Return on advertising spend (ROAS)

Return on Advertising Spend (ROAS) is an important metric in online advertising that represents the ratio of revenue to advertising costs. It gives companies an idea of how profitable their advertising campaigns are and whether the advertising budget is being spent wisely.

ROAS is calculated by dividing the revenue generated by advertising campaigns by the cost of the campaign. The formula is:

ROAS = (revenue generated by advertising) / (cost of advertising).

Calculation example

A company has generated 100,000 euros in sales through an online advertising campaign and spent 20,000 euros in advertising budget on the campaign. The company has a ROAS of 5, as:

ROAS = (100,000 euros) / (20,000 euros) = 5.

This means for every euro spent on advertising, 5 euros in sales were generated. A higher ROAS is usually better, as it gives the company a higher return on its advertising costs.

It is important to note that a high ROAS is not always the best result. A company can have a high ROAS by advertising only on highly profitable products or customer segments, but this can lead to weaker brand awareness and a limited product line in the long run. A low ROAS, on the other hand, can help strengthen the company in the long run by investing in strengthening the brand and product line.

ROAS is an important tool to measure and optimize the profitability of advertising campaigns. Companies should use it in conjunction with other metrics such as click-through rate (CTR) and conversion rate (CR) to gain a more comprehensive understanding of their advertising campaigns.