Tips for Managing Attribution in an Omnichannel World, Part 1

• Is customer data being gathered at the point of sale in-store? What's the incentive for customers to provide information like an email address?
• Assuming a process is in place to gather customer information at the point of sale, do in-store associates have the proper customer service skills and training to effectively do this?
• Is a technology platform in place to integrate in-store data with data from other customer touchpoints (e.g., email, direct mail, web, mobile) and tie those touchpoints into "event streams" associated with individual customers?
• Is a reporting infrastructure in place to track marketing effectiveness at both a detailed and macro level, as well as respond to changes?

The benefits to retailers of getting omnichannel attribution right are clear: marketing dollars can be deployed where they'll drive maximum results in terms of online and in-store revenue and margin. However, the challenges are equally clear. So where should you begin? In part two of this series, I'll lay out a road map and a set of recommendations for retailers considering an omnichannel attribution initiative.