The Analytics Power Hour #284: I Used to Think...But Not Any More
Nov 11, 2025
The hosts dive into how personal beliefs in analytics have evolved over time. They question the efficacy of analytics intake forms and the myth of campaign parameter purity. There's a lively debate about the relevance of privacy today compared to earlier views. The discussion shifts to the limits of linear maturity models and the importance of collaboration over rigid structures. Humor interspersed with serious thoughts emphasizes that data is just one piece of the decision-making puzzle, not the whole meal.
AI Snips
Chapters
Books
Transcript
Episode notes
Attribution Masks Incrementality Problems
- Attribution models often hide subjective choices and can simply reallocate credit by arbitrary weights.
- Michael Helbling and Moe Kiss realized true incrementality requires causal methods, not just fancy algorithms.
The Chips-In-Cart Fallacy
- Last-touch crediting absurdly claims ads created purchases that were already decided, like selling chips already in a cart.
- Tim Wilson and Moe Kiss used grocery analogies to show why naive touch-based credit is misleading.
Org Structure ≠ Analytics Maturity
- A Center Of Excellence (COE) isn't the universal marker of analytics maturity; org design and maturity are decoupled.
- Val Kroll learned decentralized or hub-and-spoke models can be equally mature depending on context.
