How to Know Which Marketing Channel Is Really Bringing Clients

If you've ever wondered, "Which marketing channels are worth the money?”, this one’s for you. With more options than ever—social, SEO, email, ads, local events—it’s easy to spread your marketing too thin.

This guide will help you:

1. Track lead sources accurately using UTM parameters

2. Understand different attribution models

3. Assign real credit to each touchpoint before conversion

4. Use Potenly AI to tag leads and check their funnel-source in timelines

🧩 The Attribution Challenge Explained

Attribution is assigning credit to touchpoints that turned a stranger into a lead or customer. Without it, you're spending without evidence of ROI. But with good setup, you can:

• Optimize channels that work

• Reduce spend on underperformers

• Make confident budget decisions

🛠️ Step 1: Tag Everything with UTM Links

UTMs are parameters added to your URLs to track traffic sources.

Example:

site.com/offer?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=summer_sale

Best practices:

• Use consistent naming (case-sensitive)

• Tag source, medium, and campaign

• Use UTM builders or spreadsheet templates

• Avoid generic names like “facebook” vs. “Facebook Ads” to keep it clean

📊 Step 2: Choose Your Attribution Model

Different models give varying credit:

• First-touch: All credit to the first interaction

• Last-touch: Credit goes to the last action before conversion

• Multi-touch: Shares credit across all touchpoints (linear, U-shaped, time-decay models)

Use a model that fits your business goals—awareness vs. conversion.

🔄 Step 3: Track Leads from First Click to Conversion

Capture UTM tags when someone:

• Lands on your site

• Opts in or books

• Becomes a customer

This data allows you to calculate cost per lead and cost per acquisition per channel—critically important in budget planning.

🤖 Step 4: Use Potenly AI to See Source in Contact Timeline

Instead of spreadsheets, Potenly tags each lead with their funnel source automatically. Then, when they convert, you instantly see:

• Which channel brought them

• Their engagement timeline

• Which messages convinced them

This visibility helps you shift resources to the highest-performing channels—without second-guessing.

💡 Real-World Example

One business used UTMs with Potenly on social ads, email campaigns, and blog posts:

• UTM-tagged links captured lead source

• Potenly logged each lead journey and converted sources

• They reallocated ad spend from Twitter to email (30% higher conversion rate)

Result: 25% more clients without increasing spend

✅ Takeaway: Know Your Marketing ROI

• Tag all your campaigns with UTMs

• Decide on an attribution model that fits your goals

• Capture lead sources from first click to conversion

• Use Potenly’s timeline to connect marketing to revenue

• Double down on what works—stop guessing

With this system, you won’t just guess where your clients come from—you’ll know.