← DictionaryFrequency
also called ad frequency
The average number of times one person saw an ad.
How many times the same person saw it.
What It Is
Frequency belongs to Marketing, specifically the Paid part of it. What it actually refers to is the average number of times one person saw an ad.
It is something measured and compared over time, so one reading in isolation tells you almost nothing. Used with that meaning, it stays a working tool rather than a talking point.
How It's Used
Most of the time Frequency is used in campaign planning, channel choices and the reporting that follows them. In real work it sits close to Reach, Impressions and Ad Fatigue. The practical test is whether it is measured the same way each period, against something.
Why It Matters
Ignoring Frequency rarely fails loudly — it fails slowly. When it is unclear, spend keeps moving but nobody can say what it bought. Deciding it deliberately costs one conversation. Leaving it undecided costs several.
It is a score. Scores are only interesting when you compare them. How many times the same person saw it.
Termshift™
How the meaning shifts depending on who is using it, and where.
Inside the industry, Frequency is used tightly and assumed to be understood: the average number of times one person saw an ad.
Away from the jargon, it is how many times the same person saw it.
The Bottom Line
The practical takeaway on Frequency: how many times the same person saw it. Judge it by that, not by how it sounds.