Best ad tracking and marketing attribution software

Introduction

Ad tracking software allows marketers to monitor the performance of individual ads or entire campaigns in real-time. It collects data on key metrics such as impressions, clicks, conversions, and engagement rates. Marketing attribution software goes a step further by analyzing the customer journey and assigning credit to various touchpoints that lead to a conversion.

All marketing attribution platforms offer varying features and pricing models to suit different business needs and budgets. Their capabilities may be superficially similar, but different ad tracking software tools would perform vastly different in different businesses.

When comparing ad tracking and marketing attribution platforms, it's important to consider these key features:

1. Does the platform provide only built-in tracking and attribution reporting, integrations with ad platforms, or both?
2. Does your funnel use more than one e-commerce platform or CMS? If so, does the ad tracking software you're choosing support all of them?
3. Do you need cross-domain tracking?
4. Does the entire purchase happen on your website or on a third-party's (such as via a Stripe payment link)? If so, can the attribution solution aggregate the data from both channels?
5. What attribution data are being sent to the ad platforms? Will they receive customer details, click identifiers or both?
6. Can the data be exported automatically to a data warehouse such as BigQuery?
7. If any customers first contact you on the phone, does the platform support call tracking in addition to the web?
8. How would the cost change if your revenue or traffic increases tenfold, even if for a short period of time?

In this comparison, our digital marketing experts examine some of the top ad tracking and marketing attribution software available, highlighting their strengths, unique features, and potential limitations to help you find the best solution for your organization's specific requirements.

Able CDP

Able Customer Data Platform is designed to provide a clear view of customer journeys by integrating website tracking data with server-side sources. It allows businesses to track full customer journeys from initial ad clicks to purchases or Stripe conversions, accurately attributing 99% of purchases to the correct marketing source. Able CDP supports instant setup with no credit card required and automatically recognizes forms used on the website to create custom tracking codes. This platform integrates with various marketing tools, including Google Analytics, Facebook (Meta) Conversions API, and Google Ads, to assist in ad platform optimization and create lookalike audiences in real-time. Additionally, Able CDP can send conversions to Google Analytics and ad platforms, enabling businesses to understand how customers buy and how segments perform across campaigns, even with low-volume experimental conversion data.

One of the key benefits of Able CDP is its ability to provide actionable data. This information helps businesses improve their marketing efforts by identifying which channels are most effective. For instance, Able CDP has helped businesses determine that certain marketing channels, such as display ads, are not performing well, allowing them to focus on more profitable options like paid search. The platform's attribution capabilities unlock AI/ML ad delivery optimization, enhancing digital marketing outcomes. Overall, Able CDP offers a solution for businesses looking to improve their marketing strategy by providing insights into customer behavior and marketing performance.

Able CDP remains a competitive option in the market, offering a cost-effective solution for businesses looking to refine their marketing attribution and optimize their marketing campaigns.

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AnyTrack

AnyTrack is a real-time ad tracking software that assists digital marketers in tracking, attributing, and syncing conversions with their Ads Managers. It integrates with various platforms, including ecommerce sites, comparison websites, lead generation funnels, and affiliate networks, providing a clear view of conversion data. One of its main features is the ability to set up Facebook Conversion API with a single click, enabling real-time conversion tracking and optimization across ad sets.

AnyTrack offers redirectless tracking, allowing for the immediate tracking of unlimited affiliate links, product links, and forms without altering any code. This feature, along with direct API integrations with Facebook and Google, supports the use of optimization features on these platforms. Additionally, AnyTrack supports multiple pixels simultaneously, offering a consolidated view of audience data across different ad networks.

While AnyTrack is easy to set up and offers extensive tracking capabilities, it may not be ideal for marketers who depend on popup traffic sources or high-volume push notifications, as these traffic types may need specific tracking solutions. AnyTrack's approach to tracking all website data, regardless of the traffic source, distinguishes it from traditional campaign-centric trackers, which can be more difficult to manage.

Cometly

Cometly is a marketing attribution software that helps businesses track and analyze their marketing campaigns. It enables users to monitor key events and conversions in their marketing and sales funnels, providing insights into customer journeys and buying intent. Cometly's analytics platform allows users to measure the performance of their marketing efforts, including return on ad spend (ROAS) and customer acquisition cost (CAC), to refine their marketing strategies and improve ROI.

The software supports multiple attribution models and windows, enabling businesses to compare data and adjust their models as necessary. Additionally, Cometly features a custom report builder and a customizable dashboard, allowing users to track any event in their sales funnel and visualize their data according to their preferences. However, the limited ability to push attributed conversions to ad platforms and cost have been highlighted by its users as major limiting factors. Overall, Cometly assists businesses in understanding their marketing performance and making informed decisions based on data.

Dreamdata

Dreamdata is a B2B revenue attribution platform that helps businesses connect data across their go-to-market (GTM) martech stack and gain insights into their customers' journeys. The platform enables users to run custom account-based attribution models to track, measure, benchmark, and predict revenue from different channels in the buyer's journey. Dreamdata maps every touchpoint in the customer journey, allowing users to visualize customer journeys at an account level. This data collection and modeling assist businesses in understanding ROI, identifying buying signals, creating audiences, and sending data back to ad platforms.

A key feature of Dreamdata is its ability to automatically collect and model B2B go-to-market data. This includes tracking website interactions and gathering first-party data from various tools in the martech stack. The platform then enriches this data into a unified, account-based model that connects all go-to-market activities to actual business outcomes. This automated process ensures that businesses have an accurate view of their customer journeys, which is important for marketing attribution.

While Dreamdata offers various benefits, it also has limitations. For example, some users find the tool overwhelming due to the volume of data it provides, making it challenging to derive actionable insights quickly. Additionally, Dreamdata is not as widely integrated with modern software as other tools, and it does not comply with certain data and privacy standards such as SOC2 Type II. Despite these drawbacks, Dreamdata remains a viable choice for smaller to mid-market businesses.

GA Connector

GA Connector is a software that integrates Google Analytics with various Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems, allowing users to track marketing return on investment (ROI). It imports CRM data into Google Analytics, enabling the creation of closed-loop reports that link customer purchases to specific marketing channels. This integration offers insights into how customers discover websites, follow their journeys from first click to final sale, and identify which referral sources lead to the most valuable customers. GA Connector also supports tracking offline sales and linking them to their sources, assisting marketers in generating leads that are more likely to convert.

A key feature of GA Connector is its ability to compare different attribution models using the Model Comparison Tool. This tool helps users understand how different attribution models affect the valuation of their marketing channels, providing a clear view of marketing performance. Additionally, GA Connector offers Assisted Conversions reports, which account for all conversions in which a channel was not the last interaction, allowing for a detailed analysis of each channel's role in the conversion process.

GA Connector is a budget-friendly alternative to Pardot, starting at $97 per month compared to Pardot's introductory packages starting at $1,250 per month. While Pardot includes more extensive marketing automation features, GA Connector delivers a cost-effective option for businesses aiming to track marketing ROI without the need for advanced automation capabilities. By utilizing Google Analytics, GA Connector aids marketers in making data-driven decisions and prioritizing revenue-focused marketing.

Hyros

Hyros is an ad-tracking platform designed to provide insights into customer journeys and ad performance. It allows businesses to track every step of a customer's journey, from initial interactions to conversions, and offers detailed reports on ad performance. Hyros combines print tracking and AI ad learning to enhance ad ROI, serving as a useful tool for businesses aiming to optimize their ad campaigns. The platform integrates with existing ad tracking platforms, enabling users to compare its tracking statistics with those provided by their ad platforms. This integration allows businesses to make data-driven decisions and allocate ad spend effectively.

A key feature of Hyros is its ability to track ad traffic sources, revenue data from individual ads, and various attribution models such as linear, first-touch, and last-touch attribution. This tracking assists businesses in identifying which marketing channels are most effective at lead generation and conversion. Additionally, Hyros provides data visualization and reporting features, enabling users to customize views, apply filters, and export data for collaboration and communication. This level of detail and flexibility in data analysis helps businesses make informed decisions about their marketing strategies and refine their ad campaigns.

The platform requires significant data integration and setup, which can pose challenges for businesses with complex data systems. Additionally, the cost of implementing Hyros can be considerable, particularly for businesses with large ad budgets. Nevertheless, for those willing to invest in the necessary technology and resources, Hyros provides a solution for tracking and enhancing ad performance, potentially leading to improvements in ROI.

Ruler Analytics

Ruler Analytics is a marketing attribution platform designed to help businesses track and measure the impact of their marketing campaigns. It is particularly useful for small to large-sized companies looking to enhance their marketing efforts. The software provides a clear view of customer journeys, allowing users to identify which campaigns, channels, and keywords lead to conversions and revenue. Ruler Analytics supports various attribution models, including first click, last click, and linear attribution, enabling users to switch between models to find the one that best fits their needs.

One of the key features of Ruler Analytics is its ability to connect form entries, phone calls, and live chat sessions to marketing campaigns. This allows businesses to understand which marketing efforts drive conversions and revenue. The software also integrates with multiple marketing platforms, including Google Analytics and Google Ads, ensuring smooth data collection and analysis. Additionally, Ruler Analytics offers a closed-loop marketing attribution system, providing users with access to all revenue and conversion data in one location. This helps businesses make informed decisions to enhance their marketing strategies and increase ROI.

Despite its advantages, Ruler Analytics has limitations. For instance, the software does not offer a free version, and the pricing can be high for small businesses. Additionally, while it supports multiple attribution models, some users might find the linear model less useful for complex customer journeys. However, Ruler Analytics remains a valuable tool for businesses looking to improve their marketing campaigns and gain a better understanding of their customer journeys.

Supermetrics

Supermetrics is a data integration platform that consolidates data from various marketing sources. It enables users to connect and transfer data from over 100 platforms, including Google Ads, Facebook Ads, and Google Analytics, into a centralized location. This functionality helps businesses eliminate manual tasks associated with data management, such as exporting and importing CSV files, and instead automates the data transfer and integration process. Supermetrics also supports data visualization tools like Looker Studio and Google Sheets, allowing users to create custom dashboards and reports.

One of the key benefits of Supermetrics is its ability to assist in data-driven decision-making by providing a clear view of marketing performance. By integrating data from multiple sources, Supermetrics helps marketers track key performance indicators (KPIs) across various marketing channels, enabling them to identify areas for improvement and optimize their campaigns. Additionally, Supermetrics offers built-in templates and connectors, which simplify the creation of custom reports and dashboards, saving time and resources that can be directed toward strategic marketing activities.

However, Supermetrics has limitations. It does not include a built-in data visualization feature, requiring users to export data to other tools like Looker Studio or Tableau for visualization. Furthermore, while Supermetrics offers a wide range of connectors, it may not support all the specific data sources that a business might require. This could lead to additional manual work or the need to use alternative tools to fill data gaps. Despite these limitations, Supermetrics remains a popular choice for businesses seeking to improve their marketing data management and enhance their understanding of marketing performance.

ThoughtMetric

ThoughtMetric is a marketing attribution software designed to assist e-commerce businesses in understanding and optimizing their marketing performance across various channels. It integrates with major e-commerce and marketing platforms, enabling users to connect data, track ads, and analyze performance easily. ThoughtMetric's tracking capabilities link sales back to the specific ad they originated from, allowing businesses to optimize ad spend and improve ROI.

The software also provides post-purchase attribution surveys, which gather additional data directly from customers to enhance data accuracy and address measurement gaps. This feature is particularly helpful for evaluating channels that are challenging to measure, such as podcasts and billboards. One of the key features of ThoughtMetric is its ability to present a detailed view of the customer journey. This assists businesses in making informed decisions to refine their marketing strategies. Additionally, ThoughtMetric offers various attribution models, including last-touch, time decay, and position-based models, allowing users to select the model that best fits their business objectives.

Some users have reported issues with the software's performance, such as tracking only a portion of sales. Additionally, the software's advanced functionality may be overwhelming for those new to digital marketing analytics. Despite these challenges, ThoughtMetric continues to be a popular option among e-commerce marketers due to its tracking capabilities and emphasis on transparency and neutrality.

Triple Whale

Triple Whale is a marketing attribution platform that helps businesses identify which campaigns are driving results. It features multiple built-in attribution models, including the Triple Attribution model, which credits the last ad interaction on each platform before a conversion. This model is useful for analyzing multi-platform campaigns and pinpointing which channels and specific ads drive conversions. Additionally, Triple Whale allows users to customize attribution windows, with options such as 1 day, 7 days, 14 days, 28 days, or lifetime, to suit their business needs.

A notable feature of Triple Whale is its Total Impact Attribution model, which credits all touchpoints along a customer's journey. This model considers all marketing channels and activities that may have influenced a customer's decision to make a purchase, offering a broader view of marketing performance. This approach aids businesses in optimizing their marketing budget by focusing on successful initiatives and creating targeted campaigns for responsive segments.

However, some users reported that the Triple Attribution model may lead to duplicated attribution, potentially inflating revenue figures when viewed on the All Channels page. Furthermore, the platform's dependence on click-through events from ads means it cannot independently verify Facebook's claimed view-through data or fully take advantage of ad platform audience optimization capabilities. Despite these challenges, Triple Whale is a useful tool for marketers looking to enhance their marketing strategies and make informed decisions.

TrueROAS

TrueROAS is a marketing attribution software that measures the return on ad spend (ROAS) for each marketing channel. TrueROAS uses algorithms to consider the interactions between various marketing touchpoints. This approach assigns credit for conversions based on the actual impact of each channel rather than arbitrary rules.

TrueROAS advertises its ability to manage the complexities of walled gardens, such as Facebook and Google, where data can be fragmented or inaccessible. By using experimentation and randomized testing, TrueROAS provides an independent view of marketing performance.

Wicked Reports

Wicked Reports is marketing attribution software designed to provide accurate insights for digital marketers. It offers a range of features, including custom attribution models, advanced filtering, and on-demand insights. The platform integrates with various CRM, cart, and ad platforms, allowing for tracking and analysis of marketing performance. Wicked Reports includes the Attribution Time Machine, which enables extended lookback and lookforward windows, and the Wicked Coach, which automates data analysis and optimization, saving users considerable time each week.

One of the main advantages of Wicked Reports is its use of first-party data, which ensures that conversions are accurately attributed to specific marketing efforts. Wicked Reports provides customization options, allowing users to adapt their attribution models to their specific business needs. This flexibility is particularly useful for smaller businesses or those with complex marketing funnels.

The setup process can be time-consuming, especially for users with complex tech stacks. While the platform offers support, including live training sessions and dedicated customer success managers, some users may still require additional technical assistance. Overall, Wicked Reports is a useful tool for marketers looking to optimize their marketing strategies and improve their return on ad spend.

About the authors

This comprehensive guide on the best ad tracking and marketing attribution software was compiled by a team of experienced digital marketing experts at Able CDP. Our team combines years of hands-on experience in digital marketing, data analytics, and technology solutions to provide you with insightful, accurate, and practical information.

Methodology

When preparing the comparison of the best ad tracking and marketing attribution software providers, our experts follow cutting edge qualitative research methodology (for an overview, see, for example, Research Methods for Business Students, (Saunders et al, 2019)). The source data analyzed during the preparation of this comparison includes:

1. facts and statements published on the reviewed providers' websites at the time when they're accessed;
2. interviews with digital marketers having first-hand experience of using the aforementioned software;
3. published secondary sources.

While we strive to keep the page up-to-date, it is possible that the changes to the services listed above may occur that are not reflected immediately. If you notice any inaccuracies or outdated information, please contact us.