The timeframe for collecting influencer campaign statistics is agreed upon before launch: impression tracking, click-through period, and conversion attribution window are recorded separately.

Timeframe for collecting influencer campaign statistics

A creator publishes an integration, after which a user may visit the brand’s website and complete a goal. Yandex Metrica records a goal completion in the session during which the visitor fulfilled the specified condition. Earlier website sessions may predate publication, but they cannot be treated as clicks from an integration that had not yet been published.

Attribution models in Metrica distribute conversions across traffic sources using an attribution window — the system accounts for a visitor's sessions, excluding a gap of 90 days between sessions. If a visitor hasn't accessed the website within 90 days, the session history ends and a new one begins with the next visit. Users cannot modify this window. Attribution applies to clicks and conversions recorded by the Metrica counter, but does not automatically extend to all video views on the platform and does not measure causality in sales growth.

Platforms provide statistics as of the export time, while web analytics records events on the website. If placements are measured over different periods, agree on the methodology and state the report limitations before comparing them.

How to Choose an Observation Period for an Influencer Campaign

Before launching a campaign, a marketer determines which user actions should be considered conversions and agrees with the agency on a unified measurement window across all placements. They separately establish the timeframe for collecting views and reactions on the creator's platform, and the period during which a click is credited to the traffic source. The third parameter is the maximum time between a user's click and goal completion on the website that the brand is willing to attribute to the campaign result.

A single snapshot in time makes it possible to accurately compare the effectiveness of placements and allocate budget for the next stage.

Agree on the observation period using the customer journey, data availability, and campaign objective. The ETC editorial team recommends recording separate periods for views, clicks, and goal completions, then checking the methodology against the brand's data. The cited documentation does not establish universal timeframes for product categories.

Attribution models in Yandex Metrica

Yandex Metrica offers several attribution models for distributing conversions across traffic sources. The "Last Click" model identifies the current traffic source without considering visit history — each visit receives its own source. The "Last Significant Click (cross-device)" model assigns visits from insignificant sources, such as direct traffic, to a more significant prior source — organic search, paid ads, or social media referral. The "First Click (cross-device)" model is used for websites with delayed conversions: all visitor sessions are attributed to the source of their first visit.

Automatic attribution is calculated starting from 2023-04-08 and accounts for cross-device conversions and anonymized household data. The calculation uses an attribution window applied to all visitor sessions, excluding a gap of 90 days. If a visitor has not accessed the site for 90 days, the visit history ends and a new one begins with the next session. Users cannot modify the attribution window.

For campaigns with banner or video advertising, attribution by impressions is useful and available in Yandex Metrica for media buying. Attribution models help distribute conversions among traffic sources, but do not guarantee measurement of the causal impact of each placement on final sales: the system records the correlation between a click and a goal, rather than proving that a specific click caused the purchase.

Influencer Campaign Measurement Preparation Checklist

The ETC editorial team recommends fixing measurement parameters in the brief and media plan before campaign launch:

  • Define target actions on your website: registration, add to cart, purchase completion, inquiry form submission. Set up corresponding goals in Yandex Metrica and verify that the tracking code is correctly installed across all customer journey pages.
  • Select an attribution model based on sales cycle length: "Last Significant Click (cross-device)" for quick conversions, "First Click (cross-device)" for delayed conversions. Document your chosen model in the technical requirements sent to the agency.
  • Agree on the period for collecting views from creator platforms and record it in the media plan. Use an equal observation duration relative to publication for comparable placements.
  • Define the maximum period between a UTM click and goal completion that will be counted in the report. Use your average sales cycle length from CRM data or previous campaigns as a benchmark.
  • Lock in the date and time for the final data cut for your report: all placements must be compared within the same observation window relative to publication date, not the calendar date of data export.
  • Agree on report format: a table with publication date, platform reach at the time of data cut, number of UTM clicks during the established period, and number of goal completions within the set attribution window.

This approach makes it possible to compare the effectiveness of placements across different creators and platforms, identify the most converting formats, and adjust the strategy for the next stage of the campaign. Without a prior agreement on timing and calculation methodology, such comparison becomes meaningless: one creator may show high reach accumulated over the first day, another over an entire month, while conversions will be distributed across different attribution models.

Data limitations and practical implications for brands

Yandex Metrica documentation describes website visits and goal completions but does not set deadlines for creators to provide statistics. Ordinary website-counter reports should not be treated as a complete record of video or story views without a click: such an assessment requires impression data. The documentation separately describes view-through attribution through Metrica for display advertising; this cannot automatically be equated with coverage of all native creator integrations.

Check reporting formats and statistics availability separately for each platform. Record the export date and observation period for every placement so that cumulative figures are not mixed with results collected over a shorter period.

To accurately assess a campaign, the marketer agrees in advance with the agency on which day and time after each post is published the agency will record reach and engagement, which attribution model the Metrika counter will apply, and what maximum time window between a click and a conversion goal will be counted. These parameters are documented in the brief and media plan to ensure all placements are measured using a consistent methodology.

Frequently asked questions

How many days should you collect statistics after a blogger's post goes live

There is no universal number of days. Agree on the observation period before launch, considering the objective, customer journey, and data availability. Record its duration and the export moment in the reporting methodology; this does not change Metrica's system-defined attribution window.

How does the attribution model affect an influencer advertising campaign report

The attribution model changes how conversions are distributed among traffic sources. Current documentation describes Last Click, First Click (cross-device), Last Significant Click (cross-device), and automatic attribution. Record the model used and check its purpose in the documentation when comparing reports; a different allocation by source does not establish incremental advertising impact.

Can you change the attribution window in Yandex Metrica

No, the attribution window is fixed by the system: attribution applies to all visitor sessions, excluding a break of 90 days between sessions. If a visitor hasn't accessed the site for 90 days, the session history ends. Users cannot change this window themselves.

In brief

  • The statistics collection period for an influencer advertising campaign is agreed upon before launch: the integration view window, the UTM-tag click window, and the maximum time between a click and a goal completion on the site are each fixed separately.
  • The author's post publication, the platform statistics snapshot, the analytics system access, and goal completion occur at different moments—without a single measurement point, comparing placements is impossible.
  • Yandex Metrica uses an attribution window of 90 days between sessions; attribution models distribute conversions across traffic sources, but do not measure the causal sales uplift from views without a click.
  • ETC editorial team recommends fixing the attribution model, statistics collection periods for platform reach, and the goal accounting window in the brief so that all campaign placements are measured by a single methodology.
  • Without prior agreement, the agency will export one author's reach for a week, another's for a month, and conversions will be distributed across different models, making any comparison meaningless.

CEO comment

Leonid Naumtsev CEO, ETC AGENCY

I start the measurement discussion by separating creator publication, platform statistics export, website visits, and goal completion. I consider it important to record in advance which data the brand needs, the period covered, and when the final report will be produced. Metrica documentation describes a system-defined gap of 90 days between visits that cannot be changed, and this should not be confused with the observation period selected for a campaign. I recommend agreeing on the comparison methodology, access, and attribution model before placements launch rather than choosing them after results arrive. For comparable publications, compare equal durations relative to publication and record source limitations separately. After a campaign, observed metrics can be compared, but that comparison alone does not establish incremental sales caused by advertising.

ETC AGENCY

Discuss the statistics collection period, attribution model, and placement reporting requirements with the ETC team.

Send a brief