August 18, 2020 •DJ Team
Which Lead Attribution Model to Use?
Understanding your company’s marketing strategies is one thing, but measuring the impact of your company’s marketing is another thing entirely. To accurately track and analyze your effectiveness in the marketplace you need to look at multiple attribution models. But wait -- what is an attribution model?
Simply put, attribution modeling is a way of assigning credit to your marketing channels for conversions, such as sales or form submissions. It’s an excellent tool to understand what marketing channels are working and which ones might not be carrying their weight. The best attribution model depends on a businesses specific needs and goals, but oftentimes utilizing multiple models is the best way to find which channels or campaigns are driving revenue and which are not.
Now that we’ve covered the general concept, you might be wondering what the different attribution models are and the advantages of each model. We will dive into six different attribution models: first interaction, last interaction, last non-direct click, linear, time-decay and position-based.
An attribution model example like first interaction gives conversion credit to the first touchpoint a customer had with your brand. Using this attribution model for display advertising analysis can be highly effective in revealing potential flaws (as well as strengths!) in your marketing campaigns.
Choosing An Attribution Model
Every attribution model exists for a reason - that reason is that all of the other attribution models have a flaw. For example, when using a first touch attribution model you diminish the impact of the other marketing elements that contribute to a sale or engagement. One fix to that is linear attribution, which some us as a brand awareness attribution model, but it provides much more value than that. The linear model divides conversion credit equally among all the different channels that the customer touched on their way to converting. This strategy is well-suited to analyze which channels are consistently effective throughout the customer experience.
You may be wondering how to build an attribution model. By implementing your own custom attribution model, you have the power to assign credit as you wish among your various marketing channels. This approach allows you to tailor your attribution model to your business by focusing on specific channels and observing your results through the lens of your own circumstances. Regardless of the model you use, the goal is to use these analytical tools to interpret user attribution -- the various channels that bring users to the conversion point (or not).
The “Last Touch” Attribution Model
If you’re still not sure of which attribution model to use, the last click attribution model -- also referred to as the last touch attribution model -- is the default lead attribution model in most platforms. The first touch model’s opposite, last touch attribution gives all credit for a conversion to the final click or interaction that results in a sale or conversion. This model, like all others, has its advantages and disadvantages.
There are several points to consider before implementing the last touch attribution model. Because lead attribution in today’s world can be a winding and confusing venture (think multiple devices, countless marketing channels and more), the best thing about this approach is that it is highly accurate. While it may be difficult to determine where a customer’s journey began, last touch attribution allows you to be sure of the last channel that was used to make the conversion.
On the other hand, this model ignores all touchpoints with other channels prior to that final touch. In this way, the last touch attribution model can be short sighted. If your company has a short pathway to conversion, this model may be highly effective for you. If not, this is still a great model to use, but you will just want to make sure to use a second attribution model to get a full picture of the customer journey.
Choosing Your Primary Attribution Model
In order to select the best marketing attribution model for your company, evaluate the functionality of your company’s marketing channels and how they interact to bring customers to the conversion point. Once you understand the relationships between your different channels, it will be easier to pick a model that accurately distributes credit for the conversion. You may find that a custom attribution model is your best fit. If that is the case, fill out the form here and DemandJump will solve the problem for you.
By delving even deeper into the linear attribution model that was briefly mentioned above, we can gain a broader perspective on marketing attribution. Because linear attribution assigns conversion credit equally among your marketing channels, it is an easy model to lean on and highlights the value of each of your channels. However, this advantage is also the linear attribution model’s downfall. By neglecting to assign more credit to anyone channel over another, it can falsely prop up a channel. That being said, the linear model is beneficial for those who want to underscore the value of all of their channels in conversions.
Find the best attribution model for your business with the help of DemandJump. With DemandJump you have access to first touch, last touch, multi touch, and custom attribution models. The automated attribution reporting allows you to view models next to one another and see how channels provide value at multiple stages of the user’s path to purchase.
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