Skip to content
Hosting

2.1 Conversions

1. Attribution Reports in Google Analytics

Change this

Play

Attribution Intro

https://youtu.be/4Rin_pHj7Wk

Attribution reports in Google Analytics show you how credit for conversions is assigned to different touchpoints (channels, campaigns, or interactions) in a user’s journey toward completing a goal (e.g., a purchase, lead, or form submission). They help you understand which marketing channels and campaigns contribute to conversions.

For example:

  • A user clicks on a Google Ad, later visits your website via an email link, and finally makes a purchase. Attribution reports can tell you which interaction (ad, email, or other sources) gets credit for the conversion, based on the selected attribution model.

1.1 Why Are Attribution Reports Useful?

Attribution reports are valuable because they help you:

  1. Identify Effective Channels:
    Determine which channels (e.g., paid search, social media, organic search) are driving conversions and revenue.

  2. Optimize Marketing Spend:
    Allocate budget to the channels and campaigns with the highest contribution to conversions, reducing wasted spend.

  3. Understand Customer Journeys:
    Analyze how users interact with your marketing channels over time and identify the most impactful touchpoints.

  4. Measure ROI:
    Evaluate the return on investment (ROI) for specific channels and campaigns.

  5. Compare Attribution Models:
    Experiment with different models to see how credit assignment changes based on the user’s journey.

1.2 Types of Attribution Models in Attribution Reports

Attribution reports allow you to select and compare different attribution models to analyze your data. Common models include:

  1. Last-Click Attribution:

    • Full credit is given to the last interaction before conversion.
    • Example: If a user clicks a Google Ad, then later converts after an organic search, the organic search gets 100% of the credit.

  2. First-Click Attribution:

    • Full credit is assigned to the first interaction.
    • Example: In the above case, the Google Ad gets 100% of the credit.

  3. Linear Attribution:

    • Credit is evenly distributed across all touchpoints in the journey.
    • Example: Both the Google Ad and organic search share equal credit for the conversion.

  4. Time-Decay Attribution:

    • Touchpoints closer to the conversion get more credit than earlier ones.
    • Example: Organic search would get more credit than the earlier Google Ad click.

  5. Position-Based Attribution (U-Shaped):

    • Credit is split between the first and last interactions (e.g., 40% each) and the remaining 20% is distributed across other touchpoints.

  6. Data-Driven Attribution (DDA):

    • Uses machine learning to analyze historical data and assign credit based on the actual contribution of each touchpoint. This is only available if you meet certain data requirements in Google Analytics or Google Ads.

1.3 How to Use Attribution Reports:

  1. Analyze High-Converting Paths:
    Use the Top Conversion Paths report to see the common sequences users follow before converting.

  2. Compare Attribution Models:
    The Model Comparison Tool lets you compare how credit changes across models to understand the impact of different touchpoints.

  3. Evaluate Channel Performance:
    Attribution reports help you assess how well each marketing channel contributes to conversions (e.g., paid vs. organic).

  4. Improve Marketing Strategies:
    By identifying underperforming or undervalued channels, you can tweak your strategy to focus on high-impact touchpoints.

1.4 Practical Example:

Suppose you’re running campaigns on Google Ads, Facebook Ads, and Email Marketing. A user clicks on a Facebook Ad, visits your site via email later, and finally makes a purchase after clicking on a Google Ad. Attribution reports can:

  • Show the contribution of each channel (Facebook, Email, Google Ads) to the conversion.
  • Highlight which channel is driving the most conversions, helping you optimize your ad spend.
  • Use a Data-Driven Attribution model to give precise credit based on real performance, rather than defaulting to “last-click.”

By using attribution reports effectively, you’ll gain deeper insights into your marketing efforts, improve campaign effectiveness, and maximize ROI!