How to Prepare for the January RPM Dive & Q1 Trends
Industry-wide, in Q1 publishers typically see a drop in RPMs. Advertising budgets are usually high in Q4 as brands take advantage of the holiday season uptrends. Q1 on the other hand can be a slow period for advertiser spend as brands usually allocate smaller budgets to the beginning of the year (or are still deciding on their budget). For this reason, it is typical to see lower RPMs and a drop in revenue in the first few weeks of January —but it usually builds up as we get deeper into Q1. A slow January can be particularly daunting for publishers, especially when the January RPM drop is viewed in contrast to the December and holiday boom. But fret not.
Understanding Ad Seasonality and Q1 Trends
Seasonality is any predictable variation or trend that re-occurs at the same time period, typically annually. Ad seasonality is the way ad revenue and advertiser spending changes based on seasonal and industry trends across the economy. Seasonality can be predicated based on historical data and annual occurrences like holidays, cultural events, etc. Seasonality usually ties to three main periods and events
Ad hoc - e.g World Cup, The Olympics, Elections, etc
Cultural - e.g Easter, Christmas, Hanukkah, New Year
Commercial - e.g Mother’s day, Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Prime Day, Valentine’s Day
Understanding seasonal trends help publishers plan and manage expectations. In publishing, these seasonalities are usually tied to traffic and RPM trends. For example, I’ve written on how publishers can optimize their content creation and website to take advantage of the Q4 boom. In the same vein, January is usually a slower month for ad spend and subsequently for RPMs. A contrast to the peaks of Q4. Although revenue might be low at the start of Q1, you can expect to start seeing a lift as seasonality kicks in. For example, Valentine’s Day, Super Bowl, etc all start to provide a lift in ad spending and also in traffic. This is another reason why you should always plan for trends in your content calendar.
Source: Google
Why Do RPMs Drop in January
Wallet Fatigue — after a busy holiday shopping season, consumers tend to take a break from shopping which leads to a decrease in sales in January. Also, in Q4 users spend more time online as they search for ideas, gift guides, holiday tips etc. (However, January 2022 saw a unique increase in retail sales.)
Reduced Brand Spending — Since advertisers anticipate consumer ‘wallet fatigue’ they are less aggressive in their advertising spend in Q1. This means there is less competition for ad space leading to lower-than-usual fill rates and CPMs. Brands typically reduce their spending in January as they watch and plan for peak seasonalities.
How to Prepare for the Q1 RPM Dive
Despite the gloomy January, there are still ways you can optimize your earning potential and make the most of it.
Optimize Your Site
A slower month like January is the best time to work on your site optimizations like technical SEO updates, website redesign, etc. It’s the best period to experiment and do some house cleaning before things pick back up.
Re-think Your Content Strategy
Explore more ways to boost your traffic, and keep users on your site longer. Include other forms of content in your articles such as image galleries, videos, polls, etc. Get creative with your headlines and make them more catchy. Keep in mind that you’re always competing for eyeballs on your content with similar sites in your niche and also with every content online and on social media. So make sure your headlines stand out. Add more H2/H3 subheadings with target keywords and consider other SEO best practice tips.
Optimize your Ad Layout
Also, optimize your content layout and include more ad units and formats. SHE Media flex banners and letter board banner ads are a perfect way to increase your CPMs. Also, include video ads as they increase your earning potential significantly. Contact support@shemedia.com to optimize your ad layout. See other ways you can increase your RPM.
Write Seasonal Content
Regardless of your site’s niche, there are seasonal content and trends that you can jump on to create trendy articles and join global conversations. For Q1 specifically, there are holiday trends that you can jump on - MLK Day, Presidents Day, Black History Month, Valentine’s Day, etc. There is always an increase in searches on the web for content around these holidays and notable events. Create content on trends to join the conversation and garner some of that increased web traffic. See January Trending Topics
Refresh Relevant Old articles
Updating old articles is a great way to keep your site relevant, increase organic rankings, and make your hard work reap continued benefits. Watch our recent editorial workshop on the ways you can update old content on your site. Also remember to refresh and update your static pages like your About Page and Landing Page.
Diversify Your Traffic Sources
Diversify your traffic sources t increase your site’s reach and to wedge against traffic downtrends. It also makes you not solely reliant on one traffic source which can lead to volatility. For example, if the majority of your traffic comes from Google, a major algorithm update could affect you adversely. The same goes if you’re only reliant on only Facebook for example. Make sure you are getting traffic from several platforms. We highly recommend Pinterest as a traffic source for lifestyle sites. SHE Media also offers traffic diversification products like Hindsight, Pushly (great for food and entertainment sites), and TapBio to name a few. Make sure you are making the most of these services to diversify your traffic. Syndication platforms like Smartnews and Newsbreak are also a great way to get traffic so apply to them.
Publishers need to understand seasonality trends and how they impact ad spending each quarter. This understanding will help you prepare for and capitalize on peak seasons and not panic when January numbers are low.
The SHE Media Collective helps content creators and entrepreneurs build sustainable businesses with dedicated support for managing ads, brand partnerships, and more. Apply now to join our mission-driven platform.