Monthly advertising report: what to track
A monthly report should answer three questions: what did we spend, what did we get, and what will we do next. Keep it short.
The numbers that matter
| Number | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Ad spend | What you paid the platforms |
| Leads | Calls, forms and bookings from ads |
| Cost per lead | Spend divided by leads |
| Customers won | Leads that paid you |
| Cost per customer | Spend divided by customers |
| Revenue and return | What the won customers paid, against spend |
Compare fairly
Compare to last month and to the same month last year, because many businesses are seasonal. A drop in a slow month may be normal.
A simple report template
- Spend, leads, cost per lead, customers, cost per customer.
- What changed this month, such as new ads, offers or website changes.
- What worked and what did not.
- What we will test next month.
Mistakes that mislead
- Reporting clicks and impressions without leads.
- Counting platform conversions that are not real leads.
- Judging a single week.
- Ignoring that leads convert to sales weeks later.
Plan next month with the calendar builder.
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