🔥 Tier 1 - Must KnowID: timeDecayAttribution
Time-Decay Attribution
More credit to touchpoints closer in time to conversion
In Simple Words (Zero Jargon):
More credit to touchpoints closer in time to conversion
Why It Is Critical
Time-decay attribution gives exponentially more credit to touchpoints that occurred closer to the purchase moment (typically using a 7-day half-life). It is suitable for short-cycle impulse purchases or flash sales, but still carries recency bias against discovery channels.
Calculation Example & Benchmark Matrix
| Time-Decay Factor | Guidance |
|---|---|
| Best Use Case | Short purchase cycles - flash sales, time-limited offers, low-consideration impulse goods |
| Limitation | Still systematically under-values upper-funnel touchpoints that planted the original intent |
| Half-life Setting | Most platforms allow setting decay rate - a 7-day half-life is standard |
| vs Last-Click | More nuanced than last-click, but shares a similar directional bias toward recency |
What You Get: A recency-weighted model that is more nuanced than last-click - best suited to short purchase cycles where recent interactions are genuinely more influential.