Attribution Tracking

you post about your product in different places. some posts bring lots of customers, others bring nothing.

the problem: you don't know which is which.

what attribution means

attribution = knowing where each customer came from.

example:

  • customer A came from HN post
  • customer B came from reddit
  • customer C found you on google

now you can see patterns:

  • HN brought 20 customers
  • reddit brought 5 customers
  • google brought 8 customers

this tells you: HN is working, focus there.

why you need this

without attribution, you're guessing:

  • "I posted on HN and reddit last week, got 12 customers... which worked?"
  • keep doing everything (wasting time on stuff that doesn't work)
  • miss the fact that one channel brings 80% of your customers

with attribution:

  • see exactly where customers came from
  • focus time on what works
  • stop wasting time on what doesn't

the difference: random effort vs focused effort.

understanding channel quality

not all customers are equal.

some channels bring customers who pay and stay for months. others bring tire-kickers who cancel quickly.

example:

  • HN customers: stay 12 months on average
  • random twitter mention: stay 3 months on average

both are "free" channels, but HN is 4× more valuable.

attribution tracking lets you see these patterns.

mobile apps vs websites

the tracking approach depends on your product:

mobile app (App Store downloads):

  • user sees your post → App Store → downloads app
  • apple doesn't tell you which link they clicked
  • need special tracking (ppid)
  • → read mobile attribution guide

website (web subscriptions):

  • user sees your post → your website → subscribes
  • can track exactly which link they clicked
  • simpler setup, more accurate
  • → read web attribution guide

both:

  • read both guides
  • implement tracking for each platform
  • mobile is harder to track than web

which guide should i read?

you have a mobile app:

  • start with mobile attribution guide
  • use apple's free ppid tracking (5 minute setup)
  • see which posts/channels bring downloads

you sell subscriptions on a website:

  • read web attribution guide
  • use UTM parameters + stripe metadata (30 minute setup)
  • 95%+ accuracy, completely free

you have both:

  • read both guides
  • web attribution will be more accurate
  • use both to understand where customers come from

real example: productivity app

developer posts about their $8/month productivity app in different places.

before tracking:

  • posted on reddit, HN, twitter
  • got 40 customers total
  • no idea which channels worked

after adding tracking:

  • HN: 22 customers (high quality, stay long)
  • reddit /r/productivity: 12 customers (decent)
  • twitter: 4 customers (low conversion)
  • blog post: 2 customers (but grows over time from search)

what changed:

  • focused on HN (post every few months with updates)
  • kept reddit (good ROI for 20 min posts)
  • reduced twitter time (low return)
  • kept writing blog (SEO compounds)

understanding where customers came from changed how they spent their time.

start simple

don't overthink this. pick one:

mobile app:

  1. read mobile attribution guide
  2. set up apple ppid tracking (free, 5 minutes)
  3. use different links for each channel (HN, reddit, twitter)
  4. check which channels bring downloads

web app:

  1. read web attribution guide
  2. add UTM parameters to all links
  3. save to stripe metadata on checkout
  4. see which channels bring paying customers

you'll immediately see which channels bring better customers and where to focus your time.