Ads Not Getting Clicked? What’s the “Dwell Rate” Like?

Online advertising is not just about the clicks, as a recent study from marketing firm Eyeblaster clearly illustrates. Users can engage with advertisements without actually clicking through.

In fact, Eyeblaster is even trying to coin a new metric called "dwell time." This is in reference to the amount of time a user "dwells" on an ad. This could mean different things depending on the nature of the ad. It could be how long the ad is viewed if it contains video, how long it is expanded if it is expandable, etc.

As more and more ads utilize rich media for different experiences, it would appear that it is less about the click in many instances.

"Recent research shows that the lack of suitable metrics is a top frustration for marketers," says Eyeblaster CEO and Co-founder Gal Trifon. "Technology allows us to analyze consumer time spent with display advertising and indicates that consumers intentionally spend nearly a minute with online ads on average. It’s critical to re-evaluate the role of technology and produce campaigns that employ measurable touch-points beyond a click."

According to Eyeblaster’s findings:

– Video nearly doubles the average Dwell Time – shows consumers spend 37.7 seconds with non-video in banner ads vs. that of 71.51 seconds

– Dwell Time, which measures intentional active engagement is 8.71% compared to an average CTR for rich media at .35% (Dwell Time shows users are 25 times higher/more likely to spend meaningful time on the ad than click on it)

– Dwell Rate is at its highest in the morning, peaking at 9am, when people are prepared to interact, but for not as long as they are at lunch-time when they generally play with ads for longer durations. The data shows CTR picking up in the early evening, and both CTR and Dwell Rate declining as the evening progresses with a drop at about 8.00pm

– Data reveals messenger ads are the top performing ad format, reaching an average 82.98 seconds compared to rich media rectangles (73.46 seconds), banners (58.71 seconds), and skyscrapers (37.57 seconds)

The point is that the click isn’t the only thing that counts. There are other things that maybe you should be looking at to get a more accurate portrayal of an ad’s performance.