The second most-cited barrier is complexity of data, followed closely by an inability to action the insight gained from attribution, according to the research which is sponsored by Datalicious.

Q: What are the greatest barriers to using attribution more effectively?

Companies that want to implement attribution should consider how well they perform in each of these areas and what they can do to address the related challenges.

The three key challenge areas can be broken down as follows:

  • Technology
  • Data
  • Skills

Let’s take a look at each of those in more details.

Technology

Having the right technology in place is never going to guarantee success on its own, but it is definitely an important contributing factor.

Some organisations have the ability to quickly deploy third-party technology, but many struggle with internal integration issues or the ability to get new platforms to communicate with existing ones.

The phrase ‘disparate technology platforms’ frequently appears as a hurdle in all areas of digital marketing. Attribution is no exception, as illustrated by the fact that 41% of companies surveyed mentioned it.

Data

Overwhelming volumes of data are a constant headache for many modern marketers, but this is why effective attribution models are so important.

A good attribution model can give marketers the confidence to delve into complex sets of data and generate insights that can be acted upon.

But an inability to action insights is one of the key concerns of our respondents. This is often because they don’t have the necessary processes or technology in place to act on their attribution results.

It could also be due to a lack of communication between those who uncover the insights and those who have the power to act on them.

Skills

Organisations need to invest in talent when it comes to analysis and optimisation, two activities which typically fall under the remit of analysts.

Despite a recent increase in the number of people with these skills, over a quarter of client-side respondents say a lack of analysts prevents them from using attribution more effectively.

Defining the customer journey is another area that requires a great deal of attention. It’s not about isolating customer touch points, but rather setting attribution goals that accurately reflect the entire customer journey.

Focusing on one portion of the customer journey is not only counter-productive, but can actually backfire in the long run.

Download the full report if you want more in-depth analysis about the state of attribution in the APAC region.