The Attribution Maze: Are You Tracking the Right Data?
Attribution in marketing is like a well-crafted detective story,each
touchpoint leaves a clue about what led to a conversion. But here’s the
twist: most businesses follow the wrong trail.
If you’re relying on last-click attribution, you might be giving all the credit
to the player who scored the touchdown ,ignoring the quarterback who
threw the pass and the coach who designed the play.
Why Standard Attribution Models Fail
Most businesses still rely on first-touch or last-touch attribution models.
These approaches are flawed because:
- They oversimplify the customer journey,ignoring multiple touchpoints.
- They misallocate budgets,overinvesting in the “winning” channel and
neglecting the entire marketing mix. - They don’t reflect real decision-making processes,especially in B2B,
where purchase cycles are long and involve multiple stakeholders.
Example:
A potential client might:
- See a LinkedIn ad.
- Read a blog post (like this one 👀).
- Attend a webinar.
- Chat with a sales rep.
- Finally, convert.
But if your model only credits the last interaction, you won’t know what
actually influenced their decision.
Discover How Your Attribution Could Improve
Leveling up to Multi Touch Attribution
Most businesses transition from last-touch or first-touch attribution (i.e.,
single-touch models) to multi-touch attribution, which considers more
than one touchpoint. Analytics platforms like Google Analytics 4 and
Adobe offer some off-the-shelf multi-touch models.
However, while these models are an improvement over single-touch
attribution, they are designed for common business types, such as
eCommerce, which typically have relatively simple sales cycles. As a
result, generic models fail to capture the nuances of businesses with more
complex sales processes, such as those involving offline or phone
touchpoints or high-budget purchases with longer consideration cycles.
Custom Attribution: The Smarter Multi Touch Approach
Custom attribution models go beyond standard multi-touch attribution by
tailoring the approach to your unique marketing strategy. While multitouch attribution assigns value across multiple interactions, custom
attribution takes it a step further by incorporating:
- Business-Specific Weighting – Adjusting the model to reflect your sales
cycle and customer behavior. - Cross-Channel Integration – Merging online and offline data for a
holistic view. - Predictive Analytics – Using AI to forecast the impact of each
touchpoint.
For example, Google’s Data-Driven Attribution (DDA) is a form of multitouch attribution that uses machine learning to allocate credit
intelligently. However, a truly custom model builds on this foundation by
incorporating your business’s unique dynamics and goals.
The MarketLytics Approach: Why You Need an Expert
Building a custom attribution model isn’t plug-and-play,it requires a deep
understanding of your business and marketing ecosystem. At
MarketLytics, we don’t just track your data,we make sense of it. Our
approach is grounded in multi-touch attribution but customized to your
unique marketing strategy, ensuring:
- No touchpoint is over- or under-valued.
- Your budget is allocated to the channels that truly drive results.
- You move from gut-feel marketing to data-driven decision-making.
Ready to Decode Your Customer Journey?
If you’re wondering how custom attribution could improve your marketing
decisions, let’s talk. Book a free discovery session with our experts and see
how we can optimize your marketing ROI.
Book a Free Discovery Session with Attribution Expert
Frequently Ask Questions
Q: What is the best attribution model for B2B businesses?
For long sales cycles, multi-touch attribution or data-driven attribution works best.
Q: How do I track offline marketing touchpoints?
By integrating CRM data, call tracking, and QR codes into your analytics system.
Q: Why does custom attribution provide better ROI insights?
Because it aligns tracking with your actual buyer journey, ensuring no touchpoint is over- or undervalued.
Q: Why do standard attribution models fail?
Standard attribution models fail because they oversimplify customer journeys, ignore multiple influential touchpoints, and misallocate marketing budgets. To accurately reflect your real customer journey and better optimize your marketing spend, experts at MarketLytics recommend adopting a custom model tailored to your specific needs:
Q: How can I track offline marketing touchpoints?
Tracking offline touchpoints involves integrating CRM data, using call tracking solutions, and incorporating QR codes. MarketLytics specializes in merging offline and online analytics to provide you with a clear and actionable view of your marketing impact.
Q: What’s the difference between multi-touch and custom attribution?
Multi-touch attribution assigns credit across several customer interactions but uses generalized rules. Custom attribution goes further by adapting the model specifically to your unique business processes, buyer behavior, and marketing strategy,precisely what MarketLytics experts help you build.
