Three myths about funnel analysis

The version of this that works is simpler than the version most people imagine. A few things about funnel analysis that get repeated more often than they get checked.

Measurement is only useful when someone has agreed in advance what they would do differently. It rarely shows up as a line item, which is exactly why it slips.

“It only matters for big sites”

The biggest drop-off is the best place to work. The reasoning matters more than the rule, because the rule has exceptions. Anything you cannot measure here, you are deciding by taste, which is fine as long as everyone knows it.

“We can deal with it after launch”

Sometimes true, usually expensive. None of that requires a large budget, only a decision and someone to own it.

“Our platform handles it”

A leaky funnel wastes every pound of ad spend. Getting it slightly wrong is survivable. Ignoring it entirely is not. Check it against what you would want a competitor's site to get wrong.

What this looks like day to day

Data you do not trust is worse than no data, because it gets quoted anyway. Three things worth confirming about funnel analysis before you move on:

• Someone can say what the current setup is without going to look
• Segment by device before drawing conclusions — and you know whether that is true here
• There is a way to tell whether the last change to this helped

If any of that sounds like a description of your current setup, it is fixable.