Social media attribution: How to measure correctly

Is your business making the most of its social media efforts or are you left in the dark about their real impact? While the majority of marketers are satisfied with the value of their campaigns, only a few are confident that they’re able to demonstrate a return on investment (ROI).  

This is where social media attribution steps in, offering invaluable insights into the performance of your digital campaigns. This ultimately enables you to optimize your marketing budget and strategies effectively. 

This guide is your roadmap to grasp the significance of social media attribution, explore various models and gain practical insights into accurate measurement. 

What is social media attribution? 

Social media attribution is the process of tracking and assigning value to the interactions your audience has with your brand on social media platforms.  

It involves tracking user engagements like clicks, shares or comments to understand their role in outcomes such as website visits, conversions or sales. 

Social media attribution is vital for businesses to make data-informed decisions. It guides budget allocation, content strategy and optimization efforts by revealing which social media activities drive the best results. 

Learn More: Why is the ROI of social media still so elusive? 

For example, suppose a customer first encounters a product through a YouTube video, then sees a Facebook ad and later clicks on an Instagram link before making a purchase. Social media attribution would reveal how each of these interactions played a part in influencing the final conversion, providing valuable insights for future marketing decisions. 

Social media attribution goes beyond giving credit to the last click or interaction; it recognizes the entire customer journey. 

Why is social media attribution important for businesses? 

Let's understand why social media attribution is crucial for businesses. 

1. Understanding customer behavior 

When people engage with your social media posts, they provide valuable clues about their interests and preferences. By accurately attributing the results to specific social media activities, you can gain insights into what resonates with your audience. These insights can guide your future marketing strategies. 

Dive Deeper: 3 ways to improve social media customer engagement  

Example: Suppose you're using three social media platforms — Facebook, Instagram and X to promote your products. Proper attribution helps you see that a significant portion of your sales comes from Instagram. You can then tailor your marketing strategy to focus more on Instagram to capitalize on its success. 

2. Optimizing your budget 

Allocate your digital marketing budget effectively with attribution models. These models enable you to identify the social media platforms or campaigns that deliver the highest ROI, allowing you to invest more in those areas. Save money and optimize your marketing efforts with actionable insights from attribution models. 

Example: Let's say you spend equal amounts on Facebook and Instagram advertising. Attribution reveals that Instagram is generating higher ROI. Using a smart budget overview, you can reallocate your budget to invest more in Instagram ads and potentially achieve better results. 

3. Enhancing content strategy 

Attribution helps you understand which types of content and posts are most effective in driving conversions. This knowledge can be used to refine your content strategy, ensuring that you create content that resonates with your audience and compels them to take action. 

Read More: How to build a social media content calendar 

Example: You realize that posts showcasing customer testimonials on X receive more clicks and conversions. The insights generated by a media monitoring tool will prompt you to incorporate more testimonials into your social media content strategy. 

4. Building stronger customer relationships 

With attribution, you can track how users engage with your brand across different touchpoints on social media. By understanding this journey, you can engage with them more effectively, providing personalized content and interactions based on their preferences. 

Example: A user interacts with your Facebook ad and then clicks on an Instagram post before making a purchase. You can now engage them on both platforms, creating a seamless and engaging customer experience. 

Types of attribution models 

Attribution models are essential tools for understanding the impact of your social media efforts. Know the different types of attribution models and how they apply to social media scenarios. 

1. Last-click attribution 

In the world of social media, last-click attribution also known as the qualified lead model assigns all the credit to the final interaction before a conversion.  

41% of marketers are most commonly using the “last touch” method for their online attribution. This model, while straightforward, may not provide an accurate representation of the customer's journey. 

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Example: A person discovers your handmade jewelry store through a friend's Instagram post, then clicks on the Facebook ad and finally makes a purchase. With last-click attribution, Facebook takes full credit for the sale, disregarding the initial exposure on Instagram. 

2. First-click attribution 

Conversely, the first-click attribution model attributes all the credit to the initial touchpoint in a customer's journey. 

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Example: A person stumbles upon your Instagram post featuring a stunning necklace, sparking her interest. She later clicks on an X ad and ultimately makes a purchase. First-click attribution attributes the entire conversion to Instagram, ignoring the Twitter ad's role. 

3. Linear attribution 

Linear attribution divides the credit equally among all the touchpoints a customer encounters on their journey. This model provides a balanced view but may not reflect the actual impact of each interaction. 

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Example: A person first engages with your Facebook post, then clicks on an Instagram ad and finally purchases while interacting with an X post. With linear attribution, all three platforms — Facebook, Instagram and Twitter — get equal credit. 

4. Time-decay attribution 

Time-decay attribution acknowledges that more recent interactions are often more influential. It assigns more credit to touchpoints that occur closer to the time of conversion. 

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Example: A person initially sees a Facebook post, later clicks on an Instagram ad and finally purchases while engaging with an X post. With time-decay attribution, the X post, being the most recent interaction, receives the most credit. 

5. Custom attribution 

Custom attribution models allow businesses to create their rule-based systems for assigning credit to different touchpoints. This model is highly flexible and can be tailored to your unique business goals. 

Example: You run a custom attribution model, giving more credit to touchpoints that result in comments and shares on social media. This model emphasizes the importance of user engagement in your posts. 

How to set up the correct attribution model for social media? 

Setting up the correct attribution model for your social media efforts is crucial for accurately measuring your ROI across all channels. Here's an approach to guide you through the process. 

1. Define your business goals 

Start by clearly defining your business objectives. What do you aim to achieve with your social media marketing? Whether it's increasing sales, driving website traffic or boosting brand awareness, your goals will inform your choice of an attribution model. 

Example: If your primary goal is to increase website traffic, you need an attribution model that emphasizes clicks and website visits. 

2. Analyze the customer journey 

Examine how your customers interact with your brand on social media. Understand the different touchpoints and the sequence of interactions that lead to conversions. This analysis will help you determine which attribution model aligns best with your customer's path to purchase. 

Example: You discover that customers often engage with your posts on Instagram first and then visit your website via Facebook ads before making a purchase. This insight suggests a multi-touch attribution model may be more suitable. 

3. Consider the nature of your business 

The type of business you run and your sales cycle can influence your choice of attribution model. E-commerce businesses with short sales cycles might benefit from different models compared to B2B companies with longer, more complex sales cycles. 

Example: An e-commerce store with a quick buying process may find last-click attribution useful, while a B2B company with a lengthier sales cycle could lean towards multi-touch attribution. 

4. Test multiple models 

It's often beneficial to test different attribution models to see which one aligns most closely with your goals and customer behavior. Run parallel analyses using different models and compare the results. 

Example: You test both last-click and time decay attribution models. Last-click may show the effectiveness of your final touchpoints, while time decay might reveal the influence of more recent interactions. The model that provides more accurate insights should be your choice. 

5. Align with your budget allocation 

Consider your budget allocation strategy. An attribution model that accurately reflects the contribution of each social media channel to your goals can help you distribute your budget more effectively. 

Example: If your budget is evenly divided between Facebook and Instagram, but time decay attribution reveals that Instagram plays a more significant role in conversions, you can adjust your budget allocation to favor Instagram. 

6. Leverage attribution tools 

Consider using attribution tools and software that can streamline the process of setting up and analyzing your chosen model. These tools can help you make data-driven decisions and save time. 

Example: Tools like Google Analytics and effective social media-specific attribution platforms can simplify the process of setting up and interpreting attribution models. 

Deep Dive: How to leverage social media data to drive growth? 

Tactics to measure social media attribution 

Here are simple and detailed tactics to ensure your social media attribution model works smoothly: 

1. Use Urchin Tracking Module (UTM) parameters: Create unique links for each social media post using UTM parameters. These tags help you track which posts drive the most clicks and conversions, making it easy to attribute success.  

2. Leverage conversion tracking: Most social media platforms offer built-in conversion tracking tools. Use them to link specific actions, like purchases or sign-ups to your social media campaigns, giving you direct insights into their effectiveness. 

3. Combine attribution models: Don't limit yourself to one model. Use a combination of models like first-click, last-click and linear attribution to get a well-rounded view of how different interactions contribute to conversions. 

4. A/B test your content: Try experimenting with different versions of your social media content to see which resonates best with your audience. By conducting A/B tests to gather insights into real user preferences, you can refine your content strategy. 

5. Integrate customer relationship management (CRM) data: If you have a CRM system, connect it with your social media data. This integration allows you to track individual customer interactions across social media channels, providing a holistic view of the customer journey. 

6. Listen to social media: Use social listening tools to monitor brand mentions and discussions on social media. This technique goes beyond direct interactions and reveals how your brand influences conversations, providing deeper insights into attribution. 

By using a trusted social listening tool, you can tap into more than 500 million conversations every day beyond your core brand channels and transform unstructured data into actionable, relevant insights for driving business growth and evolving customer experiences. 

7. Unify your data: Simplify data management by using marketing analytics software with unified dashboards. These dashboards bring data from multiple social media platforms together, allowing you to compare and attribute performance efficiently. Using actionable insights generated via an efficient unified platform can reduce your content costs by 40%. 

Ready to supercharge your marketing efforts with social media attribution?

In today's digital world, understanding the true impact of your social media efforts is crucial. Social media attribution is the key to unlocking this understanding. It offers insights that can significantly enhance your digital marketing strategy.  

To take your attribution journey to the next level, consider the marketing analytics platform and reporting software offered by Sprinklr.  

It gathers campaign and analytics data across 30+ digital channels and brings it all into one unified, AI-powered dashboard for measuring, analyzing, reporting and optimizing your marketing activities. 

Book a demo today to learn more about how Sprinklr can help you.