Confirmation on Marketing Channel Classification: CJA vs. AA

[DhanA2]

Hi everyone,

I’m seeking confirmation on my understanding of the differences between Adobe Analytics (AA) and Customer Journey Analytics (CJA) regarding marketing channel classification.From my research, I gathered that:

1. AA relies on predefined processing rules for marketing channel classification, which can be cumbersome and time-consuming to adjust when launching new campaigns or channels. It may also expose sensitive information in tracking URLs.
2. CJA, on the other hand, utilizes Derived Fields and Lookups, allowing for more dynamic and on-the-fly classification of marketing channels. This flexibility enables quicker adaptations to new campaigns without compromising data security.

Could someone please confirm if this understanding is accurate? Additionally, what are the potential business impacts of these differences in real-world scenarios?

Tagging Experts and Top Contributors for quick responses:
Thanks guys for your support :  @brian_au @Jennifer_Dungan 

[Jennifer_Dungan]

@DhanA2 I don't have CJA, so I can't speak much to it's behaviours... but what you specified sounds about right from what I have seen. I was helping someone a while ago, and I recall that derived fields were in fact used for CJA (I also recall that this also impacted some of the rules pertaining to "Internal" because there is no longer a way to determine the "first hit of the visit")

[Nick_Walter]

You are correct in your assumptions for derived fields. I think it to be easier and more dynamic as a whole. You also have the whole list of fields in your dataset to work with so if you are collecting something for first pave view you can filter down to that for marketing channel. Additionally once you define a derived field you can pull that into another derived field much like using a segment in another segment. The feature has a lot of possibilities.

[Josh__Stephens]

hi @DhanA2 - you're right CJA uses derived field to set marketing channels.  Those changes are retroactive.  Changes to AA marketing channel rules are not retroactive.

However, in most cases you'll likely be parsing the same values and scenarios.  I'm not sure I fully understand your mention of sensitive information in the URL.  If you're parsing CIDs to set campaign data in AA (for example channel_campaign_audience_etc...), you can do the same in CJA.  Another way to do it, in both AA & CJA, is to pass more of an ID CID2001a, CID2001b, etc..  Then use classification uploads (AA) or lookup table (CJA) to add the metadata.  This method keeps the URL shorter and don't potentially expose as much information.

I recently wrote a blog post on CJA marketing channels & best practices.  Here's a link if it's helpful.