Spent months setting up proper attribution tracking across channels.
Facebook says one thing, Google says another, and our internal analytics shows completely different numbers.
Starting to think these models just create more confusion than clarity.
Everyone’s data tells a different story about what’s actually driving conversions.
Attribution is broken. Just track revenue per channel instead.
The issue isn’t the attribution model itself. It’s the attempt to track every single interaction when many are irrelevant. Choose a single reliable source and focus on it. I prefer first-click attribution to identify the original entry point. Then I analyze lifetime value by cohort to determine which channels yield profitable users. Stop striving for flawless attribution and start concentrating on the metrics that truly matter.
Hit the same wall two years back with a travel app. Spent weeks trying to reconcile attribution data between platforms - total waste of time.
What actually helped was building incrementality tests. Run campaigns with geo holdouts or time-based splits to see real lift. Way more reliable than any attribution model.
Found this breakdown really useful for understanding why these models break down:
Now I just pick one source of truth for reporting and use the rest as directional data. Much less headache and you can actually make decisions without second guessing every number.
We just look at cost per install by channel and stop worrying about attribution after that.
Each platform wants to take credit for the same conversion so they all use different tracking windows and attribution rules.
I stopped trying to make the numbers match perfectly. Instead I focus on overall trends and which channels bring users who actually convert to paying customers.
Test turning off one channel at a time to see what really happens to your revenue.