View-through Conversion

Measured as

Measure View-through Conversion with a fixed attribution window, conversion event, and spend basis before comparing campaigns or creative tests.

Misused when

• Reporting view-through without separating it from click-through conversions.
• Using view-through to justify spend without incrementality validation.
• Attributing view-through to retargeting and treating it as prospecting lift.
• Ignoring overlap across platforms when the same user sees multiple impressions.

Operator takeaway

• Treat view-through as directional; it is often heavily over-credited without lift tests.
• Compare with click-through and with MER trends to avoid budget waste.
• Check lookback windows; long windows inflate view-through credit.
• Use View-through Conversion only inside a stable attribution rule, conversion definition, and time window so campaign comparisons stay honest.
• If performance changes, check whether the metric moved for a real business reason or because the measurement setup changed underneath you.

Next decision

• Quantify the impact with MER Calculator if you need to turn the definition into an operating assumption.
• Read Attribution vs incrementality: what to trust, when, and how to test if the decision depends on interpretation, policy, or trade-offs beyond the raw formula.