Paid media is full of acronyms, jargon, overlapping terminology, and platform-specific definitions.

CPC means one thing in search. CPM behaves differently in programmatic. ROAS might look profitable — until attribution settings tell another story.

This glossary breaks down the most important paid media terms across:

• PPC & search advertising
• Paid social
• Programmatic & display
• Analytics & attribution
• Creative & conversion optimization
• Bidding & auction systems
• Tracking & measurement

Whether you’re a founder, performance marketer, media buyer, or agency professional, this is your reference guide.

A. Core Paid Media Foundations

Ad Spend

The total amount of money spent on advertising during a specific time period.

Paid Media

Any marketing activity where a brand pays to distribute content or advertisements. This includes search ads, display ads, paid social, programmatic, and more.

Media Buying

The process of purchasing ad inventory across platforms and publishers.

Media Planning

Strategic planning of where, when, and how ads will run.

Performance Marketing

A model of marketing where advertisers pay based on measurable outcomes like clicks, leads, or sales.

Demand Generation

Campaigns focused on building awareness and interest rather than immediate conversion.

Direct Response

Advertising focused on immediate, measurable action (purchase, sign-up, download).

B. Pricing & Bidding Models

CPC (Cost Per Click)

The amount you pay for each click on your ad.

CPM (Cost Per Mille)

Cost per 1,000 impressions.

CPA (Cost Per Acquisition)

Cost required to generate one conversion.

CPL (Cost Per Lead)

Cost per captured lead.

CPV (Cost Per View)

Cost per video view.

CPS (Cost Per Sale)

Cost to generate one sale.

ROAS (Return on Ad Spend)

Revenue divided by ad spend. Example: $10,000 revenue / $2,000 spend = 5x ROAS.

LTV (Lifetime Value)

Projected total revenue a customer generates over time.

Break-even ROAS

The minimum ROAS required to avoid losing money.

Bid

The maximum amount you’re willing to pay in an auction.

Bid Strategy

The method used to determine how bids are placed (manual, automated, target CPA, maximize conversions, etc.).

C. Auction & Delivery Mechanics

Ad Auction

The automated process where advertisers compete for ad placement.

Quality Score

A rating used in search advertising to determine ad relevance and expected performance.

Ad Rank

Position of your ad in the auction based on bid, quality, and relevance.

Impression

A single instance of your ad being shown.

Reach

Number of unique users who saw your ad.

Frequency

Average number of times each person saw your ad.

Pacing

How quickly your budget is spent over a period.

Budget Cap

Maximum spend limit set for a campaign.

Dayparting

Scheduling ads during specific times of day.

D. Search Advertising Terms (PPC)

PPC (Pay-Per-Click)

Model where advertisers pay per click.

Search Query

The exact phrase a user types into a search engine.

Keyword

The targeting term advertisers bid on.

Match Types

• Broad
• Phrase
• Exact

Negative Keywords

Keywords that prevent ads from showing for irrelevant searches.

CTR (Click-Through Rate)

Clicks ÷ Impressions.

Impression Share

Percentage of eligible impressions you captured.

Lost Impression Share

Impressions missed due to budget or ranking limitations.

Ad Extensions

Additional information added to search ads (sitelinks, callouts, phone numbers).

Conversion Rate (CVR)

Conversions ÷ Clicks.

E. Paid Social Advertising

Paid Social

Advertising on social platforms like Meta, LinkedIn, TikTok, or X.

Campaign Objective

The optimization goal (traffic, conversions, engagement, lead generation).

Lookalike Audience

Audience modeled after existing customers.

Custom Audience

Audience built from first-party data (email list, website visitors).

Engagement Rate

Interactions divided by impressions.

ThruPlay

A video view optimization used within Meta platforms.

Hook

The first 1–3 seconds of creative designed to capture attention.

Creative Fatigue

Decline in performance due to repeated exposure.

Ad Relevance Diagnostics

Metrics evaluating engagement quality and conversion likelihood.

F. Display & Programmatic Advertising

Display Advertising

Banner-based ads shown across websites.

Programmatic

Automated buying of digital ad inventory.

DSP (Demand-Side Platform)

Platform used by advertisers to purchase programmatic inventory.

SSP (Supply-Side Platform)

Platform used by publishers to sell inventory.

RTB (Real-Time Bidding)

Instant auction that occurs while a page loads.

Viewability

Percentage of ads actually seen by users.

Banner Blindness

Users ignoring display ad placements.

Native Advertising

Ads designed to match the format of surrounding content.

G. Video Advertising

VTR (View-Through Rate)

Percentage of impressions that resulted in video views.

Completion Rate

Percentage of viewers who watched the entire video.

Skippable Ads

Ads users can skip after a few seconds.

Non-Skippable Ads

Ads that must be watched in full.

CTV (Connected TV)

Advertising delivered through internet-connected televisions.

H. Attribution & Tracking

Attribution Model

Framework determining how credit is assigned to marketing touchpoints.

Last-Click Attribution

100% credit to the final interaction.

First-Click Attribution

Credit to the first interaction.

Multi-Touch Attribution

Credit distributed across multiple touchpoints.

Assisted Conversions

Conversions where the channel contributed but wasn’t the final click.

Pixel

Tracking code placed on a website.

Server-Side Tracking

Tracking data sent directly from server to platform.

UTMs

URL parameters used to track traffic source.

Conversion API

Server-based event tracking method used by Meta.

I. Funnel & Conversion Optimization

TOFU (Top of Funnel)

Awareness stage.

MOFU (Middle of Funnel)

Consideration stage.

BOFU (Bottom of Funnel)

Conversion stage.

Landing Page

Dedicated page built for ad traffic.

CRO (Conversion Rate Optimization)

Improving conversion rates through testing.

A/B Testing

Testing two variations to determine better performance.

Heatmap

Visual representation of user behavior on a webpage.

Bounce Rate

Percentage of users who leave without interaction.

J. Metrics That Actually Matter

MER (Marketing Efficiency Ratio)

Total revenue ÷ Total marketing spend.

Blended ROAS

ROAS calculated across all channels.

Incrementality

Measuring true impact beyond baseline sales.

Lift Study

Controlled test to measure campaign effectiveness.

CAC (Customer Acquisition Cost)

Total cost to acquire one customer.

Payback Period

Time required to recover acquisition cost.

K. Creative Strategy Terms

Static Ad

Image-based ad.

Carousel Ad

Multi-image swipeable format.

UGC (User-Generated Content)

Content created by customers or creators.

Social Proof

Evidence of popularity or trust.

Offer Stack

Combination of bonuses or incentives.

CTA (Call-to-Action)

Prompt directing user action.

Angle

The strategic message framing used in creative.

Thumb Stop Rate

Percentage of users who stop scrolling on your ad.

L. Advanced & Emerging Concepts

AI Bidding

Machine-learning driven automated bidding.

Smart Campaigns

Simplified automated campaigns (e.g., in Google Ads).

Broad Match Expansion

Automated query expansion beyond exact keyword targeting.

Performance Max

Goal-based campaign type in Google Ads covering all inventory.

First-Party Data

Data collected directly from users.

Cookieless Tracking

Tracking without third-party cookies.

Privacy Sandbox

Google’s privacy framework replacing cookies.

MMM (Marketing Mix Modeling)

Statistical analysis to measure channel contribution.

Why This Glossary Matters

Paid media is no longer just “run ads and scale.”

Today it requires:

• Creative strategy
• Attribution literacy
• Data interpretation
• Cross-channel thinking
• Incrementality awareness
• Financial modeling

Understanding the language reduces mistakes, misinterpretation, and wasted spend.

It also changes how you communicate with:

• Clients
• Founders
• CFOs
• Agencies
• Platform reps

Final Thoughts

The best media buyers don’t just know how to launch campaigns.

They understand:

• Why a metric moves
• How attribution changes perception
• When automation helps
• When creative is the bottleneck
• When scaling breaks efficiency

Paid media is part psychology, part math, part system design.

And language is the foundation.

Bookmark this glossary. Share it with your team. Build on it.

Because clarity compounds — just like good ROAS.