Formerly known as Bizible, Adobe Marketo Measure is a MarTech solution that allows you to track the ROI of your marketing channels and see how they influence conversions along the customer journey.
If you read Part 1 aboutAdobe Marketo Measure’s First Touch Attribution Model, you already know how touchpoints influence customer conversions.
But what about more complex scenarios that involve multiple touchpoints? Sometimes, the first touchpoint might not greatly influence the customer’s purchasing decision.
That’s where the multi-touch attribution models come in. The W-Shaped Attribution Model is one of the four Bizible attribution models that assign credit to multiple channels in the conversion path rather than just one touchpoint, like in the Bizible single-touch attribution models.
As a marketer, it’s important to understand the different marketing attribution models to track and optimize your campaigns. Today, we’re going to explain how the W-Shaped model works. Without further ado, let’s dive in!
What Is the W-Shaped Attribution Model of Bizible?
The W-Shaped model looks at all the different ways customers interact with a business before making a purchase. It assigns credit to multiple touchpoints in the conversion path rather than just the first or last one.
Curious about what we mean by “touchpoint?” We’ll explain further.
What Is a Bizible Touchpoint?
A marketing attribution touchpoint is any interaction or engagement a customer has with a marketing channel or campaign. The customer could click on an ad, check out a website, fill out a form, attend a webinar, or complete any other action that can be tracked and linked back to a marketing effort.
These touchpoints help marketers understand which channels or campaigns are driving customer engagement and influencing their decision-making process.
A Bizible touchpoint is any tracked interaction that a prospect has with your brand. Bizible employs two types of touchpoints to register these activities:
- The Bizible Touchpoint (BT) – This type of touchpoint is generally associated with the lead record (but can be associated with the contact record if the contact is not associated with an opportunity). When a touchpoint is associated with the lead record, it is chronicling the story of an individual’s brand interactions.
- The Bizible Attribution Touchpoint (BAT) – This type of touchpoint is associated with the opportunity (via a contact record) and documents prospect interactions from the perspective of an opportunity and its associated monetary value. Bizible touchpoints are therefore employed in the buyer journey up to the point that an opportunity is generated. BATs are associated with prospect interactions at the point when the opportunity is generated and for all major stopping points on the buyer journey thereafter.
How BTs and BATs Relate to Each Other
When installing the Bizible package, Bizible writes an object to Salesforce known as the Bizible Person. This object serves as a source of continuity and documents a person’s interactions when they are represented as either a Lead or a Contact. The person object affords you the chance to view both Bizible Touchpoints and Bizible Attribution Touchpoints on a single record.
Something that’s worth noting is that when Adobe updated Bizible’s branding to Market Measure, they needed a way to preserve the BT and BAT acronyms with meaningful representations. BT is now signified by the term Buyer Touchpoint, and BAT is now represented by the phrase Buyer Attribution Touchpoint.
What Is Unique About W-Shaped Attribution Models Compared to the U-Shaped Attribution Models?
The W-Shaped model takes a more comprehensive approach to understanding the customer journey. Unlike the U-Shaped model, which only assigns value to two interactions, the W-Shaped model tracks multiple touchpoints across different marketing channels and assigns weights accordingly. This allows marketers to see how each touchpoint contributes to conversions and make informed decisions to optimize their multichannel marketing strategies.
The W-Shaped model also accounts for the opportunity creation touch. This is where many marketers stop and consider their job done. We’ll explain more about each touchpoint in a sec.
Which Touchpoints in the Customer Journey Does the W-Shaped Model Prioritize?
The W-Shaped Attribution Model considers three important events along the customer journey:
First Touch
This is the initial interaction or contact a customer has with a company or brand. It’s the first time a customer becomes aware of a business, product, or service. This interaction could happen through various channels, such as banner advertisements, social media posts, website visits or email marketing.
Think of it as the moment when a potential customer takes notice and starts their journey with a particular company. The first touch is crucial because it sets the foundation for further engagement and influences the customer’s perception and decision-making process. It’s the first impression you get when you encounter a new brand.
Lead Creation Touch
The lead creation touch refers to the specific interaction or action that converts a potential customer into a lead. It’s the point in the customer journey where someone goes from being simply aware of a company or product to actively expressing interest and providing their contact information.
This touchpoint can take different forms depending on the business and its marketing strategies. It could be when a customer fills out a contact form on a website, signs up for a newsletter, downloads a whitepaper, or requests more information about a product or service. Essentially, it’s the moment when someone self-identifies and becomes a lead the company can follow up with.
The lead creation touch signifies a higher level of engagement and interest from the customer. It allows the business to gather valuable information and start building a relationship by providing relevant content, offers, or personalized communication. Ultimately, the goal is to nurture these leads and guide them toward becoming paying customers.
Opportunity Creation Touch
The opportunity creation touch refers to a significant interaction or event that marks the transition of a lead into a sales opportunity. It’s the point in the customer journey where a potential lead demonstrates a strong likelihood of becoming a paying customer.
This touchpoint typically occurs when a lead exhibits certain buying signals or meets specific criteria that indicate a higher chance of a conversion. It could be when a lead requests a product demo, engages in a sales consultation, or expresses a clear intent to make a purchase.
The opportunity creation touch is the moment when the sales team identifies a genuine opportunity to close a deal. At this stage, the focus shifts toward nurturing the opportunity, addressing any remaining concerns or objections, and providing tailored solutions that meet the prospect’s needs. It’s an important step in the sales process that moves the lead closer to becoming a customer.
How Each Touchpoint Is Weighted
The W-Shaped model understands that it’s not just the first interaction that matters but also the other touchpoints that influence a customer’s decision.
Here’s the interesting part: the W-Shaped model assigns weight to each of these touchpoints based on how important they are. The first touch, lead creation touch, and opportunity creation touch get higher weights because they play a significant role in converting customers. Other touchpoints get lower weights because they have a smaller impact.
By using the W-Shaped model, businesses can better understand how different marketing channels contribute to conversions. Consequentially, this model provides supportive insights and helps marketers optimize their strategies accordingly.
Final Thoughts
The different Marketo Measure attribution models can give you a comprehensive view of the customer journey. Are you looking to harness the full power of Adobe Marketo Measure and leverage the W-Shaped model? Our team of experts is just a click away!
Schedule a free strategy session today to explore how we can assist you in configuring Marketo Measure to optimize your marketing strategies and propel your business toward its goals. Don’t miss out on the opportunity to elevate your marketing game—reach out now!
