Attribution helps marketers gauge the effectiveness of marketing activities across channels. And from my experience, I’ve seen attribution tie the cost of specific marketing tactics to key business outcomes, providing important insights about the real value of channel activities.
I’ve noticed that marketers who have implemented attribution methodologies are seeing big results. But nearly half of all marketers still haven’t incorporated attribution into their strategies. So what gives? Why are marketers ignoring attribution?
Understanding Attribution
There’s nothing magical about the concept of attribution. It’s actually quite simple. Essentially, attribution gives credit where credit is due, allowing marketing decision makers to accurately identify the impact of channel investments.
In most cases, increased visibility translates into improved digital marketing efficiency. In a recent Forrester study, marketers who used attribution increased their ability to identify waste in their media plans, resulting in 15-30% improvements in digital efficiency during the first year.
Some of the other benefits of attribution include:
According to a survey by Webmarketing123, 41% of marketers haven’t implemented an attribution model in their marketing programs—despite the documented benefits and efficiencies.
I’ve noticed that the barriers to adoption are diverse and cover a complex range of factors including a lack of prioritization, uncertainties about implementation or business value, and organizational structures. Since many marketing organizations have separate teams for specific channels, competition and a fear of losing marketing dollars often discourage stakeholders from championing attribution methodologies.
Tips for Implementing and Improving Attribution
The increased use of attribution can yield significant benefits for your organization. Although attribution models vary based on needs and requirements, there are several things that you can do to either implement or improve attribution methodologies in your marketing organization:
Like it or not, flying blind and gut instincts don’t cut it any longer. With the competition for budget spend heating up, attribution methodologies are becoming fundamental tools for increased channel efficiency, improved decision making and other markers of successful marketing programs.