each click comes with a cost.

The CTR for organic search results is more valuable. Organic traffic, in that sense, is free. When a conversion occurs, all the revenue is yours.

My advice

We recommend not focusing blindly on the CTR! Want to increase your CTR? Then optimize the meta description and meta titles. This way, you give a good indication to the searcher what topic you are discussing on the landing page. This triggers a click. Convince the searcher of the added value you provide as a company!


Frequently Asked Questions

What is CTR?

CTR, in full Click Through Rate, is the value that indicates how many users click through on your ad after viewing it. CTR is calculated by dividing the number of clicks by the number of times the ad was shown. The higher you rank with your ad in search results, the higher the CTR.

What is the impact of CTR on SEO?

It is very important for SEO to monitor CTR. After all, that’s how you know how many organic visitors are clicking through to your site. With the results, you can make improvements if necessary.

Senior SEO-specialist

Ralf van Veen

Senior SEO-specialist
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I have been working for 10 years as an independent SEO specialist for companies (in the Netherlands and abroad) that want to rank higher in Google in a sustainable manner. During this period I have consulted A-brands, set up large-scale international SEO campaigns and coached global development teams in the field of search engine optimization.

With this broad experience within SEO, I have developed the SEO course and helped hundreds of companies with improved findability in Google in a sustainable and transparent way. For this you can consult my portfolio, references and collaborations.

This article was originally published on 22 March 2024. The last update of this article was on 22 March 2024. The content of this page was written and approved by Ralf van Veen. Learn more about the creation of my articles in my editorial guidelines.

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