By Berta Ventura, on 17 October 2022
Attribution models are used to know the route that a user follows before making a purchase. They give us insights on which campaigns are obtaining the best results, allowing us to adjust whats not working. Thanks to TikTok’s new feature, the Attribution Manager, we can now also access this information for our TikTok Ads campaigns. Learn how you can use TikTok’s attribution manager and how to implement it!
What is TikTok's Attribution Manager?
TikTok's Attribution Manager allows you to establish attribution windows adjusted to the advertising campaigns carried out within the app.
The attribution window for clicks can be from 1 to 28 days, while that for views can be up to 7 days. This will make it possible to obtain a fairly flexible measurement, adjusted to each type of campaign, the type of actions that each user has carried out after seeing the ad, and within the determined time frame. In other words, it will allow us to have precise data on how users respond to an ad and the impact it has on them.
How to Implement Attribution in TikTok Ads Manager
TikTok Attribution Manager is available for brands that launch ads through the TikTok Pixel or Events API.
Depending on the objective, one or more parameters can be defined, although the default configuration is a 7-day click attribution window and a 1-day view attribution window. However, the former can be extended up to 28 days and the latter up to 7 days depending on the objectives.
Knowing the immediate clicks, for example, is useful for campaigns where the objective is to create brand awareness or generate immediate sales. On the other hand, for those products or services whose purchase is not usually made impulsively, aka a longer sales cycle, the more relevant information will be obtained about the user's path.
By all this we mean that in order to correctly implement an attribution marketing strategy through TikTok's Attribution Manager, the objectives must be clear, since this is the basis on which the parameters will have to be defined.
How to Access the TikTok Attribution Manager
This new feature is currently in the testing phase and may not be available in all accounts. In order to access it follow the steps below:
Access TikTok Ads Manager or TikTok Ads Library > Events Page.
Then click on Manage within the Events Page itself.
The next step is to Create new application so that a pop-up window appears.
Here you should add the URL of the app store and then click Next. At this point, if necessary, you can also include some parameters, such as the language.
Once you have done all the above, you need to set the tracking settings. To do this, click on Measurement Partner and select one of the partners of the ad measurement service or No tracking service, in which case you will be able to obtain traffic data but not conversion data. The click tracking URL and the impression URL must also be added.
The time settings must be set, which can be 1, 7, 14 or 28 days for click attribution and 1 or 7 days for views.
All that remains is to click on Done.
By following these simple steps you should be able to access and use TikTok's Attribution Manager tool without any problems.
How Attribution Works in TikTok
After the configuration, you will then be able to extract reports that will highlight the route the user followed from the moment they saw the ad until they decided to interact and, finally, to perform the desired action. All this information will lead to be able to make campaigns in TikTok Ads much more precise and effective.
Attribution Windows in TikTok: How to Select Yours
There are two types of attribution in TikTok, the clicks attribution window and the impressions attribution window. Also, note that TikTok uses the last-click attribution model, associating the purchase decision with the last interaction.
Click attribution refers to all those times when a user clicks on an ad and then performs the action that the brand expects, which can range from making a purchase to downloading a file.
The attribution of impressions refers to the number of times a user views an ad and, without clicking on it, performs the desired action, which can also range from a purchase to a download. Even if they did not click on the ad, the conversion is attributed to the viewing.
Knowing this, the next step is to choose the attribution window that best fits the brand's objective. Attribution window refers to the time period within which conversions are assigned to clicks or views. That is, if the conversion window is 7 days, it means that the user has that period of time to complete the action from the day he/she sees or interacts with the ad.
TikTok offers 1, 7, 14 or 28 days for the click attribution window and 1 and 7 days for views. The type of service or product being offered should be taken into account when choosing the time. Or, in other words, if it is an impulse purchase or action or not, because if it is not, the margin should be wider.
