# What is CPM – Cost Per Mille?

What is CPM – Cost Per Mille? The cost of advertising per 1,000 ad impressions. A key metric in awareness-focused and brand-building campaigns.

## How it works in practice

CPM matters when you want people to know you, not necessarily buy right away. A new store that spends everything on conversion campaigns without allocating budget to brand-building will run into an audience that doesn't recognize it.

## Related metrics

- Reach — high CPM means fewer people for the same budget
- Frequency — low CPM usually means low frequency
- Retargeting — CPM for a warm audience is lower
- Brand Awareness — CPM is the currency of brand-focused campaigns

## Common misconception

'High CPM = a problem.' A high CPM for a very targeted audience can produce excellent ROAS. A low CPM for an irrelevant audience is a waste.

## How to fix it

Did CPM rise? (1) Check Relevance Score, (2) check for peak season, (3) try narrowing the audience.

## Real-world example

A cosmetics store: broad-audience CPM was $7.50. Narrowing to women 25-40 who bought beauty products in the last 30 days raised CPM to $11 but ROAS rose from 2.1 to 4.7.

## Where to start

Track CPM as a symptom, not a target. Optimize for ROAS or CPA instead.

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Category: Marketing · From the [Jimmy OS KPI Glossary](https://jimmy-os.com/glossary/kpi.md) · Source page: https://jimmy-os.com/glossary/kpi/cpm-cost-per-mille