Which metric is central to measuring the success of Shopping Ads?

Return on Ad Spend (ROAS) is a pivotal metric for measuring the success of Shopping Ads because it directly reflects the revenue generated from advertising efforts relative to the amount spent on those ads. ROAS is expressed as a ratio, indicating how much revenue a business earns for each dollar spent on advertising. This metric allows advertisers to evaluate the effectiveness of their campaigns in terms of profitability, making it crucial for budget allocation and understanding campaign performance.

While click-through rate (CTR), impression share, and cost per click (CPC) offer valuable insights into engagement and efficiency, they do not directly measure the financial return from advertising. CTR focuses on user engagement by indicating how often people click on the ads compared to how many times they were shown, while impression share measures the visibility of the ads compared to the total potential impressions. CPC, on the other hand, relates to the cost involved in securing each click but does not reflect the revenue generated. In summary, ROAS stands out as the most comprehensive indicator of a Shopping Ads campaign's success, linking advertising spend directly to actual revenue.