KPI Definitions

What Is Cost per Link Click? (And Why "Clicks" Don't Mean What You Think)
Cost per link click is how much you pay, on average, for each click that actually takes someone from an ad to your website. On Meta (Facebook and Instagram) it's called CPC (cost per link click); Pinterest calls the same idea cost per outbound click. Different names, same question: what does it cost to get one real visitor through the door? It's a metric — a number you measure — as opposed to a dimension, which is a category you slice numbers by (like country or device). Worth keeping straight,... Read more...
Airdan — Metrics Glossary & KPI Definitions
A reference for all core metrics used across Airdan dashboards. Each entry follows the same template: definition, formula, what to look for, typical benchmarks, what influences it, and how to improve it. Note on benchmarks: All benchmark ranges are broad, global reference points. They vary heavily by industry, country, device mix, and brand vs. non-brand split. CEE markets generally see lower CPCs than Western Europe. The most meaningful benchmark is always your own trend and your own margin — which is exactly what the dashboard shows. Base Metrics (the raw... Read more...
What Is Quality Score in Google Ads? The Report Card, Explained
Quality Score is Google's 1-to-10 rating of how good your ad experience is for a given keyword. A 10 means Google considers your ad and landing page an excellent answer to that search; a 2 means Google is showing your ad somewhat reluctantly. (Technically it's a metric — a number — though an unusual one, as we're about to see; a dimension, by contrast, is a category you slice numbers by.) The most useful way to think about it: Quality Score is a report card, not an exam result. It... Read more...
Impression Share (Search)
Definition: The percentage of eligible auctions in which your ad actually appeared. The closest thing in platform data to "how much of the available market am I capturing" — and a direct input to Opportunity Gap thinking. Formula: Impression Share = Impressions ÷ Total Eligible Impressions (estimated by Google) What to look for: Lost IS (budget) vs. lost IS (rank): lost to budget means demand exists that you simply aren't funding — often the cheapest growth available. Lost to rank means bids or Quality Score are too low to compete.... Read more...
AOV — Average Order Value
AOV (average order value) is the average amount a customer spends per order. Take all your revenue for a period, divide by the number of orders, done. If your shop made €12,000 from 200 orders last month, your AOV is €60. (It's a metric — a number — rather than a dimension, which is a category you slice numbers by.) The everyday version: it's the average receipt at your till. Not your busiest day, not your biggest sale — the typical slip of paper a typical customer walks out with. Strictly speaking, AOV is... Read more...
What Is ROAS? Return on Ad Spend, Explained Honestly
ROAS (return on ad spend) answers one question: for every euro you give the ad platforms, how many euros of revenue come back? Spend €100 on ads, get €400 in sales — your ROAS is 4 (sometimes written 400%). That's the whole formula. The complicated part is everything around it, and that's where this page earns its keep. (ROAS is a metric — a number — not a dimension, which is a category you slice numbers by.) The formula (with actual numbers) ROAS = Revenue from Ads ÷ Cost of Ads €2,500 in attributed... Read more...
What Is Conversion Rate (CVR)? Explained SImply
Conversion rate (CVR) is the percentage of visitors who do the thing you wanted — usually, buy something. If 100 people click your ad and 3 of them order, your conversion rate is 3%. It's a metric — a number — not a dimension (a category you slice numbers by, like "landing page" or "device"). Picture a physical shop. A hundred people walk in over an afternoon. Some browse, some pick things up and put them back, one asks where the toilets are. Three actually buy something. Your conversion rate is 3% — and everything... Read more...
What Is CTR? Click-Through Rate, Explained Like a Human
CTR (click-through rate) is the percentage of people who saw your ad and actually clicked on it. If 1,000 people see your ad and 30 click, your CTR is 3%. That's the whole metric. (And yes, it's a metric — a number you calculate — not a dimension, which is a category you slice numbers by, like "device" or "country".) Think of your ad as a shop window. Impressions are everyone who walks past. Clicks are the ones who push the door open. CTR tells you how tempting the window display is — and... Read more...
CPA — Cost per Action / Cost per Acquisition / Cost per Conversion
CPA (cost per acquisition) is the average amount of ad money it takes to produce one sale. Spend €1,000 on ads, get 25 orders, and each order cost you €40 to acquire. It's a metric — a number — not a dimension (a category you slice numbers by). Think of it as the price tag on a customer. Every product in your shop has a cost price; CPA is the cost price of the person buying it. And just like with products, the question is never "is €40 a lot?"... Read more...
CPC - Cost per Click
CPC (cost per click) is the average amount you pay each time someone clicks your ad. Spend €200, get 400 clicks, and your CPC is €0.50. You're not paying to be seen — you're paying for visitors, one push of the door at a time. (CPC is a metric, a number you calculate — not a dimension, which is a category you slice numbers by, like "campaign" or "device".) And here's the thing most people get wrong about it, so let's get it wrong-proof early: CPC is not a price... Read more...
CPM - cost per mille
CPM (cost per mille) is the price you pay for one thousand views of your ad. "Mille" is Latin for a thousand — advertising kept the Latin, presumably because "cost per thousand" didn't sound expensive enough. If you spend €50 and your ad is shown 10,000 times, your CPM is €5. It's a metric (a number you calculate), not a dimension (a category you slice numbers by). The everyday equivalent is a billboard. You don't pay the billboard company per person who visits your shop afterwards — you pay for eyeballs. CPM is the digital... Read more...