A Practical Guide to Last-Touch and Multi-Touch Attribution – Communications of the ACM

Marketing Attribution: Understanding Last-Touch and Multi-Touch Models

Marketing attribution is the process of identifying and assigning credit to marketing touchpoints that influence a customer’s journey toward conversion.

It helps businesses understand which channels, campaigns, or interactions drive value, optimize strategies and investment, and make data-driven decisions to maximize return on marketing investment.

Last-Touch Attribution

Most organizations rely on traditional last-touch attribution, a simple model that assigns 100% credit to the last engagement or touchpoint in a customer’s journey.

the most recent touchpoint is playing the critical part in driving the conversion

However, last-touch routinely undervalues awareness-building channels and biases the investment toward end-of-funnel tactics/touchpoints, which can distort strategy and reduce overall pipeline growth.

A more comprehensive approach, such as multi-touch attribution, is necessary to accurately assign credit and optimize marketing strategies.

Author summary: Understanding marketing attribution is crucial for businesses to optimize their strategies.

more

Communications of the ACM Communications of the ACM — 2025-10-22

More News