Understanding the influence of many touchpoints on customer behavior is critical in the ever-changing marketing world for optimizing campaigns and allocating resources effectively. Attribution models give a framework for allocating credit to various marketing channels or touchpoints along the customer journey.
However, selecting the proper one can be difficult with so many available models. In this blog article, we will look at the various attribution models and offer advice on choosing the best one for your company.
What are the attribution models?
Attribution models are frameworks or approaches used in marketing and analytics to allocate credit or value to numerous touchpoints or marketing channels that contribute to a desired outcome, such as a conversion, sale, or other quantifiable action.
It helps marketers identify and measure the impact of different marketing efforts across the customer journey.
An attribution model answers the question of which marketing touchpoints or channels influenced a certain outcome. Marketers can optimize resource allocation, campaign performance, and marketing strategy by assessing and awarding credit.
Benefits of the attribution models
Businesses and marketers can profit from attribution models in a variety of ways. Here are a few important benefits of adopting the attribution model::
- Comprehensive marketing performance
Attribution models incorporate many touchpoints across the customer lifecycle to provide a complete view of marketing performance. They help determine which channels or touchpoints are most effective in driving conversions or desired outcomes.
- Data-driven decision making
Attribution models rely on data analysis and insights to enable marketers to make data-driven decisions. Marketers can better allocate resources, optimize campaigns, and focus on methods that produce the best outcomes if they understand the impact of different touchpoints.
- Optimizing marketing budget
Businesses can improve their marketing budgets by finding the most effective channels or touchpoints using attribution models. Marketers may increase return on investment (ROI) and avoid needless spending on underperforming channels by allocating resources to the channels that contribute the most to conversions or desired outcomes.
- Identifying high-value touchpoints
It highlights key touchpoints that affect customer behavior and conversions. It helps marketers optimize the customer journey by prioritizing touchpoints. High-value touchpoints boost customer experience and conversion rates.
- Understanding customer behavior
Attribution models reveal customer behavior and journeys. Businesses can better understand customer preferences and decision-making by evaluating touchpoint interactions. This knowledge can improve marketing tactics, customer experiences, and customer engagement.
Types of attribution model
Various types of attribution models are used in marketing and analytics to allocate credit or value to various touchpoints along the customer journey. Each model has its own set of rules or principles for credit distribution. Look at some types of popular models:
01. First interaction
The first interaction attribution model, as its name suggests, assigns conversions to the initial point at which a customer engages with your business.
- Advantage
The first contact attribution model is helpful for tracking user conversion times across channels.
- Disadvantage
The first interaction model doesn’t account for where the user came from before converting.
02. Last interaction
The last interaction model gives conversions to the user’s most recent contact with your brand.
Most of the time, this is done by looking at what site or app the person was on when they converted and figuring out that this was their last click before converting.
- Advantage
The last contact attribution model analyzes the customer journey.
- Disadvantage
The last interaction model’s biggest flaw is that it doesn’t take into account when a user first connects with your brand before making a purchase.
03. Last Non-direct click interaction
The last non-direct click interaction model attributes conversions to the most recent time a user interacted with your brand in a manner unrelated to an advertisement.
This can be done by looking at what site or app they were on when they converted and figuring out that this was their last click before converting.
- Advantage
The last non-direct click interaction model is great for analyzing the customer trip, which is one of its benefits.
- Disadvantage
The main disadvantage of the previous non-direct click interaction model is that it does not consider when a user first connected with your brand before purchasing.
04. Linear attribution model
The linear attribution methodology distributes conversions equally across all user interactions with your company.
For example, if a user first engaged with your brand through an ad and then later through organic search before converting, this attribution model would display 50% for paid advertisements and 50% for organic.
- Advantage
The linear attribution approach is simple to employ because you don’t have to consider how much each channel contributed to the conversion.
- Disadvantage
The most significant disadvantage of the linear attribution approach is that it is inaccurate for many companies because conversions are rarely evenly distributed across channels – and may even be strongly skewed towards a single channel.
05. Time-decay attribution
Similar to linear attribution, time-decay attribution takes into account the timing of these conversions (rather than dividing them equally).
For example, if a user interacts with your brand via an ad and then later via organic search before converting, this attribution model would display 25% for ads and 75% for organic (the most recent).
- Advantage
One advantage of time decay is that it considers when users converted, allowing you to determine how many conversions are traceable to each channel from a single user.
- Disadvantage
The main disadvantage of the time-decay attribution model is that it is more involved than the linear model (since it considers when conversions occur).
06. Position-based attribution
The position-based attribution is one of the best attribution models that categorizes conversions according to where the user was in your conversion funnel when they converted.
For example, if a user arrived at your website via an ad and then via organic search before converting, this attribution model would display 50% for ads and 50% for organic.
- Advantage
One advantage of position-based attribution is that it considers when a user is in your conversion funnel, such as when they are on a product page or in their cart.
- Disadvantage
The major disadvantage of the position-based attribution approach is that it is more difficult to compute because it considers where a user was in your conversion funnel when they converted.
How to choose the right attribution models?
Choosing the best attribution model necessitates a careful evaluation of numerous criteria. Here’s a step-by-step approach to selecting the best attribution model for your company:
- Define your business goals
Define your marketing goals and business objectives. What’s your goal for customer acquisition, brand recognition, conversions, or retention? Knowing your business goals will help you choose an attribution model.
- Analyze your customer journey
Analyze the typical customer journey for your target demographic. Identify the numerous touchpoints and channels customers interact with before conversion or the desired action.
Determine which stages and touchpoints have the greatest impact on how customers behave. This analysis will help you comprehend your customer journey’s constant change and complexity.
- Assess your marketing channels
Examine your marketing channels. Do you primarily use digital platforms such as search ads, social media, or email marketing? Or do you use a combination of offline and online channels? Different attribution models are better suited to different channel types and can account for their distinct characteristics.
- Evaluate resources and data
Assess your resources and data. Some attribution models work with aggregated or sampled data, while others require individual-level data. Consider the quality and availability of your data and the resources needed to create and maintain the attribution model.
- Attribution model limitations
Understand the limitations and assumptions of each attribution model. No single model can fully represent the complexities of customer behavior.
For example, last-touch attribution may neglect prior touchpoints, whereas first-touch attribution may disregard the influence of later touchpoints. Consider the advantages and disadvantages of each model in the context of your business goals and customer journey.
- Test and compare
Perform A/B testing or pilot research with various attribution models. Implement numerous models at the same time and compare the results.
To determine which model gives your organization the most accurate and meaningful data, measure the impact on important metrics such as conversion rates, client acquisition expenses, or ROI.
- Iterate and refine
Iterative processes are used in attribution modeling. Your client journey may vary as your company grows, and new marketing channels may arise. Monitor and analyze the success of your chosen attribution model regularly.
Allow for the model to be refined or adjusted as needed to ensure it remains aligned with your business goals and captures the most important insights.
How can QuestionPro help in choosing attribution models?
QuestionPro is a complete market research platform that provides various tools and features to help businesses select the best attribution model. Here’s how QuestionPro can assist you:
- Survey and data collection
QuestionPro lets you create customized surveys to collect data from your target audience. Customer behavior, preferences, touchpoint engagements, and more can be collected through surveys. You can utilize surveys to learn about customer journeys and choose an attribution strategy.
- Advanced analytics
QuestionPro analyzes and interprets data. Data visualization, segmentation, and statistical analysis reveal touchpoint-conversion correlations. These results may help attribution model decisions.
- Journey mapping
Journey mapping in QuestionPro lets you visualize customer touchpoints, channels, and interactions. Plotting the customer journey helps you discover key touchpoints and understand how they affect conversions. This visual representation highlights critical stages and touchpoints for attribution model selection.
- Experimentation and testing
QuestionPro’s research platform allows A/B testing and experimentation. Multiple surveys or experiments can test different attribution models. By reviewing the results, you may choose which model best meets your research aims and offers the most accurate insights.
- Collaboration and stakeholder feedback
QuestionPro lets teams and stakeholders share feedback and thoughts during attribution model selection. To gather feedback and align the organization, share survey results, analytics data, and path maps with team members, clients, and decision-makers.
QuestionPro lets you collect and analyze customer behavior and touchpoint data. This important data might help you choose the best business attribution models. So, contact QuestionPro to get the best support in choosing the right attribution model.
