Modern advertising would be nowhere near as successful without ad tracking. This handsome tool for measuring the response to your ads is there to show just how well you’re doing your job. And the more companies are aware of this, the more promising their future.
Creating an original and thought-provoking ad and releasing it into the world is one thing. But how customers will respond to it – that’s something beyond your power.
Or is it? It turns out you can have excellent insight into your clients’ behavior using ad tracking and attribution software. Now, before you think this is a form of espionage where FBI agents will knock on your door, stop panicking immediately. Tracking is a way of determining whether your marketing strategy works or not. Click here for more.
Fortunately, tracking software makes this easier than ever. Managers used to rely on surveys and word of mouth to assess if they advertised their products and services well. But this is extremely impractical and time-consuming.
Instead, you would use AI tracking that makes data analysis a summer breeze. You may be convinced that your marketing sector is a perfectly oiled machine, but what if people think otherwise? Having an objective insight into your ads can help your company reach new heights.
What is Tracking and Attribution Software?
Most brands use some form of a marketing campaign, whether on websites, social media, email, or some other channel. They craft their ads carefully with ingenious ideas and clever messages. But once they release them, there’s no telling if they work. Unless they step it up and include tracking software in their game.
And why do marketers choose it, exactly? Because it’s the best available tool for data analytics. Through following URLs, cookies, and pixels, tracking software collects essential information than can improve your marketing faster than you think.
By doing this, you get to know your customers’ habits better to target them more efficiently. It’s a non-invasive and respectful approach that benefits companies and clients alike.
On the other hand, attribution is a process that tells you exactly how your lead converted into a customer. In other words, how they finally decided to purchase or sign up for your product or service.
By familiarizing yourself with their habits, you can predict customer behavior and place much more effective ads on the web that will generate more leads. Plus, it will be much more cost-effective than spending thousands of dollars on campaigns that might not work. Go to https://www.linkdigital.co.uk/benefits-of-conversion-tracking/ for more info.
URLs, Cookies, and Pixels
You should know the basic tracking strategies to appreciate the concept more. I won’t bore you with all the technical details – having a general idea will suffice.
A common ad tracking strategy is using tracking URLs. URL stands for Uniform Resource Locator, or in less fancy terms, your web address. So, how does monitoring work in this case? By simply attaching a tracking token to your website.
Ad software uses this approach to count how many leads, visits, or conversions you’ve managed to generate. It’s handy for emails, ads on other sites, and also pay-per-click campaigns.
Next up – cookies. We all know them to form the “allow cookies” feature whenever we open a website. But they’re there for a valid reason. They help marketers track a user’s behavior over multiple website visits. It’s akin to monitoring a patient’s condition over 24 hours if you will. By using tracking cookies, websites remember data from people’s visits.
Then, developers use this information to enhance the website and tailor it to users’ needs. Companies always ask for explicit consent from the public to use cookies. That’s what makes the difference between responsible marketers and nosy spies.
Finally, you have pixels, the least known form of ad tracking. Similar to the URL tokens, these are small and usually transparent images in ads, websites, or emails. They operate simply yet effectively: once someone opens your page, the pixel loads and informs the tracking software of the visit.
Major Advantages
Ad tracking and attribution software saves marketers time, money, and effort. There’s no better method for learning customers’ actions from their first click to the final conversion. This software allows you to closely monitor the AIDA (awareness, interest, decision, action) model. It’s only possible to succeed in marketing by knowing the sales funnel from top to bottom, and ad tracking software makes it possible.
To follow your traffic sources better, the software includes a central hub. Also, it has multiple data points so that the website can handle as much information as possible. Imagine all the daily user clicks and conversions on your website. How could you possibly follow them all without software?
Moreover, AI tracking will help you save money on your marketing expenses. If you use multiple ads, some will perform better than others. Tracking software is there to provide you with detailed information.
In this way, you can throw away the bad eggs and retain the ads that give the most return on investment. Plus, you should think of tracking software as a central data source. Picking up your data from one place is infinitely more practical than analyzing traffic sources one by one.
Ever heard of lifetime value (LTV)? It shows how much revenue a customer will generate for your company over a long time. Of course, this is very difficult to predict accurately, but a software for ad tracking can get the work done. By knowing the average revenue of your customer base, you can market your products far more effectively than if you were guessing.
A Few Drawbacks
Aside from the overwhelming benefits, tracking software does include a few negatives. For instance, a user cannot customize the metrics, but they’re user-friendly and easy to master.
Then, companies that produce this software usually save it for larger companies (those with high revenue and bigger investments in ads.) Very small businesses might not be able to afford it. However, by growing their revenue and marketing in the future, ad-tracking software will become readily available.
Summary
Any company that takes itself seriously will improve with ad tracking and attribution software. Marketing moved online long ago, and there’s no going back. It’s only logical to use the best available device to make it work.
