Could CPM ads increase my eCPM?

[fredw]

I currently have CPM ads turned off on my Adsense account, I have had for many months.

This month, the eCPM of two of my Adsense sites, both in a related niche, has taken a major dive. I suspect I've been smart-priced.

Do you think contacting Google and requesting having CPM ads turned back on for my account would help increase my eCPM back to a reasonable level?

Or should I just stick with my current setup for a while and hope it gets better?

[mrSEman]

Looking..............
hmm I can't seem to find the "Do Not Show Low Paying CPM Ads on my site EVER" checkbox. Trust me... I wish I could!

Personally CPM ads don't seem to make me as much money as clicks... not even close.... but thats just me.

[ken_b]

Fredw;

Have you asked Adsense to turn off CPM ads for your site?

If not, they could still run, publishers don't have the ability to turn them off or on.

The closest we can get is to turn off image ads, but CPM ads can be in an "expanded text" format too, so they might be running like that. "Expanded Text" CPM ads look a lot like those PSAs with the big text and there would only be one ad showing at a time in an adblock.

As to if CPM ads can raise your overall eCPM, sure they can if they are priced right. But not all CPM carry high values, so there's no guarantee.

[fredw]

Yes, I asked for CPM ads to be turned off. Any publisher can do this, all you have to do is email Google Adsense support and ask them to do it.

[hunderdown]

Theoretically, even if CPM ads never appear on your site, or only appear on scattered pages, they could push up your eCPM. How? By pushing up the bid that non-CPM advertisers would have to make in order to outpay the CPM gang.

Theoretically, if Google's ad algorithm is working correctly, turning CPM ads back on could benefit you. However, people have reported that the algorithm, though working in this way on the average site, doesn't work on theirs. But if you eCPM is low already, you may not have anything to lose.

[europeforvisitors]

Since CPM ads are displayed only when Google believes they'll generate more revenue for you (and for Google) than CPC ads will, even low-paying CPM ads should increase your overall average eCPM by boosting the eCPM of pages that are doing poorly with CPC because of low earnings per click and/or poor clickthrough rates.

However, if you've recently taken a hit in eCPM because of smart pricing or low advertiser bids, site-targeted CPM ads won't bring your overall eCPM back up to its previous levels. They aren't a panacea--they're just another revenue tool.