Cross-Channel Attributes and the Customers’ Journey

“Attribution helps brands track their marketing and media efforts more accurately and show how they impact the overall business.” Daniel Kehrer, VP Marketing at MarketShare, posted in Forbe’s Insights The Truth About Cross-Channel Attribution In Marketing.

customer_purchase_journey

Cross-channel attribution helps us see a holistic view of our customers’ journey
Graphic by Theresa Wilcox

Attribution provides clear and accurate insights into how, when and where your customers are interacting with your brand across devices and channels. You can use these insights to optimize your customer experience journey for the greatest ROI.

Some things you should know about cross-channel attributes:

Customers change devices and channels at a whim. They go from seeing a TV ad to your website to a review to your store to your competitor’s store to their mobile device, etc. and expect the ability to start a task at one point in time, pick it up later and maintain continuity throughout the event. The best conversations are continuous, naturally picking up from where they left off, but they are also interactive, efficient, and mutually beneficial, providing tangible benefits in new and useful information

Adaptive marketing is transforming how brands connect with customers. Amazon gives shoppers personalized recommendations. Nike lets runners customize their trainers via Nike ID. Coca-Cola has introduced Freestyle vending machines, which enable patrons to create their own beverage by mixing together existing Coke products and then sharing their favorite creations with their friends via Facebook. These are tailor customer experiences based on customers’ activities

Start with the data that you have. Don’t wait until you think you have enough data or all the right tools. Start looking at the data you have now and use the tools that you have now to garner the insights that you can. It’s more important to make the decisions that you can with the best data that you have and continuously optimize your process