Facebook™ is, probably, the most marketing-friendly social media network and the Facebook™ team is constantly improving its ad creation tools and campaign management panel. Recently, marketers have gained access to a new and extremely useful tool: Facebook™ Attribution.
What Is the Facebook™ Attribution Tool?
Interactions between customers and companies were made easier by the internet and mobile phones. But, at the same time, these interactions became more complex than ever. In the past, things were simple: people saw an ad in the newspaper or received a catalogue in the mail and then went to the store to buy the products they wanted.
Now, people perform Google searches, browse websites and mobile apps, engage with brands on social media and ask them questions directly via private messages and – finally – they make the purchase decision. It’s quite difficult to know for sure what exactly sealed the deal for the customer. Was it a Facebook™ ad? A mobile ad on Instagram? Or a Google Adwords ad?
Now, thanks to the Attribution tool created by Facebook™, marketers will know the precise journey of the lead, from channel to channel, down to the last click that led to the purchase. By integrating the most popular online channels marketers use in their work, Facebook™ offers its business users one of the most valuable tools in understanding how their clients interact with their ads and how much persuasion they need before they decide to make a purchase.
How to Set Up the Facebook™ Attribution Tool
Now that you know what the Facebook™ Attribution tool does, it is time to set it up. You will find the tool in the Ads Manager panel, under the Measure & report tab. Once you click on the Attribution link, you will access its dashboard.
Define Your Business Model
The first step in the setup process is defining your business. You can opt between:
Single business
Separate brands, verticals or regions
Agency (for marketers working for other businesses)
Thus, if you manage various brands under the same company umbrella, you can have separate Attribution reports for each of them. As for marketers, the Agency option makes their work simpler and more efficient, because they can track various campaigns they run at the same time for different clients from one single panel.
Add Your Accounts
In the next step, you will select your advertising accounts, data sources, time zone and currency. The ad account is your Facebook™ business account. As for the data sources, this is the Facebook™ Pixel (see our article about setting it up on your website).
Last, you will have to set your time zone and currency – these cannot be changed once you made a selection, so be careful during this initial setup phase. If you are unsure, use the recommended settings by Facebook™.
Once you completed this step, you will be taken back to the main Attribution dashboard. If all the information is correct, click on Finish and you’re done.
The Attribution Tool Functions
Once your Facebook™ Attribution tool is set up, you will have access to its functions:
Performance
Custom Reports
Cross-Device
Settings
The Custom Reports function is highly detailed and helps you breakdown the analytics data by a wide range of criteria. Before you become familiar with the way it works, you can use the preset categories created by Facebook™.
The Performance function allows you to see the inflow of data as your campaigns run across channels and the Cross-Device function shows you the customer journey between various devices (smartphone, laptop, tablet, etc.).
The most comprehensive functionality of Attribution is Settings, where you will find the subcategories:
Diagnostics
Data Sources
Referring Domains
Ad Platforms
This is where the most valuable data will be collected and where you need to look carefully to monitor the journey of your leads among various ads until the one that leads to the purchase.
As this is a newly added function, you are on the same page with your competitors when it comes to the experience and skill in using it. We will certainly come back to this topic in the future with detailed tips and tricks for making the most of the Facebook™ Attribution tool.