Learn the differences between click-based and view-based attribution for ad performance

Learn how to keep your delivery customers happy

Delivering the best customer experience with every order

How to boost traffic to your menu with Ads

Learn how to create irresistible promotions.

Learn how orders get from you to customers

How the right hours boost your visibility

Tips to prevent rejecting & cancelling orders

How to avoid rejecting and cancelling orders to protect revenue and improve visibility

How to improve rider handover and reduce wait times on Deliveroo

Learn when and how to use 'Need more time'

Set up your tablet and start accepting orders

What you need to know about "Order-ready"

Learn how to craft a delivery menu that converts

Discover how Deliveroo is redefining the food  delivery industry

 How to measure your advertising success: Click-based vs. view-based metrics

Running digital adverts is one of the most effective ways to grow your delivery business. But when you are investing your marketing budget across multiple platforms, measuring the actual success of those campaigns can sometimes feel complicated.

When evaluating the performance of advertising campaigns, every business wants a clear picture of the Return on Ad Spend (ROAS). That’s the main way of evaluating how much you're getting back for your investment, and if it’s worth keeping the same strategy.

However, when advertising across multiple platforms, it’s common to see some discrepancy in the numbers, with certain campaigns showcasing significantly higher ROAS than others, even in similar setups. This difference often comes down to one crucial detail: the platform’s reporting methodology.

To help you navigate this and make the best optimisation decisions for your business, we are breaking down the two main ways advertising impact is measured online, and how you can use this information to improve your own Ad performance. 

The two ways to measure advertising success 

When a customer places an order after seeing an advert, platforms such as Deliveroo use "attribution models" to decide if the advert should ‘take the credit’ for that sale. In other words, these models help you understand if that order came from your advert or not, so you can measure the return more accurately.

Nowadays, there are two common models being used across platforms: click-based and view-based attribution. 

1. Click-based attribution (The direct response standard)

This model counts a sale only when a customer clicks your advert before ordering. It will be considered an ad-driven sale if the customer places the order up to 7 days after clicking the ad. 

This is the industry standard for measuring direct sales. It gives you the clearest proof that your advert was the main reason why the customer decided to buy, as it focuses on real action (the click). Click-based tracking is considered the most accurate way to measure your true performance.

2. View-based attribution (The brand awareness model)

This model is broader. It counts a sale when a customer saw your advert—even if they did not click on it—and then went on to place an order within the next 7 days. 

Because this model includes all your click-attributed orders plus additional orders from customers who only viewed the advert and converted later, view-based attribution will always produce a higher ROAS.

This is a great way to measure if your advert kept your brand top of mind, as it doesn’t require an action straight away. 

Consumers frequently use Deliveroo for inspiration, scrolling past multiple options before making a final choice. While a user may not click your sponsored ad instantly, seeing your brand builds immediate consideration. 

When that user subsequently searches for your restaurant and places an order, the ad has successfully achieved its goal. Using the view attribution ensures we are capturing the full, multi-touch journey of how customers interact with your brand on our platform.

This is where comparing your overall marketing performance can get tricky. Different advertising platforms use different default attribution models.

Some platforms use view-based attribution as their standard reporting view. Because this approach factors in visibility alongside direct clicks, it naturally results in a higher reported ROAS. If you compare a platform using a view-based model directly against one using a click-based model, it can be difficult to get a fair understanding of your return on investment. To make the best optimisation decisions for your business, it is important to evaluate your performance using the same methodology across all your channels.

How to choose the best measurement for your business

Deciding which metric to look at ultimately depends on what you are trying to achieve with your advertising budget. Here is a quick guide to help you align these models with your business goals:

For measuring direct sales impact: If your main priority is understanding exactly how many immediate orders an advert generated, a click-based view is your strongest metric. It provides the most direct link between your marketing spend and your revenue, making it the best option for day-to-day performance tracking.

For understanding brand visibility: If you are running a campaign designed to boost awareness and keep your business top-of-mind for future customers, view-based attribution is a helpful metric. It helps capture the broader influence of your adverts over time.

For reviewing your wider marketing mix: If you are sitting down to evaluate your advertising budget across multiple different apps and platforms, the most important step is ensuring you are looking at the same metric across the board. Aligning the models ensures you are evaluating your investments fairly.

Tip: Avoid comparing different metrics, as this might give you an inaccurate representation of your Ads return. 

Introducing the View & Click-Based Filter on Deliveroo

At Deliveroo, we adopt the click-based attribution as our default metric. This ensures we have a consistent baseline for tracking direct response and that you can view an accurate representation of your return on investment. 

However, we also want to empower you to easily review your wider marketing mix on a level playing field. To support this, we have introduced a new View & Click-based Filter within the Marketer Adverts dashboard. This tool allows you to instantly switch your reporting view between the two attribution models, based on your business needs.

Here's how the different attributions can help you understand your performance:

Use click-based for everyday optimisation: When evaluating your regular campaign performance, testing new offers, or looking closely at direct returns on Deliveroo, your dashboard is already set to the click-based default.

Switch to view-based for cross-platform comparisons: When comparing Deliveroo to a platform that defaults to a view-based model, simply click the filter. This instantly updates all your attribution-derived metrics (including ROAS, total sales, and total orders) to align with that methodology, ensuring you compare performance fairly. 

The attribution filter is currently live for merchants operating in the UK, Ireland, France, and Belgium. 

To try it out, simply log in to Partner Hub, navigate to Marketer > Adverts, and look for the Clicks/Views filter (indicated by the funnel icon) located at the top of the Ads insights overview. In the pop-up window, choose your preferred attribution method (Clicks or Views) and click ‘Select’ to instantly update the metrics. 

This will dynamically update all data points across the dashboard (including Return on Ad Spend, Total sales, and Conversion rate) based on your choice.