What result should you optimise for when you're testing creative?

Question

Should you optimise for installs? CTR? Registrations (by that I mean creating an account, i.e. further down the funnel than install), or some event further down, such as playing a first game? I've heard varied responses to this in the past, some have said CTR for initial low-cost testing.

Answer 1

Most teams just optimize for installs since it can be hard to get reliable ROAS data in a test setting. CTR seems too up-funnel to me; I'm not sure you'd get meaningful indicators of success in a live setting by just testing for CTR.

Comments

To elaborate a bit further on the installs part: Specifically you'd be looking at IPM (installs per 1000 impressions).

CTR is indeed too up funnel, and certain ads will have much higher CTR but lower IR. A CG ad will almost always have a high CTR but not necessarily the best IR. Ultimately IPM unifies both those metrics and helps you understand what's working best