For the very first time I set up a placement targetted Ad and selected to pay by the thousand (CPM). I looked back just now and it's had over 1,100 impressions but not one click. Am I correct in assuming this is the same as opting into the content network when a new campaign has started? Does anybody advise trying the placement targetted, but instead doing 'per click' instead of 'per 1000 impressions'?
Placement targeting really has nothing to do with the content network in terms of performance. I have not used CPM targeted campaigns since the CPC targeted campaigns became available. Unless there's a really good reason why you want to use CPM, I'd say go with CPC. Of course it's possible to get an average lower CPC using the CPM model but I think that's more the exception than the rule.
Google is smart though, typically the cpc version of a cpm campaign ends up costing about the same. (Unless you get no clicks, like you did, then the cpc version would be best because at least people saw your ad even if they didn't click on it).
CPC method is your safest bet. You have the option, why not use it? Typically, I will only build a placement campaign after winning success with content. If you build your content campaign correctly, the theme will target your user base. When you have sufficient data, I will run a Placement Performance report to discover the top performing sites and exclude the non performers. If the top performers are available via Placement Targeting, then I will build a campaign for it. Content campaigns are all about finding the diamonds in the rough and excluding the coals. =) Cheers!
You gotta understand that PLacement targeted allows you greater flexibility on where you want your ads to appear. You can cherry pick sites, actually see their ad pages and decide if you are likely to get your business audience there. Now, about CPM and CPC; dn't complicate matters, CPC simply allows you to only pay when someone takes an immidiate action by clicking on your ad. While CPM is normally used by branding purposes where initiating an action is not a primary goal. May be a you want 50,000 users from UK want to be aware of your new product before its launched. Most films, cars, and, bigger products are advertised this way.