Post-Purchase Survey Setup and Configuration

Post-purchase surveys are a critical component of Attribution.ai's attribution strategy. They capture self-reported data directly from customers on the checkout thank-you page, providing attribution signals that pixel tracking alone cannot detect -- such as word-of-mouth referrals, podcast mentions, influencer content, and organic social discovery. This guide covers installation, customization, survey flows, and how to interpret your results.

Why Surveys Matter for Attribution

Pixel-based tracking captures digital touchpoints: ad clicks, UTM parameters, and referral URLs. However, many marketing channels leave no digital footprint. A customer who discovered your brand through a friend's recommendation, a podcast ad, or an influencer's Instagram Story may arrive at your store by typing your URL directly -- making them appear as "direct traffic" to the pixel.

Post-purchase surveys solve this blind spot. When a customer tells you "I heard about you from a TikTok creator," that self-reported data fills in what the pixel could not observe. Attribution.ai uses this signal alongside pixel and order data to improve attribution confidence.

How the Survey Extension Works

Attribution.ai uses a Shopify checkout UI extension that renders directly on the order confirmation (thank-you) page. The extension appears as a native part of the checkout experience, styled to match your store's checkout theme.

The survey uses two distinct flows based on whether the customer is a first-time or returning buyer. Shopify's checkout API provides the customer's order history, which Attribution.ai uses to determine which flow to display.

Survey Flow A: First-Time Customers

First-time customers see a three-question survey:

Question 1: Discovery Channel

"How did you first hear about us?"

Default options (randomized order, with "Other" always last):

• Social media
• Influencer / creator
• Google or web search
• Podcast / YouTube
• Friend or family
• Other (free text)

Conditional follow-ups:

• If "Social media" is selected: "Which platform?" (Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Other)
• If "Influencer / creator" is selected: "Who?" (free text input)
• If "Other" is selected: "Please tell us" (free text input)

Question 2: Purchase Motivation

"What made you purchase today?"

Default options (randomized):

• Saw us on social media today
• Email or text from us
• Discount or sale
• Needed it now / finally decided
• Friend or family reminder
• Other (free text)

Conditional follow-ups:

• If "Saw us on social media today" is selected: "Which platform?" (Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Other)
• If "Other" is selected: "Please tell us" (free text input)

Question 3: Awareness Timeline

"How long had you known about us before buying today?"

Default options (randomized):

• Today
• 1-3 days
• 1-2 weeks
• About a month
• A few months
• 6+ months

Conditional follow-up:

• If "6+ months" is selected: "What finally made you purchase now?" (free text input)

Survey Flow B: Returning Customers

Returning customers see a single-question survey to respect their time and avoid survey fatigue:

Question 1: Purchase Trigger

"What prompted today's purchase?"

Default options (randomized order, "Other" always last):

• Email from us
• Text / SMS from us
• Saw us on social media today
• Needed to re-order / ran out
• Discount or sale
• Other (free text)

Conditional follow-ups:

• If "Saw us on social media today" is selected: "Which platform?" (Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Other)
• If "Other" is selected: "Please tell us" (free text input)

Installation

Prerequisites

• A Shopify store on a plan that supports checkout extensibility
• Admin access to your Shopify admin
• An active Attribution.ai account

Setup Steps

1. In your Attribution.ai dashboard, navigate to Settings > Surveys.
2. Click Install Survey Extension.
3. You will be guided to your Shopify admin to enable the Attribution.ai checkout extension. Navigate to Settings > Checkout > Post-purchase extensions (or Checkout > Customize depending on your Shopify version).
4. Enable the "attribution.ai Survey" block and position it on the thank-you page.
5. Click Save in your Shopify admin.
6. Return to Attribution.ai and verify the survey is active by checking the Surveys tab.

The survey will now appear automatically for all completed orders on the thank-you page.

Extension Settings

The survey extension supports the following configurable settings in your Shopify admin:

• Survey endpoint: The URL where survey responses are submitted (pre-configured, typically does not need changes)
• HMAC secret: An optional signing key for request authentication (configured automatically during setup)

Customizing Survey Options

You can customize the answer choices that appear in your survey to match your specific marketing channels:

1. Go to Settings > Surveys > Customize in your Attribution.ai dashboard.
2. Add, remove, or reorder attribution options. For example, if you advertise on Pinterest, add "Pinterest" as an option.
3. Save your changes. Updates take effect immediately on all new orders.

Customization Best Practices

• Target 8-12 answer choices per question: Fewer than 6 may miss important channels. More than 15 causes decision fatigue and lowers completion rates.
• Always include an "Other" option with free text: This captures channels you have not listed and provides data for future option additions.
• Use specific channel names, not generic categories: "Instagram" and "TikTok" are more useful than "Social Media" because they tell you exactly where to invest.
• Review "Other" responses monthly: When a specific write-in answer appears frequently (e.g., "Reddit" or a specific podcast name), add it as a dedicated option.
• Match options to your active marketing channels: Remove options for channels you do not use. Irrelevant options lower response quality.

Option Randomization

Answer options are randomized on each survey load to prevent position bias -- the tendency for respondents to select the first option they see. The "Other" option always remains in the last position.

This randomization happens at render time, so the same customer refreshing the page may see options in a different order. This is intentional and does not affect data quality.

Interpreting Survey Results

Survey results are available in the Surveys tab of your dashboard. Key metrics include:

Response Rate

The percentage of customers who completed the survey out of all customers who saw it. Typical rates range from 30% to 60%.

• Above 50%: Excellent. Your survey is well-optimized.
• 30-50%: Good. Standard range for most stores.
• Below 30%: Consider simplifying your options or reviewing if the survey is displaying correctly.

First-time customers tend to respond at higher rates than returning customers because Flow A is more engaging and returning customers may skip a survey they have seen before.

Channel Distribution

A breakdown of how many respondents attributed their purchase to each channel. Compare this distribution with your pixel-based attribution to identify discrepancies:

• Survey shows higher credit for a channel than the pixel: The channel likely drives awareness or consideration that the pixel cannot track (e.g., word-of-mouth, podcasts, organic social).
• Pixel shows higher credit for a channel than the survey: The channel drives direct clicks that customers may not consciously recall (e.g., retargeting ads, Google Shopping).
• Both agree on a channel's importance: High confidence that the channel is performing as reported.

Awareness Timeline Data (Flow A, Question 3)

This data reveals your typical customer consideration cycle:

• Many responses in "Today" or "1-3 days": Suggests impulse purchases or strong direct-response marketing.
• Spread across weeks and months: Indicates a longer consideration cycle. You may want to extend your attribution lookback window accordingly.
• Concentration in "6+ months": Your brand has strong organic awareness but customers take a long time to convert. Investigate what finally triggered the purchase using the free-text follow-up responses.

Combining Survey Data with Pixel Data

You do not need to manually reconcile survey and pixel data. Attribution.ai's attribution pipeline does this automatically:

1. For each order, it examines the pixel-tracked touchpoints and the survey response (if available).
2. When both signals agree (e.g., pixel shows a Facebook ad click and survey says "Social media > Facebook"), confidence is high.
3. When signals differ (e.g., pixel shows Google ad but survey says "Friend"), the model weighs both signals based on reliability scores and produces a blended attribution.
4. When only one signal is available (no survey response, or pixel was blocked), the model uses the available data with an adjusted confidence score.

Response Data Storage and Privacy

• Survey responses are stored in your Attribution.ai workspace and linked to the specific order.
• Responses are submitted to a secure Supabase Edge Function endpoint via HTTPS.
• Submissions include HMAC signature verification when configured to prevent tampering.
• No personally identifiable information beyond the Shopify order ID and customer ID is stored with the survey response.
• Survey data is retained for the duration of your account and is deleted 30 days after account cancellation.

Troubleshooting

Survey Not Appearing on Thank-You Page

• Verify the extension is enabled in your Shopify admin under Settings > Checkout.
• Check that your Shopify plan supports checkout extensibility (Basic plan or higher).
• If you recently installed the extension, try a test purchase to confirm it renders.
• Clear your browser cache and try again in an incognito window.

Low Response Rates

• Reduce the number of answer options if you have more than 12-15 per question.
• Ensure the survey is positioned prominently on the thank-you page (not buried below the fold).
• Verify the survey is loading quickly. If your thank-you page has many other extensions or scripts, the survey may appear after the customer has already navigated away.

Survey Submission Errors

The extension includes retry logic with up to three automatic retries on submission failure. If all retries fail, the response is saved locally in the browser and the customer still sees a thank-you message to avoid frustration. Failed submissions are logged and can be recovered by the Attribution.ai system.

If you notice many submission errors in your survey analytics, check your integration status in Settings > Surveys and verify the endpoint configuration is correct.