How campaign attribution works
Understand how Joinometry connects join hostnames, campaign touchpoints, and later purchases.
Updated 7/20/2026
How campaign attribution works#
Attribution answers one question: which campaign should receive credit when a player later becomes valuable?
The simple version#
- A player joins through a hostname.
- Joinometry checks whether that hostname belongs to an active campaign.
- If it does, Joinometry records a campaign touchpoint for that player.
- When the player later purchases, Joinometry uses your attribution settings to decide which campaign gets credit.
Direct and unknown traffic#
Some joins do not match a campaign.
- Direct traffic usually means the player joined through a normal address with no campaign.
- Unknown traffic means Joinometry saw a hostname but it is not mapped yet.
Your attribution settings decide whether direct or unknown traffic can replace an earlier campaign touchpoint.
Returning players#
Returning joins can create new touchpoints if that option is enabled. This is helpful when players come back through a new campaign after already knowing your server.
Inactivity reset#
If you enable an inactivity reset, Joinometry can treat a player as starting a new acquisition journey after enough inactive days.
Why results can change#
Results can change when you map a hostname, edit attribution settings, import older revenue, or recalculate historical attribution. That is expected: you are giving Joinometry better information.