Position-Based Attribution Example

Position-based attribution allows you to allocate the percentage of a conversion to different channels, based on when the touch occurred (first, last, or in-between).

The standard allocation for position based attribution is 40/20/40 where 40% of the credit for the conversion goes to the first touch in the date range, 40% of the credit for the conversion goes to the last touch and credit for the remaining 20% of touches are split evenly. Attribution App allows you to customize these ratios in Settings -> Project Settings.

There are a few main rules in Position-Based Attribution that you should note:

1. If there is only one visit, we will attribute 100% of the conversion to that visit.
2. If there are only two visits, the middle ratio is omitted from the calculation and the first and last ratios are prorated so that their sum adds up to 100%.
3. If there are 3 or more visits, all three ratios apply.

Position-Based Attribution Example 1: (40/20/40) from 5/1 - 5/5

Consider this scenario, where a user has 3 visits over 5 days with 1 conversion:

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Understanding Date Ranges

When you select a date range in Attribution, the results shown are the visits that happened in that date range and the resulting conversions that came from those visits, even if they happen in the future. This cohort-based attribution allows you to see your return on ad spend.

Based on the visits above, this is how the conversions would be allocated. 40% of the conversion would be allocated to Facebook as the first touch, 40% would be allocated to direct as the last touch, and 20% would be allocated to Adwords.

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Customizing Attribution Settings

You can customize your attribution settings on the Project Settings page. These settings include allowing you to disregard certain visits like direct traffic, or traffic after a specific conversion event. If you have these settings enabled, it will effect the outcome of your model.

Here is the calculation for the conversion:

Position-Based Attribution Example 2: (10/20/70) from 5/1 - 5/2

Consider the following example, where there are only two visits in a position-based model, and the first touch gets credit for 10% of the conversion and the last touch gets 70% of the credit for the conversion.

In this case, where there is no "middle visit(s)" the middle ratio is discarded and the other two ratios are allocated pro-rata. The pro-rata ratio is (100 / (first touch percentage + last touch percentage)) or 1.25.

1.25 10% (first touch) = 12.5%
1.25 70% (last touch) = 87.5%

They add up to 100%!