Reach
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The number of unique people who saw your content or ad. Unlike impressions, reach counts people, not views.
Reach is the number of unique individuals who saw your content. If your campaign reached 50,000 people, 50,000 distinct humans saw your ad at least once. Reach is always less than or equal to impressions because one person can generate multiple impressions.
Reach answers the question: how many people know we exist? It is the top of the awareness funnel. High reach with low conversion means your audience is broad but not well-targeted. Low reach with high conversion means you are reaching the right people but not enough of them.
For B2B companies with specific ICPs, quality of reach matters more than quantity. Reaching 5,000 engineering leaders at mid-market companies is more valuable than reaching 500,000 random LinkedIn users. Target your reach to your ICP and measure conversion, not just exposure.
Examples
A conference sponsorship measures reach.
The conference has 3,000 attendees. Your booth, talk, and signage reach approximately 2,000 of them (67% reach among attendees). Of those, 200 scan your badge at the booth. 30 book demos. Reach was good. Conversion from reach to demo was 1.5%.
Organic social media reach.
A LinkedIn post reaches 25,000 people organically. Of those, 800 engage (likes, comments, shares). 50 click through to the website. 5 request a demo. The reach was broad but the content resonated with a narrow audience. That is fine if the 5 demos are ICP accounts.
Reach versus impressions in a paid campaign.
Campaign impressions: 300,000. Reach: 80,000. Average frequency: 3.75 (each person saw the ad about 4 times). The team decides frequency is too high and broadens targeting to reduce repetition and increase unique reach.
In practice
Read more on the blog
Frequently asked questions
How do you increase reach?
Use multiple channels (LinkedIn, Twitter, events, newsletters). Create shareable content. Leverage partnerships and co-marketing. Invest in SEO for organic reach. Use paid media to reach specific audiences. The most sustainable reach growth comes from organic channels that compound over time.
What is a good reach-to-conversion ratio?
It varies wildly by channel and campaign type. For targeted B2B campaigns: 1-3% of reach should click through, and 10-20% of clicks should convert to a meaningful action. For brand awareness, reach itself is the metric. Do not expect high conversion from awareness campaigns.
Related terms
The number of times your ad or content is displayed. Counts views, not people. One person seeing your ad three times is three impressions.
The average number of times each person in your audience sees your ad or content. Too low and they miss it. Too high and they tune it out.
The percentage of total market conversation that mentions your brand compared to competitors. How much of the conversation you own.
The extent to which your target audience recognizes your brand. Measured as aided (prompted) or unaided (unprompted) recall.
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