Based on an analysis of 1 trillion impressions from its 100,000-strong publisher network during Q1, Infolinks has released a set of findings concerning online ad click-through rates (CTRs) by time of day, day of the week, and US state. The data suggests that CTRs are highest between 11AM and 2PM, rising to 14% above the average during that time period. CTRs on either side of that period are also high, at 10-11% above-average, while falling in the evening hours into the late night and early morning. While it’s no surprise that CTRs are low between 11PM and 5AM, the results as a whole suggest that click rates are higher during work than leisure hours, with below-average rates seen during primetime.
Turning to days of the week, the surprising finding is that Friday registered easily the highest average CTR, at 3.23% above-average. Only Tuesday (+0.75%) also managed to beat the average, with Wednesday (-1.86%) performing worst. There doesn’t appear to be a linear trend in terms of performance by day of the week.
Finally, the US states with the best click rates:
- Mississippi, at a 17% above-average rate;
- Alabama and South Carolina (each at +14%);
- Louisiana (+11%); and
- Montana and Arkansas (each at a 10% above-average rate.
The results indicate that with the exception of Georgia (-21%), Southern states (starting with New Mexico and moving east) have above-average click rates, while those in the West have average to below-average rates.
Of course, every marketer will see different results, as there are many variables in play. However, the data invites another look at campaign performance to see if perceptions are meeting reality.
