Our latest DBUG live event was one of the liveliest discussions we’ve had to date! Clearly the topic of disappearing clicks and how to measure results struck a nerve. 

It was based on our newest research report, “Beyond Attribution: The Disappearing Buyer Trail,” which found some fascinating insights.

Today we’ll dive into the top findings + hot takes from our expert panelists and guests at the event. 

In this edition:

• Beyond Attribution: The Disappearing Buyer Trail
• [Free Templates] Track the GTM Metrics That Matter
• Upcoming Event: Predictable Planning in Messy Markets
• This Week’s Silo-Smashing GTM Reads

🎥 Beyond Attribution: The Disappearing Buyer Trail

In our latest report, nearly 300 go-to-market leaders weighed in on what’s really driving pipeline when clicks disappear. 

Then we broke it down in expert-led discussions with Amanda Natividad (SparkToro), Paul Sullivan (Arise GTM), Charlie Grinnell (RightMetric), and Allie Smith (Sequel.io). Here are some of the highlights!

Misattribution Is Rising (and So Are Paid Media Budgets)

One in four leaders estimated that at least a quarter of their pipeline was misattributed last quarter due to missing or wrong click data. Nearly 7% said the error rate was 50% or more.

That lack of clarity is leading to bigger paid budgets – not always because it works better, but because it’s easier to measure.

Buyer Behavior Demands Shifts in Tracking

Low-growth companies are much more likely to treat website traffic as an executive KPI – while high-growth companies lean into pipeline quality, velocity, win rate, and CAC payback.

The group’s consensus? Easy-to-track ≠ useful.

Charlie Grinnell put it strongly: “The losers are counting web traffic because it’s easy.”

Dark Social Still Defies Perfect Tracking

Everyone talks about it. Few track it with rigor.

Amanda Natividad called out the reality: most respondents who said they’re “tracking” dark social are probably lying. (It's not that easy!)

The real answer? Directional signals – self-reported attribution, rep notes, and anecdotal mentions – paired with tracking and correlating engagement and influence.

Self-Reported Attribution Makes a Comeback

High-growth teams are far more likely to consistently ask, “How did you first hear about us?” and log it as a free-text response. Even partial coverage is enough to surface directional signals about what’s actually working in dark social, podcasts, and communities.

As breakout room leader Allie Smith said: “If we can give a form without a dropdown that puts people into a box, they’re going to tell you their story.”

Alignment Still Breaks Without Ownership

RevOps leaders reported the highest alignment on key KPIs, but sales leaders flagged misalignment most often.

The problem? Too many teams are tracking without purpose.nMetrics land on dashboards without a clear owner, action, or decision tied to them.

Paul Sullivan said it well: “You need to be deliberate in what you’re tracking – not just have FOMO and measure everything.”

🛠️  [Templates] Track the GTM Metrics That Matter 

If teams can’t align on go-to-market metrics, they’ll never agree on results. That’s why go-to-market alignment starts with a single source of truth.

We used the new research findings to develop a set of dashboards based on the top metrics that executives and GTM leaders said they’re tracking. 

You can build any of them for free with a Databox account or free trial (or we’ll build any dashboard you select for free)

👉 Get the dashboards here

📅 Upcoming Event: Predictable Planning in Messy Markets

Annual planning is just around the corner – hooray! (JK 😅)

We’re running a new research study (still time to get in on this one!), and already we’re hearing that leaders don’t just have a planning problem – they have a predictability problem. 

On October 23rd, we’re bringing together an amazing panel of C-level experts to explore the results of the new research study AND share how they:

✅ Plan with confidence – even when conditions shift
✅ Build processes and systems that teams actually use
✅ Create forecast models + surface the right KPIs at the right time

🔗 Register for the event to attend live or get the recording.

✍️ Take the survey to share your experience.

🤝 This Week’s Silo-Smashing GTM Reads

Share with a colleague and tear down those walls! 

• The Case for Zero-Click Content in a Zero-Trust Ecosystem (SparkToro)
• Dark Social Explained: The Hidden Layer of Internet Sharing (Cognism)
• How to achieve go-to-market alignment: A guide to GTM cross-collaboration (Go-To-Market Alliance)

🤝 How’d we do?