For B2B Marketers, budgets and timelines are getting tighter, and expectations are increasing. It is critical therefore to understand the impact of your marketing efforts, and what parts of the customer journey need the most support.

Marketing attribution helps you identify which activities are converting and which are not. This insight is invaluable for optimising marketing budgets, driving greater ROI, and building organisational support for marketing efforts.

Why Marketing Attribution Matters

In the digital age, the customer purchase journey is not a funnel but a non-linear collection of data points. With marketing efforts now spread across more channels than ever, it is increasingly difficult to ascertain what marketing strategies and channels are working and ensure that you allocate resources to the right channels rather than getting caught up in outlier use cases. Marketing attribution models help with this. They bring the following benefits:

  • Optimised Budget Allocation
    Businesses can allocate their marketing budgets more efficiently by understanding which channels and campaigns are most effective.
  • Improved ROI
    Accurate attribution allows for better decision-making, leading to higher returns on marketing investments.
  • Enhanced Customer Journey Insights
    Attribution models provide a clearer picture of the customer journey, helping businesses tailor their strategies to meet customer needs at each stage.
  • Data-Driven Decisions
    With precise data on what works and what doesn’t, marketing teams can make informed decisions that drive better results.

Types of Attribution Models

Attribution
Model

Description

Pros

First-Touch
Attribution

Assigns all
credit to the first interaction a customer has with your brand.

Simple to
implement; highlights initial touchpoints.

Last-Touch
Attribution

Assigns all
credit to the final interaction before conversion.

Easy to
understand; emphasizes the final step before conversion.

Linear
Attribution

Distributes
credit evenly across all touchpoints.

Distributes
credit evenly across all touchpoints.

Time-Decay
Attribution

Gives more
credit to interactions that occurred closer to the time of conversion.

Gives more
credit to recent interactions.

Position-Based
Attribution

Assigns 40%
credit to the first and last interactions, and 20% to the middle touchpoints.

Balances
credit between first and last touchpoints, with some for the middle.

Implementing an Attribution Model

So far so good, but how do you go about implementing your chosen model? The good news is many of your data points are already captured by your CRM, and most CRMs offer attribution reporting. That said, before you rush in and start building, it pays to take the time to work through the following steps:

  1. Define your goals
    Are you looking to improve ROI, better allocate budgets or identify pain points in the customer journey? Take the time to outline what you want to achieve. This will guide your attribution model selection and make the outcomes clear to the wider business.
  2. Choose the right model for your business
    Choose the right model (or models) based on what you want to achieve. I would recommend starting with a simple, single touch model to begin, then introduce more complex models once your processes and capabilities mature.
  3. Integrate your data sources
    When building simple attribution models, most likely you will be using your CRM as your data store, making things simple. Ensure that any data points not stored in your CRM can be integrated and data updates work correctly. This includes CRMs, automation platforms, analytics tools and third-party platforms.
  4. Analyse results
    Ensure you build out an iterative process to review, analyse, and refine your attribution model. This will ensure better accuracy and insights over time.
  5. Leverage Technology
    As you build out your capability and complexity, your base CRM may not be able to meet your goals. Consider using CRM plugins such as Databox or Supermetrics or analytics platforms such as Domo or PowerBI to meet your complex needs.

Common Challenges

Whilst implementing an effective attribution model brings many advantages, successful implementation can be hindered by the following challenges:

  • Not understanding your customer’s journey
    It’s amazing how many organisations still get this wrong but If you don’t accurately understand your customer journey, then you won’t have visibility of some customer interactions, let alone map them to the right data points.
  • Data Integration and Accuracy
    Data will come from a variety of locations such as CRM systems, automation platforms and analytics tools, and combining this data can be complex. Ensuring accuracy and consistency of data takes time and investment but without it, your model won’t reflect reality.
  • Stakeholder Alignment
    Different departments may have varying priorities and perspectives on what constitutes valuable data. Aligning stakeholders on the goals and methods of attribution can be challenging.
  • Organisational Adoption
    Getting the entire organisation to adopt and trust the attribution model requires significant change management. This includes training staff and ensuring they understand the benefits and limitations of the model.

Conclusion

By implementing a robust marketing attribution model, B2B businesses can gain a competitive edge, optimise their marketing strategies, and drive sustainable growth.