BBrainyMetrics
FeaturesAttribution modelsIntegrationsSolutionsPricingLearn
Log inGet started

Attribution basics

What is multi-touch attribution?

Multi-touch attribution assigns credit for a conversion to all the marketing interactions that led to it, not just one.

Get started More learn
  • Flat monthly price, no revenue tax
  • No annual contract
  • Tracking starts the minute the snippet is live

Customers rarely buy after a single interaction. They might see a social ad, read a blog post from a search, click a retargeting ad and finally buy from an email. Multi-touch attribution is the practice of dividing the credit for that purchase across those touchpoints, so each channel's contribution is visible.

It contrasts with single-touch models such as first click and last click, which give 100% of the credit to one interaction. Multi-touch models include linear (equal credit), time decay (more credit to recent touches) and position based (most credit to the first and last touch). No model is objectively correct; each answers a slightly different question, which is why comparing them is so useful.

The problem

Why this matters for your ad budget

Understanding multi-touch attribution is one thing. Running it is another: you need every visit, click id and conversion tied to one person across devices and domains, then credit computed under each model. Most teams give up and fall back to last click.

That fallback costs real money. Upper-funnel campaigns get cut, retargeting gets over-funded and the business slowly loses its pipeline of new buyers.

Compare every attribution model on your own data

Create your account, install one snippet and see it on your own leads and sales.

  • Flat monthly price, no revenue tax
  • No annual contract
  • Tracking starts the minute the snippet is live
Create your account

Key takeaways

It needs a person-level journey

Touchpoints must be joined to one person across sessions and devices, usually through an email or phone the person shares.

Models answer different questions

First click shows demand creation, last click shows closing, multi-touch models spread credit in between.

Clicks aren't everything

Views, word of mouth and podcasts don't leave clicks. Self-reported attribution fills part of that gap.

Lookback windows matter

Only touches inside the window are eligible for credit.

All of this is built in, ready on day one.

Try it on your own data

Step by step

  1. 1

    Track every visit

    Record source, campaign and ad for each session.

  2. 2

    Identify people

    Join sessions to one person when they give an email or phone.

  3. 3

    Record conversions

    Leads, sales and calls, ideally from server-side sources.

  4. 4

    Apply and compare models

    Look at the same report through several models before acting.

Try it on your own data

Use cases

How marketers use this

Compare models instantly

Every model is computed for every conversion, so switching is a click.

Defend prospecting

Show which cold campaigns start the journeys that end in sales.

Go down to the ad

Credit flows to campaigns, ad sets and individual ads.

Try it on your own data
  • Flat monthly price, no revenue tax
  • No annual contract
  • Tracking starts the minute the snippet is live

Why BrainyMetrics

From theory to your own numbers

Everything in this guide is built into BrainyMetrics, working on your real ads, leads and sales.

Meta, Google and TikTok each claim the same sale, so platform totals add up to more than your bank account.
Each sale is counted once, from your own checkout data, and reconciled against what each platform claims.
Analytics gives the last click all the credit, so the ads that start journeys look like they lose money.
Seven attribution models are computed for every conversion, so you can compare first click, last click and everything between.
Phone calls and booked calls are a black box. You know they happened, not which ad caused them.
Calls and bookings are matched to the visitor's session and the ad behind it, then tracked through qualified and closed.
Ad blockers, Safari and cross-domain checkouts quietly break your data.
A first-party tracking subdomain, server-set cookies and cross-domain linking keep journeys intact.
Spend lives in one tab, revenue in another, and ROAS is a spreadsheet you rebuild every Monday.
Spend syncs hourly and sits next to attributed revenue, so ROAS, CPA and profit are on every row, down to the ad.
Ad algorithms optimise on the few conversions their pixel happens to see.
Real purchases and leads are sent back to the ad platforms' conversion APIs, deduplicated against the pixel.

Stop guessing which marketing pays.

Try it on your own data

Getting started

Put this guide into practice in four steps

No migration project and no agency retainer. Here is the whole path from sign-up to your first attributed sale.

  1. 1

    Create your account

    Sign up, name your workspace and pick the plan that fits. Your tracking snippet is waiting under Settings → Install.

  2. 2

    Install tracko.js

    Paste one snippet into your site's head, or add it with Google Tag Manager, WordPress or your funnel builder's tracking code box.

  3. 3

    Connect revenue and ads

    Connect Stripe, Shopify, your funnel builder or calendar, then Meta, Google or TikTok for hourly spend. Most connections take a click.

  4. 4

    Watch the first sale land

    The setup checklist ticks itself off as data arrives. Your next lead or sale shows up with its full journey and the ad that earned it.

Create your account
  • Flat monthly price, no revenue tax
  • No annual contract
  • Tracking starts the minute the snippet is live

One account

Everything else that comes with it

Tracking, attribution, calls, spend and revenue analytics share one data model, so each feature makes the others more accurate.

Multi-touch attribution

Seven models side by side, down to the ad.

First-party tracking

Your own subdomain and server-set cookies.

Call tracking

Dynamic numbers matched to the click behind each call.

ROAS and profit

Hourly spend sync joined with real revenue.

Conversion APIs

Feed real sales back to nine ad platforms.

Customer journeys

Every visit, ad, order and call per person.

LTV and cohorts

Lifetime value by the channel that acquired them.

Funnels

Drop-offs and cost per step, by ad.

Create your account and start tracking today.

Create your account

Frequently asked questions

Common questions about this topic, setup and pricing.

The fastest answer is your own data

Create an account, install the snippet and see how BrainyMetrics handles your real traffic.

Get started
Is multi-touch attribution better than last click?

It gives a fuller picture, especially for prospecting and long journeys. Last click is still useful for understanding what closes sales.

Can multi-touch attribution credit ad views?

Not directly, because ad platforms don't share who saw an ad. Platform-reported view-through numbers and survey answers help fill that gap.

How long does setup take?

The basics take minutes: paste the snippet, connect your checkout or funnel builder, and connect your ad accounts. The setup checklist in your dashboard ticks each step off as data arrives, so you always know what's left.

Do I need a developer?

Usually not. The snippet can go in through Google Tag Manager, WordPress or your funnel builder's tracking code settings, and most revenue sources connect with a click or a webhook URL you paste. The developer guide covers the JavaScript and server API if you do have a developer.

Does the price go up as I grow?

No. Plans are a flat monthly or yearly price. We never bill a percentage of revenue or ad spend, and you can switch, pause or cancel from the Billing page without a call.

Does tracking stop if I hit a plan limit?

No. Plans limit dashboard modules and things like integrations or workspaces; tracko.js, webhooks and syncs keep collecting data, so nothing is lost if you upgrade later.

Is it privacy friendly?

Yes. BrainyMetrics supports consent modes, works with your consent banner, respects Global Privacy Control and handles sensitive form fields strictly. Data is first-party: it belongs to your workspace, not an ad network.

Keep exploring

Features
Multi-touch attribution

Credit every touchpoint in the journey and compare seven models side by side.

Attribution models
Linear attribution

Equal credit to every touch in the journey.

Attribution models
Position-based attribution

40% first, 40% last, 20% across the middle.

Learn
First touch vs last touch

What each single-touch model shows and how to combine them.

Learn
What is an attribution window?

How lookback windows work and why tools disagree.

Learn
What is view-through attribution?

What view-through conversions are and how far to trust them.

Compare every attribution model on your own data

Install one snippet, connect your checkout and ad accounts, and get attribution you can act on today. Flat pricing, no annual contract.

Get started See pricing