AI is rapidly changing how people discover products and services online, and ChatGPT is no exception. With 114 million daily users, spending on average between 20–26 minutes per day, the platform has become an advertising medium.
Increasingly, customers are turning to platforms like ChatGPT to explore features, deals and make comparison
Since gaining early access to ChatGPT Ads on 4 June, we’ve been testing the platform to understand how it performs and what it could mean for our clients.
While it’s still early days, some clear patterns are already emerging. From lower-than-expected media costs to stronger engagement rates, here are five things marketers should know about advertising in ChatGPT.
1. Media costs are coming in lower than expected
When ChatGPT Ads launched, early guidance suggested CPMs would sit around the $60 (£45) mark. However, in reality, we’re seeing CPMs average £30.46.
While it’s still early days and pricing will likely evolve as demand increases, the current cost of reaching audiences is significantly lower than many expected.
Lower entry costs reduce the risk of testing a new channel. For clients, it creates an opportunity to test-and-learn AI-powered advertising without requiring major budget shifts or lengthy approval processes.
2. Engagement is outperforming early benchmarks
Initial CTR benchmarks were expected to sit between 0.8% and 0.9%.
Our early campaigns are currently generating an average CTR of 1.74%.
While benchmarks will change as adoption grows, the early signs suggest users are highly engaged with the experience.
Unlike many traditional advertising environments, ChatGPT users are actively seeking information and recommendations. For advertisers, that creates an opportunity to appear alongside moments of genuine curiosity and intent, rather than interrupting passive browsing behaviour.
3. Discovery behaviour is already changing
Across campaigns, CPCs are averaging between £1.65 – £2.01.
However, the more interesting observation is where those clicks are coming from. When someone is using AI, they aren’t necessarily searching for your product; they’re probably asking broader questions about things like: where to go on holiday, DIY tips, investment options, healthy living…the list goes on.
With this shift, consumers are beginning to discover brands through conversations, not just searches. That shifts the focus from last-click acquisition to influencing consideration much earlier in the decision-making process.
4. Location targeting remains broad
Currently, advertisers can only target the UK as a whole.
Based on previous OpenAI rollouts, more granular geographic targeting may arrive later, but today the platform is best suited to national campaigns.
For brands targeting multiple locations, the current targeting options are already viable. More localised ad strategies may need to wait for additional functionality to get the most use of the platform’s advertising capabilities.
5. Learning is accessible
Daily budgets can start from as little as $50 per day.
That’s a relatively low barrier compared with many emerging advertising opportunities.
The biggest advantage right now isn’t scale. It’s learning. Early testing can help brands understand how consumers interact with AI-powered environments before these platforms become a standard part of the recruitment marketing mix.
The Takeaway
The most important takeaway isn’t the CPM, CPC or CTR.
It’s that consumer behaviour is evolving.
Brands are well-versed in appearing both online and offline, based on their customer behaviours. Increasingly, consumers are also turning to AI platforms to research everyday needs and high-consideration purchases.
ChatGPT Ads represent one way to gain visibility in these conversations, but they’re only part of the picture. The brands that succeed in an AI-first discovery landscape will be those that think beyond advertising alone, ensuring their content, brand messaging and online presence are structured in a way that AI platforms can understand, reference and recommend.
In many ways, advertising is the first chapter of a much larger story. The bigger opportunity is understanding how your brand appears when consumers start asking AI the questions they once asked search engines.