By: Matthew Carollo, Manager, Marketing Operations

In online marketing, everyone seems to know a lot about click-through rates (CTRs), but to paraphrase Mark Twain, no one ever seems to do anything about them. How can you, as a busy B2B technology marketer, grow your CTR and improve the performance of your campaigns?

There are many things to consider when you look at the ultimate performance of a campaign, and specifically when you’re measuring the CTR. For example, what size unit(s) are running? How are they targeted? What geographies are they running in?

Based on my experience, below are five ways that will give you the best potential of increasing your overall CTR for any given campaign:

1. Optimization, Optimization, Optimization

When working with a media partner, you should confirm that it is keeping a close eye on the performance of each campaign on a weekly basis (or even daily, depending on the duration of the campaign). Keeping tabs on what units are performing best, and the zones within which they are performing most optimally, will afford one of the strongest opportunities to increase the CTR of any program.

2. High-Performance / Unique Units

Make sure a high-performing unit is part of the mix. IMUs, Leaderboards, and even text links perform well when targeted correctly, but if you utilize a high-performing ad such as a Horizon or Immersion unit, this will help dramatically increase the overall CTR of your campaign. Utilizing a unique ad unit such as the Cube gives you the opportunity to syndicate multiple assets, and provide a unique user experience that encourages interaction.

3. A/B Test Your Creative

Many times, you simply do not have the luxury to do A/B testing. But if you do, it is a great way to see how your target audience is responding (or not responding) to certain creative. This approach also is an excellent way to get the most out of your digital placements.

4. Multiple Exits / Interaction Points

This will ultimately depend on the size of your creative, but if you have more than one exit on your creative or multiple interaction points, you are likely to get more interactions or clicks. You also should include social sharing, video, RSS feeds, etc. as often as you can to give your audience options to click.

5. Take Overs / Section Sponsorships

If your media budget allows for this, another great way to increase CTR is to take over or sponsor a specific channel. This type of media buy not only targets the ideal audience based on the objectives of the campaign, but also gives your audience multiple chances and different ways to click through to your ultimate destination. SlashChannels are perfect examples of opportunities for advertisers looking to sponsor a topic vertical tailored to a specific audience that you’re targeting.

I would love to hear your thoughts and feedback, and also encourage you to share a tip below about how you and your own organization look to increase CTRs on your campaigns.