The Truth About Attribution (hint, use Machine Learning) (Chris Liversidge with Jason Barnard)

Google Analytics doesn't clean the data and that makes it **** (expletive). That means in SEO and SEA, you are constantly being driven towards last-click terms. And that is saturated. If you can understand attribution, then you can show the value when you choose target terms earlier in the process of attribution. That makes attribution a critical part of the future of search - bringing the multiple sessions together to reflect how people engage with you before transaction. When I say "what all 5 channels?" and Chris sniggers - he is talking several dozen - both online and offline. He uses machine learning to calculate predictive probabilities about cross-channel actions that are as statistically accurate as those used to calculate the Higgs boson. The conclusion is that big corporations are underestimating the impact of organic search by more than 50%. Email too. And we can quote Chris on that :) And Direct is the "rubbish bucket where all hope goes", according to Chris. Conclusion is that we are going back to more traditional marketing. And that is a conclusion that just keeps on coming up in this series. Must be true, then :)