Social Media
What are impressions?
Impressions are the total number of times content was displayed, as counted by the platform showing it. Unlike reach, which counts unique people, impressions count every display, so one person seeing a post three times contributes three impressions. What counts as a display varies by platform, which is why impressions are most meaningful when compared like-for-like over time.
Impressions vs reach
Impressions count every display; reach counts unique people. The same person scrolling past a post three times generates three impressions and a reach of one. Platforms also define a “display” differently, how much of the content must be on screen, and for how long, which is why impression counts are best compared within one platform over time rather than across networks.
What impressions are useful for
Impressions describe presence: how much space content occupied in feeds over a period. Rising impressions with flat reach means the platform is re-showing content to the same people; rising both means genuine expansion. As with all exposure metrics, impressions are the start of the story, engagement and clicks say whether the presence achieved anything.
Related terms
Impressions serve as one denominator for engagement rate, and, in search reports, pair with clicks to produce click-through rate.