Measurement & attribution
Measurement that connects ad spend to the business.
We set up tracking, attribution and reporting that show what paid media is really producing, in customers, revenue and margin, rather than only what each platform claims.
The thinking
Why it works this way
Every ad platform grades its own homework. Google and Meta each count the conversions they influenced, often the same ones, using attribution windows and modelling that favor themselves. Added together, platform-reported results routinely exceed what the business actually recorded.
Good measurement doesn't pretend to be perfect. It combines clean platform tracking, first-party data and occasional controlled tests into a picture that's accurate enough to make budget decisions with confidence.
What we do
What's included.
The work itself, in plain terms. Every engagement is scoped to what your accounts actually need.
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Tracking implementation
GA4, Google Ads conversions, Meta Pixel and Conversions API, and server-side tagging where it adds accuracy, all set up to respect consent.
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Conversion definitions
Agreeing what counts: a purchase, a qualified lead, a trial start or a first paid renewal, and passing values that reflect each one's worth.
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Business-outcome reporting
Blended acquisition cost, contribution margin and payback reported alongside platform metrics, so channel results can be checked against the bank account.
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Customer quality
The first purchase isn't the whole story. Where the data allows, we track refunds, repeat purchases, subscription retention and lead quality by source.
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Incrementality
Holdouts, geographic tests and platform lift studies, where volume supports them, to estimate what advertising actually caused.
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Acquisition economics
Working out what you can afford to pay for a customer, how quickly you need that cost back, and what that means for budgets and targets.
Inside the account
What it looks like in practice.
The structure, tests and decisions behind a well-run account. Open “Why it's built this way” for the reasoning behind each line.
35% over-claim. Budgets set on platform totals would fund conversions that happened once but were counted twice.
Illustrative account · names generalized · not a specific client's results
How we think about it
Principles
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Attribution is an estimate
Every model makes assumptions. We use several views and look for where they agree.
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Blended numbers keep everyone honest
Total spend divided by new customers can't be inflated by double-counting.
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Measure the customer, not just the conversion
A cheap customer who refunds or churns in the first month is an expensive one.
What you get
Deliverables
- Tracking audit and implementation plan
- Conversion and value definitions
- A reporting view combining business and platform metrics
- Retention and refund views by channel where data allows
- Incrementality test designs
FAQ
Measurement questions.
Why don't our Google and Meta numbers match our actual sales?
Each platform claims credit for conversions it touched, using its own attribution window, and both include modelled conversions. The same sale is often counted by both. Comparing platform numbers with blended, first-party results shows how much of the reported total is overlap.
What's a good ROAS?
There isn't a universal number. The return you need depends on gross margin, repeat purchase, subscription retention and how quickly you need to recover acquisition costs. We work backwards from those economics to set targets.
Do we need server-side tracking?
Often it helps. Browser restrictions and ad blockers mean browser-only tracking misses conversions, and the Conversions API and enhanced conversions recover some of that signal. Whether full server-side tagging is worth it depends on your volume and setup.
Measurement guides
- How should a Google Ads account be structured in 2026?
- How do you test a new ad network or traffic source without wasting budget?
- How do you get Google and Meta to optimize for lead quality instead of form fills?
- ROAS, MER, CAC and contribution margin: which number should you run paid acquisition on?
- Why do Google Ads, Meta and GA4 report different conversion numbers?
- How do you get your business cited by ChatGPT, Perplexity, Copilot and Google AI Overviews?
- How do you set up Google Ads conversion tracking that Smart Bidding can trust?
- How do you measure whether your ads are actually causing sales?
- How do you set up Meta's Conversions API so the data is actually usable?
- How should a pay-for-performance media buying relationship be structured so both sides are protected?
- How do you stop Performance Max from taking credit for brand searches?
- How do you know if paid acquisition is working for a subscription business?
- When should you switch to value-based bidding, and how do you set it up?
Other services
Let's look at your measurement.
Share your goals, your channels and roughly what you spend. We'll reply with an honest view of where we'd start, or tell you if we're not the right fit.