The 7 PPC Metrics You Must Track to Supercharge Your Google Ads 💥

Managing a PPC campaign without tracking the right metrics is like driving blindfolded – you might be moving, but you don’t know if you’re actually going anywhere. That’s why understanding and analysing key PPC metrics is not optional. It’s essential. If you want to optimize your spend, target the right people, and boost your ROI – you need to know what’s really happening under the hood.

In this guide, I’m walking you through the seven most important PPC metrics every advertiser should keep an eye on – how they work, why they matter, and how you can use them to make smarter decisions.

What Exactly Is PPC – And Why These Metrics Matter?

PPC, or Pay‑Per‑Click, is a model of digital advertising where you pay every time someone clicks on your ad. Popular on platforms like Google Ads, PPC lets you buy visits rather than earn them organically.

That said, running PPC effectively isn’t just about spending money – it’s about spending smart. And that requires a clear understanding of the numbers behind the campaign: who’s seeing your ads, who’s clicking, who actually converts, how much it costs you, and ultimately – how much value you get back.

Without metrics, you’re flying blind. With them – you’re optimizing.

✅ The 7 Key PPC Metrics You Should Track

1. Conversions

What is it? Conversions are the actions that matter – a sale, a lead form fill, a phone call, or whatever your business defines as “success.”

Why it matters: Clicks and impressions don’t pay the bills. Conversions do. If you’re running an ecommerce store – real purchases are what counts. If you’re generating leads – then form submissions or calls. Even softer actions (like whitepaper downloads or scroll depth) can be useful, especially if your hard goals are rare or expensive.

Pro tip: Use softer conversion actions as secondary goals. That way, you can still track them – but avoid skewing your main metrics (like CPA) and avoid confusing “vanity” conversions with truly valuable ones.

2. Conversion Rate

What is it? The percentage of people who clicked your ad – and then actually converted. In short: conversions ÷ clicks.

Why it matters: High conversion volumes are nice – but if you’re getting tons of clicks but very few conversions, that means your campaign isn’t efficient. Conversion rate is the real signal: it tells you how good your ads and landing pages are at convincing people to take action.

Pro tip: Don’t just throw budget at the campaigns with the highest conversion count. Focus on those with the highest conversion rate. That’s where you’re getting the most “bang for your click.”

3. Return on Ad Spend (ROAS) / Cost Per Acquisition (CPA)

What are they?

• ROAS – measures how much revenue you get for each dollar you spend on ads (Revenue from ads ÷ Ad spend).
  
• CPA – shows how much it costs you to get one conversion (Total cost ÷ Number of conversions).
  

Why they matter: Conversions tell you whether people acted. ROAS and CPA tell you whether those actions are profitable. High ROAS means you’re getting good value from your spend; low CPA means you’re acquiring customers/leads efficiently.

Pro tip: If you run lead‑gen campaigns, consider using value-based bidding. Assign hypothetical “worth” to each type of conversion (e.g. a form fill = $100, a phone call = $50) – then let Google optimize toward those higher-value conversions. This helps ensure your spend goes toward what brings actual business value.

4. Top / Absolute Top Impression Share (IS)

What is it? Impression Share (IS) shows what percentage of all auctions your ads were eligible for, that you actually appeared in. Top IS – how often you showed above the fold (top of search results). Absolute Top IS – how often you were in the very top ad spot.

Why it matters: In the age of smart bidding, average position is dead; impression share (especially Top / Absolute Top) replaces it. Tracking IS gives you insight into visibility, competitiveness, and why your traffic or CPC might suddenly shift. For example, a drop in Top IS could mean a competitor increased their bid and pushed you down. 

Pro tip: Monitor these metrics especially if you see sudden traffic or cost fluctuations – it might not be your ad quality or targeting, but simply increased competition. 

5. Cost Per Click (CPC)

What is it? CPC is how much you pay, on average, every time someone clicks your ad (Total cost ÷ Total clicks). 

Why it matters: While CPC is less critical than conversions or ROAS, it’s still a useful diagnostic tool. If your conversions drop but total spend stays the same – maybe you’re paying more per click, or clicks are coming from less relevant audiences. With the rise of smart bidding, CPC fluctuates depending on search intent and auction dynamics.

Pro tip: CPC is especially helpful for analysing mixed campaigns (search, video, display). For instance: low CPC could indicate spend is going toward display/video – high CPC might mean search or shopping. Use it to eyeball where your budget is draining.

6. Budget Utilisation Rate (BUR)

What is it? BUR is a custom metric showing what percentage of your daily budget was actually used over a period. For example: if you have a budget of $50/day but over 7 days average spend is $37.50 – your BUR is 75%.

Why it matters: It’s a quick way to spot under-spending or over-spending. If your top campaigns never exhaust their budget, maybe you need to reallocate budget to underperforming but high-potential ads. If they consistently overspend – maybe raise the budget or adjust bids. 

Pro tip: In Google Ads, you can create a custom column to track BUR. Use a formula like: Cost (last 30 days) / 30 / daily budget – or adjust the window as needed if you have many campaigns.

7. Engagement Rate

What is it? Engagement rate is the share of your traffic from paid ads that engages meaningfully – e.g. sessions that last longer than 10 seconds (or however you define “engaged sessions” in your analytics) after they click the ad.

Why it matters: A click doesn’t guarantee interest. Engagement rate helps you understand whether your ads attract genuinely interested users or just cursory clickers. High engagement means your ad-targeting and landing page are aligned – which often leads to better conversions downstream.

Pro tip: If you use Google Analytics 4 (GA4) integrated with Google Ads – you can import engagement metrics directly into Ads. Track engaged sessions instead of bounce rate (because, in paid campaigns, a higher engagement rate is actually better).

Pulling It All Together – How To Use Metrics Like a Pro 🎯

With so much data available, it’s easy to get overwhelmed. But here’s the thing: not every metric is equally important. Some are vanity – nice to know, but not helpful for business decisions. Others are the foundation of effective PPC. It’s these that you should build your strategy around.

✅ My Personal Advice (as someone who’s run countless campaigns):

• Start with conversions, conversion rate, ROAS, and CPA. If you master these – you’ll know whether your ads drive real value.
  
• Use CPC, BUR and Engagement Rate for diagnostics and fine-tuning. They help you understand where your budget is going and whether your audience responds to your ads and landing pages.
  
• Keep an eye on Impression Share (Top / Absolute Top). It reveals competitiveness and auction dynamics – often the real reason for sudden performance changes.
  
• Avoid vanity metrics unless they align with your goals. Impressions, raw clicks, or soft conversions may feel good, but they rarely tell the full story.
  

At the end of the day – PPC success isn’t about spending more. It’s about spending smarter: on the right audience, with the right message, at the right time – and getting measurable returns.

Final Words

Running a PPC campaign without tracking – well – it’s not marketing. It’s gambling. But with the right metrics in place – you give yourself control. 🎛️

Metrics let you see through the fog: who’s clicking, who’s converting, where you’re overspending, underdelivering – and where the real opportunity lies.

So: set up tracking for conversions, conversion rate, ROAS/CPA, CPC, BUR, engagement, and impression share. Use those numbers to learn, adapt, optimize. And watch how your ad spend starts delivering real – and measurable – results.

(P.S. For more deep dives, frameworks, and marketing tools – swing by marmakhub.com – I promise you’ll find something useful 😉)