OTT Technology: How Over-The-Top Tech Works
by Frankie Karrer
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Marketing spend in the U.S. reached nearly $481 billion last year, but where is that money going? This is why marketing attribution is vital: to determine which of your marketing efforts are leading to conversions. There are several marketing attribution models, each with their own approach to analyzing and assigning credit to different marketing touchpoints in a customer’s journey. These include:
Among these various methods for mapping a customer’s journey is the popular position-based attribution model.
Also known as U-shaped attribution, position-based attribution evaluates the impact of different marketing touchpoints by acknowledging that a customer’s ultimate purchase decision is influenced by multiple interactions with a brand. Unlike simpler, single-touch attribution models, position-based attribution gives more credit to specific touchpoints — namely the customer’s first and last interactions with your brand. These interactions are considered the most influential in sparking a consumer’s initial interest and driving their final purchase decision.
The first step in the position-based attribution model maps out a customer’s journey by identifying each touchpoint where the customer interacts with your brand.
Position-based attribution is also known as U-shaped attribution because of how it assigns credit to different consumer touchpoints. It separates touchpoints into three categories:
Position-based attribution assigns 40% of the credit to the first touchpoint and 40% to the last touchpoint. The remaining 20% is evenly distributed across all of the middle touchpoints. If you were to view this credit distribution on a bar chart, it would appear to create a U shape — hence the nickname.
By attributing the most value to both the first and last interactions before a conversion, while still acknowledging the importance of the journey in between, position-based attribution offers a comprehensive view of a customer’s path and a balanced, data-driven approach to understanding the influence of different marketing interactions.
The position-based attribution model offers several advantages, both compared to other models and in general, including:
While the position-based attribution model offers a more nuanced approach to understanding marketing touchpoints compared to single-touch models, it does also have several disadvantages, which include:
To further understand how position-based attribution works, imagine that you own a fitness center and want to increase your membership numbers.
A potential member first searches for “fitness centers near me” and clicks on your paid search ad. They then search for “affordable gym memberships” and “best gym facilities,” each time engaging with your ads. Finally, they sign up for a membership after searching for “best fitness center for weight training” and clicking on your ad. In this case, the position-based attribution model assigns 40% of the credit to both “fitness centers near me” and “best fitness center for weight training,” while “affordable gym memberships” and “best gym facilities” each get 10% of the credit.
In the context of TV attribution, the example looks a little different, but the same principles apply. Imagine that you’re the owner of a travel booking website. A potential customer sees a TV ad for your booking site while watching a travel documentary. They later see another ad during a cooking show featuring international cuisine. Then, they encounter your ad during a late-night talk show. Finally, they book a vacation package on your site after seeing an ad during a special travel-themed TV event. The ads during the travel documentary and the travel-themed event would each get 40% of the credit, and the cooking and late-night talk show ads would each receive 10% of the credit.
With Connected TV advertising on the rise in the U.S., TV attribution has become all but vital for brands of all sizes. And while basic models like position-based attribution may be helpful starting points, they haven’t been able to accurately assess the value of CTV ads. To rise above the attribution models that fall short in TV advertising, MNTN developed Verified Visits™.
Verified Visits™ ensures that MNTN ads get credit only when credit is due. It does this through four simple steps:
MNTN’s Verified Visits™ is the best way to be sure that an ad is taking credit for a potential customer visiting your site only when it’s due.
The position-based attribution model offers a balanced and insightful view of advertising effectiveness. While it has its disadvantages, its advantages in providing a comprehensive view of the customer journey are undeniable. Ultimately, custom attribution models can offer you more accurate insights for a more nuanced solution in TV attribution.
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