Channel attribution

Channel attribution answers a simple question: "How did customers find us?" It's like tracing the path a customer took to reach your product. Did they click on a Google ad? Find you on Facebook? Or hear about you from a friend?

Different attribution models assign value to channels in various ways. The simple "last click" model gives all credit to the final touchpoint before conversion. More advanced models, like "linear" or "time decay," distribute credit across multiple channels.^[1] For example, if a customer visited through social media, then through Google search, then directly, a linear model would give each channel 33% credit.

Accurate attribution helps allocate marketing budgets more effectively. If social media consistently starts customer journeys that end in conversion through other channels, it might deserve more investment than pure conversion numbers suggest.