As the industry engages in back-and-forth about the efficacy and relevance of Facebook advertising, agency TBG, which specializes in social media marketing, has released a report showing that CPMs and clicks have increased on the social network over the past year, though CPCs vary across geographies. The stats, aggregated from more than 275 of TBG’s clients, bolster the argument that Facebook’s product developments have provided value for advertisers, at least in some places.

In its analysis of more than 406 billion impressions of Facebook ads globally, TBG found CPMs (cost-per-thousand-impressions) have risen 58% between the second quarter of 2011 and this year’s second quarter. In the US, CPMs have risen 25% between the first and second quarters of 2012. Germany was the area to see the largest growth in CPMs, where they increased 31%. The US was next, followed by Canada (21%) and the UK (7%).

TBG speculates that the increase in CPMs may be due to advertisers making increasing use of products that command higher rates, including Sponsored Stories and Mobile ads.

The relevance of, and engagement with, Facebook ads — at least as measured by click-through rates — were up, as well. TBG said CTRs have increased 11% over the first quarter, when they declined 6%. Again, Germany was a hotbed of growth, seeing a 44% increase in click-through rate. Next came the United States (11%), the UK (9%) and Canada (8%). France saw a modest 2% increase in click-through rate.

The company noted that the growth in click-through rates seems to be due to mobile ad targeting and social targeting, though a general increase in ad targeting and creative got some of the credit, as well.

Click-Through Rates Across Delivery Platforms

Page Like Ads vs. Page Like Story Ads

Costs-per-click rose, too, but not nearly as dramatically, and not everywhere. This quarter, as compared to last, CPCs grew only 9%. From Q4 2011 to Q1 2012 the increase was 23%. In fact, only the US and Canada posted rises in CPCs, of 13% and 12%. In the US, the average CPC was $1.04, while it was $1.02 in Canada. Elsewhere, CPCs declined, with the most dramatic drop coming in France, where they were 10% lower.

Related Topics: Channel: Strategy | Facebook: Advertising | Social Media Marketing: Advertising | Statistics: Social Media | Top News

About The Author: Pamela Parker is executive features editor of Marketing Land and a contributing editor for Search Engine Land. She’s a well-respected authority on digital marketing, having reported and written on the subject since 1998, including a stint as managing editor of ClickZ. She’s also worked to help monetize independent publishers’ sites at Federated Media Publishing. She blogs about media and marketing at The River and about cooking, gardening and parenthood at Free Range. See more articles by Pamela Parker

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