To ensure your marketing attribution is running as effectively as possible, one of the most important aspects to consider is which type of attribution model is best for your business.
With the right model, you’ll have a sufficient method of monitoring your marketing performance, and tailoring it to boost customer engagement across all the marketing channels in your business.
Moreover, with expert tools such as call tracking to accompany the process – consider Mediahawk call tracking, for example – your marketing attribution will be more efficient.
Read on to learn all about marketing attribution and the different types of models which your business can implement.
What is marketing attribution?
Marketing attribution involves analysing the levels of engagement from customers, to identify the different touchpoints visited in each journey, as well as gain an overall picture of which marketing channels and activities are responsible for driving revenue.
One of the best ways to execute this process, as previously mentioned, is using call tracking software. This tool offers in-depth reports and insights, and with this data, you can create customer journey maps which show the levels of engagement across all your marketing touchpoints.
This is essential for knowing exactly how well each area of your marketing is performing, in regards to the leads and sales they generate, and how they contribute towards your return on investment (ROI).
Which attribution model is best for your business?
There are various models you can use to examine the levels of customer engagement, each one offering a different style of analysis to help inform your marketing strategy:
- First touch and last touch attribution
First and last touch attribution follow a similar pattern, at two opposite ends of the spectrum.
First touch attribution measures the level of engagement from only the first touchpoint in a customer’s journey. Last touch attribution does the opposite, and focuses on the last touchpoint.
These models rely on the idea that one touchpoint in a customer journey – the first or last – which is most significant in increasing customer engagement, and determining the likelihood of a conversion.
These models are ideal for shorter sales cycles, as this is often where the first or last touchpoint can play a more crucial role in the generation of leads and sales from a customer.
- Multi-touch attribution
Multi-touch attribution measures engagement across various touchpoints in a customer journey, not just the first or the last.
These models rely on the idea that many different touchpoints play a vital role in funnelling a customer through their journey.
They are better suited to longer sales cycles, as this is where more touchpoints begin to have a bigger impact on the customer journey.
The different multi-touch models assign different values to each point in a customer journey, and they are as follows:
Linear – This model measures engagement across every touchpoint in the customer journey equally. It’s great for businesses wanting an equal, all-round view of customer engagement across every touchpoint, and a general picture of marketing performance.
U-shaped – This model focuses mainly on the first and last touchpoints in a journey, with a small amount of consideration for all those in-between. This is good for businesses who feel the first and last touchpoints in a journey are most important, and want to perfect the way they hook customers in, alongside the final point of conversion.
W-shaped – This model focuses on the first, last, and very middle touchpoints equally, (like the shape of a ‘W’). This is ideal for businesses who want to focus on the beginning and end of a customer journey, but also not neglect the importance of middle touchpoints which help funnel customers along the sales cycle.
Time decay – This model focuses on all touchpoints, but starts with the least value assigned to the first touchpoint, and a gradual increase across each one until the final touchpoint has the highest value. This is great for businesses who believe the touchpoints in a customer journey become more crucial as the customer goes along. Once the customer has had the initial hook, the touchpoints become more important as they’re drawn in, with the last few touchpoints being the most essential for securing a sale.
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Using this guide to marketing attribution, you now have everything you need to not only find the best model for your business, but to incorporate expert call tracking software to elevate the effectiveness of the process.
