Mushrooms

First, you should read this because the next time you walk through a forest you'll view the forest differently.

Importantly, there is a quote in the story that should resonate with every one of you who strongly believes in marketing attribution.

• "When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the universe."

I'm frequently exasperated by the marketing attribution solutions y'all employ. I fully understand the reasons for having a version of truth. I have full contempt for the corrupt manner in which marketers and their service providers measure "truth". Like the boutique vendor some of you use ... suggesting that most in-store orders from the three weeks after a catalog was mailed are "catalog driven". Ha! I wonder who benefits from that version of "truth"? Or the retargeting executive who told me he wanted credit for $314,000,000 of sales (95% of what the brand actually generates) because his insipid surveillance tool planted at least one ad in front of 95% of buyers in the past year ... and he wanted credit regardless whether the customer saw his nonsense or not.

Attribution is the act of trying to pick out anything by itself. In doing so, the beauty of your business is erased. The critical role of "what" you sell is replaced by a "guess" of "how" something sold.

Obviously, I'm not saying you should have a quality attribution solution.

Obviously, I am saying that if you don't step back and understand the beauty of your business via the merchandise you sell, you are missing out on all of the mysteries of why you business is successful (which means you are missing out on the reasons why your marketing tactics work).