You’re running a shiny, new digital ad campaign and you want to make sure it’s working. How many people are clicking? And what are you paying for those clicks?

You want the cheapest, right?

Maybe not.

First, let’s back up. You can’t really “buy a click.” You put a message out there that resonates with people – and they click on it. Cost-per-click is a very standard metric in any digital campaign. And it’s a figure that does tell you something.

But should you really love cheap clicks? It’s complicated.

Sometimes a click is a future customer. But sometimes a click is just someone who clicks. It’s important to know when a click shows intent – and when it’s the reflection of the platform where the ad was placed. Here’s what I mean:

Facebook is an environment that grew up with clicking. You can easily share links. It’s older than platforms like TikTok and Instagram, which are much more focused on pure entertainment. People are used to being in Facebook and making a click.

Ads in Facebook usually see a lower cost-per-click, especially among older demographics.

You can’t share links as easily in Instagram. And the platform was built more organically around creating content, so it’s a more entertainment driven environment. People aren’t clicking to get to the thing they want to see; it’s right there. As a consequence, cost-per-click in Instagram is typically higher, especially in Montana.

And those are just social platforms.

If cost-per-click is your sole barometer of success, you risk putting your ads in front of people and in environments where clicking is the norm – but where you might not be reaching your customers.

The secret is finding a quality click, and that’s a tougher needle to thread. A quality click needs more than one piece of data to identify. Who saw the ad? How big was your audience? If you’re reaching a niche group of people, your cost-per-click will be higher – but you’ll be speaking to the people who care the most. Their clicks may cost more because they mean more.

And even in a digital environment, there are unknowns. There are people who were exposed to your ad, searched for your website on their own and made a purchase – all without ever directly interacting with your ads. But the ads still worked.

Cost-per-click is an important metric; we track it every day. But just like anything else: It needs context to be meaningful.