Attribution Mapping

Communicate Track — Step 4 of 4. Validates the system — every initiative and content piece connects to a KPI, with action items for every gap.

Inputs Required

• KPIs from .agents/mkt/targets.md or existing OKRs
• Initiatives from .agents/mkt/prioritized-initiatives.md
• Content from .agents/mkt/imc-plan.md or .agents/mkt/content/

Output

• .agents/mkt/attribution.md

Quality Gate

Before delivering, verify:

• Every KPI has ≥1 initiative mapped or is explicitly flagged with an action item
• Every initiative maps to a KPI or has a "Kill" recommendation with reason
• Every recommendation is a verb (Create / Kill / Rebalance / Test) — not an observation ("this seems low")
• Review date is set (~4 weeks from today)

Chain Position

Previous: mkt-content-create | Next: Monthly review (re-run this skill)

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Before Starting

Step 0: Product Context

Check for .agents/mkt/product-context.md. If available, read for product context.

Required Artifacts

None — can build from scratch by interviewing.

Optional Artifacts

Artifact	Source	Benefit
targets.md	mkt-funnel-planner	KPI baselines
prioritized-initiatives.md	mkt-initiative-prioritize	Initiative list to map
imc-plan.md	mkt-imc	Content plan to audit
Previous attribution.md	mkt-attribution	Check progress on prior action items

Read upstream files if they exist: .agents/mkt/targets.md, .agents/mkt/prioritized-initiatives.md, .agents/mkt/imc-plan.md. If previous .agents/mkt/attribution.md exists, read it — check progress on prior action items before building new map.

If no upstream files exist, build from scratch by interviewing:

1. "What's your North Star metric?"
2. "What are your 3-5 primary KPIs?"
3. "What initiatives are you running or planning?"
4. "What content are you producing?"

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Step 1: KPI Hierarchy

North Star: [metric] — [current] → [target]
├── KPI 1: [metric] — [current] → [target] — Owner: [person]
├── KPI 2: [metric] — [current] → [target] — Owner: [person]
└── KPI 3: [metric] — [current] → [target] — Owner: [person]

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Step 2: Map Initiatives → KPIs

Initiative	Primary KPI	Contribution	Confidence
[Name]	[KPI]	~X% of target	H/M/L

Unknown contributions: If you can't estimate contribution, mark "Unknown" and add action item: "Run mkt-experiment to measure actual impact."

Flag Orphans

Orphan Initiative	Action
[Name]	Kill — no KPI connection / Reframe — target [KPI] / Test — run experiment

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Step 3: Map Content → Initiatives

Content	Initiative	Type	Channel
[Piece]	[Initiative]	Reach / Trust / Conversion	[Channel]

Flag Orphan Content

Orphan Content	Action
[Piece]	Assign to [initiative] / Repurpose for [initiative] / Sunset

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Step 4: Gap Analysis → Action Items

This is the core deliverable. Every gap produces a specific action.

Gap	Action	Owner	Deadline
[KPI X uncovered]	Create: Run mkt-initiative-generate targeting this KPI	[Who]	[When]
[Initiative Y orphaned]	Kill: Archive, remove from roster	[Who]	Now
[Content Z unassigned]	Rebalance: Redirect to support [initiative]	[Who]	[When]
[Contribution unknown]	Test: Design experiment via mkt-experiment	[Who]	[When]
[Stage imbalanced]	Rebalance: Shift X% effort from [over] to [under]	[Who]	[When]

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Re-Run Protocol

Attribution maps should be reviewed and refreshed regularly:

1. Monthly review cycle: Set review date ~4 weeks from creation
2. On re-run:
   • Read previous .agents/mkt/attribution.md
   • Check status of each prior action item (Done / In Progress / Blocked / Dropped)
   • Rename previous file to attribution.v[N].md
   • Rebuild map with current state
   • Compare: Did action items move the needle? Which KPIs improved?
3. Escalation: If same gaps persist across 2+ reviews, escalate from "Rebalance" to "Kill" or "Create"

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Artifact Template

---
skill: mkt-attribution
version: 1
date: [today's date]
status: draft
---

# Attribution Map

**Date:** [today]
**Skill:** mkt-attribution
**Review date:** [today + 4 weeks]

## KPI Hierarchy

​```
North Star: [metric] — [current] → [target]
├── KPI 1: [metric] — [current] → [target] — Owner: [person]
├── KPI 2: ...
└── KPI 3: ...
​```

## Initiative → KPI Mapping

| Initiative | KPI | Contribution | Confidence |
|------------|-----|-------------|------------|
| ... | ... | ... | ... |

### Orphan Initiatives
| Initiative | Action |
|------------|--------|
| ... | ... |

## Content → Initiative Mapping

| Content | Initiative | Type | Channel |
|---------|-----------|------|---------|
| ... | ... | ... | ... |

### Orphan Content
| Content | Action |
|---------|--------|
| ... | ... |

## Action Items

| # | Gap | Action | Owner | Deadline |
|---|-----|--------|-------|----------|
| 1 | ... | ... | ... | ... |

## Previous Review Progress
[If re-running: status of prior action items]

> On re-run: rename existing artifact to `attribution.v[N].md` and create new with incremented version.

---

Worked Example

# Attribution Map

**Date:** 2026-03-13
**Skill:** mkt-attribution
**Review date:** 2026-04-10

## KPI Hierarchy

​```
North Star: Weekly Signups — 200 → 350
├── KPI 1: Paid signup rate — 1.2% → 3.0% — Owner: Sarah
├── KPI 2: Homepage bounce rate — 52% → 40% — Owner: James
└── KPI 3: Organic signups — 80/wk → 120/wk — Owner: (unassigned)
​```

## Initiative → KPI Mapping

| Initiative | KPI | Contribution | Confidence |
|------------|-----|-------------|------------|
| Restore Paid Targeting | Paid signup rate | ~55% of total gap | H |
| Restore Social Proof | Homepage bounce | ~35% of total gap | M |

### Orphan Initiatives
None — both initiatives map to KPIs.

## Content → Initiative Mapping

| Content | Initiative | Type | Channel |
|---------|-----------|------|---------|
| Status Update Carousel | (none — brand awareness) | Reach | LinkedIn |

### Orphan Content
| Content | Action |
|---------|--------|
| Status Update Carousel | **Rebalance:** Add CTA linking to product page, reframe as supporting Paid Targeting initiative |

## Action Items

| # | Gap | Action | Owner | Deadline |
|---|-----|--------|-------|----------|
| 1 | KPI 3 (organic) uncovered | **Create:** Run `mkt-diagnosis` on organic traffic stagnation | James | 2026-03-20 |
| 2 | KPI 3 has no owner | **Assign:** Name an owner for organic signups KPI | Marketing lead | 2026-03-14 |
| 3 | Carousel content orphaned | **Rebalance:** Add product CTA to carousel, track as Paid Targeting support | Content lead | 2026-03-17 |

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References

• references/attribution-examples.md — Worked examples across business types