# Transactional Data

## Attribution Reports

To generate attribution reports in Poplar, transactional (order) data must be shared with the platform by one of three ways:

* [**Manual CSV Upload**](https://docs.heypoplar.com/platform-basics/transactional-data/csv-upload)
* [**Poplar's Shopify App**](https://docs.heypoplar.com/platform-basics/transactional-data/shopify-order-data)
* [**Orders API Integration**](https://app.gitbook.com/s/xfN4IIBsOUuqBd0ERnDW/endpoints/orders)

If you haven't shared transactional data using one of these methods, Poplar will not be able to calculate attribution metrics. **If you did not set a Holdout group for your campaign upon mailing, the platform will not be able to calculate Lift metrics.** 

<figure><img src="https://714650678-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FweKl52r7fuUrhTjt6jLd%2Fuploads%2Fb8694VTJxwd1jQEGCyhj%2Fimage.png?alt=media&#x26;token=cd2d3f37-8a75-449a-955e-519bb43f7cae" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

Attribution reports are updated with a roughly **24 hour delay** as data flows into our system. If you change your attribution window at any point after setting up your campaign, it will take time to refresh and reload your new attribution data.

Poplar measures customer response to mailings using the **last-touch attribution model.** This means that we attribute orders to the most recent mail piece (within the attribution window).

### Attribution Window <a href="#attribution-window" id="attribution-window"></a>

The attribution window is the length of time after customers have received your mailing for which you want orders to count towards your campaign. You can set a custom attribution window when you create a new campaign, and adjust the window by editing an existing campaign. This is the period of time for which you wish to credit a customer's transaction to the mailing. **By default, Poplar uses the recommended 90-day attribution window.**

{% hint style="info" %}
If you would like to adjust your attribution window, please reach out to your dedicated Account Manager or <hello@heypopler.com>
{% endhint %}

Before your attribution window has fully passed you *may* begin to see results populate, but because these are incomplete, we suggest waiting until the attribution window has fully passed before evaluating the performance of the mailings.

Typically 60-70% of conversions will occur in the first 30 days, 20-30% in the 30 days following that, and around 10% in the final 30 days. **The 90-day window is a Direct Mail industry standard, and is the best option to see the full scope of the numbers.**

Adjusting this setting after reports have been generated will result in a wait time for re-calculation. Your attribution reports are updated roughly on a 24 hour delay. If you change your attribution window at any point after your set up your campaign, it will take some time to refresh and reload your new metrics.

### **In-home Dates**

In-home dates start when the first mailing of the creative is in home. To provide a direct comparison across postage types and holdouts, there is a slight nuance to this rule.

Let's say you sent two mailings on January 1:

**Mailing A** used Standard postage **Mailing B** used First Class postage

And let's say **Mailing B** was in-home on Jan 5 (e.g. Jan 5 was the Delivery Scan Date):

For *all* mail pieces from A and B, including any holdouts in A and B, we would consider **January 5** as the in-home date. This allows you to directly compare the results from all mailings on January 1.

***

## Reporting Window

You may select a different date range to see mailings In Home during that time period. The reporting window refers to the dates mailings were in home, but the matchback will always include all transaction data we have available. Please keep in mind that this is different from the **attribution window**. To view reports by day instead of by week, simply adjust the Reporting Window to only show the past seven days:

<figure><img src="https://714650678-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FweKl52r7fuUrhTjt6jLd%2Fuploads%2F235vGqz6STOc7KEDviWv%2Fimage.png?alt=media&#x26;token=2c8bddc9-07a6-4d68-9471-d1bd62c5616e" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

## New Buyers

The [Orders API](https://developers.heypoplar.com/endpoints/orders) allows you to specify whether transactions came from a new buyer (customer) or not. If you're sharing order data via the [Shopify App](https://app.gitbook.com/s/7WIkx4Ya8TaaDuayPNdP/supported-platforms/shopify), this metric will be passed automatically. If you are using Poplar in any customer acquisition campaigns, or if you just want to filter your attribution reports by new customers, we recommend including this metadata through the Orders API.

## Holdouts <a href="#holdouts" id="holdouts"></a>

The holdout metrics allow you to compare activity amongst the mailed group vs. customers who did **not** receive a mailer but converted anyway. If you opted for a holdout group when setting up or launching your campaign, the holdout group performance will appear right below the mailed group's metrics for easy comparison. If you did not enable a holdout for your campaign, the platform will not be able to calculate lift metrics.