Display advertising has an image problem.
Too expensive. Too few clicks. Too few direct conversions.
But what if this very way of thinking is the actual problem? The current whitepaper from Interactive Performance Deutschland shows why focusing on clicks is not just incomplete but strategically dangerous. Anyone who continues to judge display solely by click through rate systematically underestimates its real influence on revenue and brand building.
Why click fixation is holding back your growth
Most performance setups are optimised for last click attribution. That sounds efficient, but it is a radical simplification of reality.
The fact is: the majority of users do not click on banners. They see them. And act later.
Display often works indirectly. A user sees an ad, later searches actively for the brand or enters the URL directly. In classic models the last channel is then credited with the entire conversion. Display comes away empty handed. That is roughly like crediting the cashier with the entire value creation and ignoring marketing completely.
Post view attribution: the missing piece in performance marketing
Post view attribution measures not only clicks but visual contacts. That means:
- A user sees an ad.
- They do not click immediately.
- They convert later via another channel.
This effect is measurable. And this is exactly where the strategic lever lies. Display moves from being a supposed branding channel to a performance amplifier across the entire customer journey.
Anyone who ignores post view effects systematically underestimates the actual impact of their media budgets.
Display as a demand amplifier rather than a click machine
Display advertising is rarely the final closing channel.
- It is the mental trigger.
- It increases brand awareness.
- It influences purchase decisions in the background.
- It increases the likelihood of later conversions via search, direct or social.
The whitepaper argues convincingly that display must not be viewed in isolation. It works in combination with other channels. Anyone looking only at isolated channel KPIs optimises locally and loses globally.
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