This article introduces how to solve the Rogue Referral problem in Adobe Analytics.
If your website is a SPA and Adobe Analytics is deployed, Rogue Referral problems may occur.
What are Rogue Referrals?
Rogue Referral is that since SPA is a single-page application, it is loaded only once when the web page is opened, and the ad tracking parameters are only on the first page. However, the special architecture of SPA causes subsequent web page visits to not be loaded again, and the ad tracking parameters are lost.
Rogue Referrals Impact
For example, if you visit a website through google/cpc, the first page has advertising parameters, which can be identified and divided into google/cpc, but the second page only has the referral parameter google.com, and google.com is a search engine, so it will divide into organic search.
How to tell if there is a Rogue Referrals problem
We can use two Segments to see the proportion of the wrong division in the Venn:
Many subsequent visits from paid search are classified as organic search, which is a serious problem.
Solution 1: referral
The solution is: only set the referrer parameter when the webpage is opened or loaded, and not set for subsequent page visits, so that subsequent page visits can only be divided into the source of the first page visit.
Since the referrer parameter only needs to be set when the webpage is opened or loaded, that is, the Referrer parameter is only set when the first page is opened, the identification of the first page can be judged by a cookie identifier（Suppose the cookie name is is_first）, if the cookie identifier no exist, then it is the first page, if there is a cookie exit, it is the first page.
So we need to set three rules
- Rules 1：When the page is loaded, first check whether there is is_first in the cookie, and clear it if so. At the same time, write the cid to the Cookie last_channel, and the validity period is 30 minutes.
- Rules 2：This does not need to set referral, and the priority of execution is higher than that of First Page. Executed if the cookie have is_first.
- Rules 3：This is used to track the First Page, and Referral needs to be set. If there is no is_fist in the cookie, set the value in Cookie last_channel to referral. and set the cookie is_fist.
Rules 2 and Rules 3 are actually page tracking, which need to be divided into First page and other pages, because Referral is only set on First Page.
For example, when the first page is open:
- Rules 1: Execution
- Rules 2: Do not execute
- Rules 3: Execution
If it’s the second page:
- Rules 1: Do not execute
- Rules 2: Execution
- Rules 3: Do not execute
If it is refresh or reload the page.
- Rules 1: Execution
- Rules 2: Do not execute
- Rules 3: Execution
In this way, there will still be a small part of being called as natural search, but the proportion is very low.
This method is recommended by Frederik Werner.
Solution 2: eVars
The last channel source is maintained in the cookie, and then it is set as an eVar, and the market channel is divided by this eVar.
