"View-through conversions are not proof."

It’s a bold statement, but if you’ve ever seen your in-platform ROAS skyrocket while your bank balance stays flat, you know it’s the truth. At Wicked Reports, we see it all the time: platforms using view-throughs to manufacture confidence where there is none.

The "Fantasy Football" Problem

Think about your own browsing habits. You’re scrolling through a sports site, managing your fantasy team, and ads are everywhere. You’re "blind" to them. If you happen to buy from one of those brands later, the platform claims credit for that "view."

Some platforms look back 30 days for a view—which is, frankly, bananas.

Why View-Throughs Are Not Optimization Data

We aren't saying view-throughs are worthless; they are useful for testing hypotheses about creative impact or awareness. However, they should never be the basis of your budget strategy for two reasons:

1. They aren't scalable: No one scales strictly on view-through numbers without the click-based evidence to back it up.
2. They lack transparency: They often credit revenue that was going to happen anyway (Direct or Branded search).

Climb the Proof Ladder

If you want to scale, you need a standard of truth. Use the Proof Ladder:

• Level 1: Click-Based Attribution. This is the bedrock of transparent marketing.
• Level 2: First-Party Matching. Cross-reference your CRM and Order IDs against click IDs.
• Level 3: Long-Term Cohort Value. Tracking the 30, 60, and 90-day revenue back to those verified clicks.

How to Use View-Throughs Strategically

The agencies scaling the fastest use a "muted" approach. If a video is at the bottom of the funnel, maybe give it 50% credit. If it's top of the funnel, 25%. Inside Wicked Reports, we’ve actually built a slider that lets you mute Meta’s view-through impact to see the real story.

Ready to stop chasing vibes and start driving real growth?

We’ve codified this strategy into a new resource. Learn how to acquire more customers while potentially cutting wasted ad spend.

👉 Download The New Customer Attribution Playbook and learn how to fix attribution, train Meta correctly, and scale new customers profitably.

Frequently Asked Questions

• Q: What is the "Fantasy Football" problem in advertising?

  • A: This happens when an ad appears on a site while you are focused on something else (like managing a team). You didn't really "see" it, but if you buy later, the platform takes credit. It's a "fantasy" metric because the ad didn't actually cause the sale.

• Q: What is the "Proof Ladder"?

  • A: It’s our framework for data certainty. It starts with Click-Based Attribution (did they take action?), moves to First-Party Matching (does this match our CRM?), and ends with Long-Term Cohort Value (did this click lead to a high-value customer over 90 days?).

• Q: How much credit should I give to view-through conversions?

  • A: We recommend a "muted" approach. At the top of the funnel, you might give them 25% credit to account for awareness. At the bottom of the funnel, maybe 50%. The goal is to see the real story, not the platform's inflated version.