From click-through rates to impressions and engagements, the sheer amount of data available for digital marketing reporting can be overwhelming. Among the sea of numbers and data is a metric that is often overlooked or dismissed: frequency.
Whether you’re a credit union, car dealer, or a coffee shop, understanding and leveraging frequency in your digital marketing can be the key to unlocking greater brand awareness, customer engagement, and driving conversions and sales.
Read on to discover why frequency is an important digital marketing metric and how small business owners can use it to achieve their marketing goals effectively.
UNDERSTANDING FREQUENCY
In simple terms, frequency represents the average number of times an individual views an ad or marketing message within a specific timeframe. It's not merely about the total number of ad views but how frequently a single person encounters the ad on average.
To calculate frequency, divide the total number of impressions by the total reach of your ad or marketing message. Understanding the frequency of your ad helps you gauge the level of awareness or fatigue your audience may be experiencing with your campaign.
Here are a few examples of how frequency and how it’s used across different marketing channels:
Social Media: Frequency is tracked across platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn by how often your ad appears on a user’s screen on any device.
Email Marketing: In email marketing, frequency measures how often a subscriber receives emails from your business during a set period.
Display Ads: For display ads, frequency refers to how many times a user sees your ad appear while browsing an app or websites across the Internet.
OTT/Video: Frequency refers to how many times a user sees your ad while watching video content.
THE IMPORTANCE OF FREQUENCY
It goes without saying that the more often an audience sees a message the more likely they are to remember it. This is one of the key features of frequency: brand awareness.
As customers are regularly exposed to your message it leads to recognition and trust with your brand, which snowballs into making them more comfortable engaging with your content or ad. Often, increased frequency can prompt a customer to take an action such as clicking a link or participating in promotions.
Generally, as consumers become increasingly familiar with your brand and marketing messages through repeated exposure, they are more likely to convert into paying customers.
MONITORING FREQUENCY
While frequency is important, it’s vital to understand that you can have too much of a good thing. If the frequency of your ad starts getting too high (this number depends on the channel and the timeframe tracked) then users are likely to feel spammed by your ads. That can lead to negative actions like hiding or blocking your ad or page!
The importance of monitoring metrics can’t be overstated — it helps your business stay flexible and adaptive. Consistently keeping an eye on the frequency and other metrics of your campaigns allows you to make timely adjustments to avoid audience fatigue and spot emerging trends. By optimizing your campaigns using real-time data, you can maximize the ROI of your campaigns!
