Cost per impression (CPI), or "Cost per thousand impressions" (CPM), is a term used in traditional
advertising media selection, as well as
online advertising and marketing related to
web traffic. It refers to the cost of traditional advertising or
internet marketing or email advertising campaigns, where advertisers pay each time an ad is displayed. CPI is the cost or expense incurred for each potential customer who views the advertisement(s), while CPM refers to the cost or expense incurred for every thousand potential customers who view the advertisement(s). The abbreviation CPM refers to Cost Per Thousand, using the
Roman numeral "M" to represent the word "Thousand".