What is the Difference Between Single-Touch and Multi-Touch Attribution?
The multi-touch attribution model is similar to marketing mix modeling (MMM), but with a more comprehensive and data-driven approach. Multi-touch and multi-channel attribution are also different—while multi-channel assigns value on a channel-by-channel basis, it neglects specific touch points along the way.
Unlike single-touch attribution, multi-touch attribution plots out a complete customer journey with several touch points. A single-touch approach credits a single point without room for nuance, which is far too broad if you have a strict marketing budget or need to determine which Google Ads campaign to prioritize.
What is the Goal of Multi-Touch Attribution?
The ultimate goal of any marketing attribution model is maximizing your marketing dollar by funneling time and budget where they’ll generate the most leads for the least amount of money.
Multi-touch attribution is important because it offers a more detailed look at the customer journey than other attribution models like first-touch or last-touch attribution.
The difference between first-touch and last-touch campaign attribution is emphasizing the customer’s first interaction with your brand versus their last interaction before ultimately converting—multi-touch leaves room for both, including every touch point along the way.
What are the Benefits of Using a Multi-touch Attribution Model?
The benefits using a multi-touch attribution model include:
- More visibility into conversions: When you understand how each touch point contributes to conversions, you can prioritize and repeat processes that see the most results.
- Easier prioritization for successful campaigns: As you create a content timeline, leverage your findings to funnel more money and attention into high-performing touch points.
- Marketing campaign efficiency: Multi-touch attribution lets you see which touch points aren’t beneficial along the customer journey to cut underperforming campaigns and reallocate those resources somewhere more beneficial.
- Better allocate spending: Make smarter budgetary decisions and increase paying conversions while simultaneously proving campaign effectiveness to key stakeholders.
- Better customer insights: Learn more about your customers as you assess touch points in multi-touch attribution modeling. By mapping customer engagement, you get a sense of where they spend their time and what marketing messages appeal to them.
Types of Multi-Touch Attribution Models
There are several typeas of multi-touch attribution models. Popular multi-touch attribution models include:
U-Shaped Attribution Models
U-shaped attribution models, also called position-based attribution, assigns 40 percent of credit to the first and last touch point, while the rest distributes evenly across all the touch points in between.
W-Based Attribution Models
W-based attribution models assign the most weight to the “first discovery” touch point—when the customer first learns of your product or business—as well as the lead capture and final conversion touch points.
Linear Attribution Models
Linear attribution models divide credit equally across each touch point in the customer journey.
Time-based Attribution Models
Time-based attribution model focus on touch points closest to the moment of conversion, like the first or last touch point. Remaining touch points decrease in weight the farther they are from those conversion events on the customer journey timeline.
Custom Attribution Models
Many businesses have the most success with a custom attribution model. Though highly efficient, custom models are challenging to create without professional help or specialized tools.
