“Everything can and must be measurable” would, as far as I’m concerned, look perfect on a decorative tile. By 'making measurable,' at Best4u we mean providing insight into all kinds of website statistics. However, making things measurable is one thing. The art often lies in correctly interpreting this data. And that can be done with the help of conversion attribution.
Tools to gain insight into your statistics, such as Google Analytics, can provide you with a massive amount of data. This data is highly valuable, especially when you interpret it correctly. Assessing conversions from various traffic sources is an important part of this. In this article, I will help you get started with assessing conversions by taking a close look at the different conversion attribution models.
Practical example of conversion attribution
Let's start with a practical example to clarify things. Important to note: this example is based on the 'last click model', which means that the last touchpoint before conversion took place receives 100% of the value points of the sale.
Suppose you have an online store selling televisions. You utilize various marketing channels to promote your product. For example, you advertise extensively on Google AdWords, Google Shopping, and Facebook, and you also do some affiliate marketing. You have put together a great marketing mix for yourself, where you are effective at every point of the customer journey have a certain expression visible.
A potential customer first visits your webshop via your Facebook ad. He is interested in your products and Googles your company name a day later. He visits your webshop again via an AdWords ad and decides to buy a television. Great sale!
Logically, you now conclude that the Facebook ad did its job well. After all, without this ad, the customer wouldn't have ended up on your webshop in the first place. However, Google Analytics attributes the revenue to Google AdWords because it is the most recently used traffic source. This happens fifty more times this month, and at the end of the month, you decide to turn off Facebook because Google Analytics indicates it isn't generating enough revenue. You probably get the idea…
How should it be done?
It starts with logical thinking and looking beyond the obvious. If you keep that in mind and follow the following practical tips, conversion attribution can provide you with very valuable information.
1. Path length
Pay close attention to the path length in Google Analytics. This indicates how many interactions took place before a conversion was achieved.
Suppose someone first arrives at your site via AdWords, later via Organic (unpaid search engine result), and then places an order; this is a path length of 2. The longer the path, the more important it is to assign a good rating to a specific traffic source. This is because there have been more interaction points and traffic sources.
You can find the path length in Analytics under Conversions > Multi-channel funnels > Path length.
2. Assisted conversions
Also take a close look at the 'assisted conversions' tab in Analytics. These are all conversions from specific traffic sources where the conversion was a supporting factor. Google uses the following definition;
Supporting interaction is any referrer located in the conversion path that is not the final interaction.
For example, it is possible that a specific traffic source delivers a lot of value at the beginning of the funnel but not as the last click.
You can find the assisted conversions in Analytics under Conversions > Multi-channel funnels > Assisted Conversions.
3. Delay
It is also important to look at the 'delay' report. This report indicates how many days elapse between the first click and the actual conversion. This value is particularly valuable in industries where this delay is relatively high, such as insurance companies or travel agencies. Based on this data, you can set up a solid remarketing strategy that allows you to bid aggressively at specific times.
4. Standard attribution models
Google itself already offers a number of models in Analytics that allow you to use conversion attribution in various ways:
- Last interaction
100% attribution to the last traffic source. - Last non-direct click
100% attribution to the last traffic source, excluding direct traffic. Incidentally, this model is the default model in Google Analytics for conversion and transaction value attributions. - Last AdWords click
100% attribution to the most recent AdWords ad that was clicked. - First interaction
100% attribution to the traffic source that generated the first click to the website. - Linear
Proportional attribution to all traffic sources in the purchase funnel. - Time decay
Assignment based on a specific period. This model assigns the highest value points to the touchpoints that were closest to the moment of conversion. - Position-based
This allows you to create your own hybrid allocation method. For example, you can allocate 40% to the first click device and 20% to the last click device.
5. Comparing attribution models
You can easily compare the above attribution models in Analytics. You can find this feature under Conversions > Attribution > Model Comparison Tool.
Ready to see how Snowflake works?
It is therefore not (always) correct to look solely at the standard reports in Analytics (and thus at 'last click non-direct') to generate valuable information. Every traffic source, campaign, and conversion is different, and a thorough analysis is necessary for a proper assessment. I hope that with this article, I have put you on the right track regarding conversion attribution. After all, Google Analytics offers you, as a user, a gigantic collection of information. However, the ball is in your court to make proper use of it.
Need help from me or from one of my colleaguesWe are happy to help you with AdWords campaigns, increasing conversions, and much more. Get in touch. contact Sign up for a no-obligation consultation and discover what Best4u can do for your online performance.