Connecting Attribution to Funnel Logic (STDC)
Using the STDC framework:
SEE (Awareness)
- Prospecting Display
- Broad audience targeting
- Goal: Reach & influence
Expect low direct conversions.
THINK (Consideration)
- Generic Search
- Contextual Display
- Educational messaging
Expect mixed assisted and direct impact.
DO (Conversion)
- Retargeting
- Brand Search
- Product campaigns
Expect strong direct efficiency.
CARE (Retention)
- Repeat purchase retargeting
- Cross-sell campaigns
Expect strong COS and lower CPA.
Each stage influences the next.
Attribution must respect that sequence.
The Risk of Attribution Myopia
When attribution is simplified to last click only:
- Budgets concentrate in bottom funnel.
- Prospecting weakens.
- Audience pools shrink.
- CPA increases over time.
- Growth plateaus.
Short-term reporting may improve.
Long-term scalability declines.
This is one of the most common structural performance mistakes.