Persistence component settings

Persistence is the ability for a given dimension value to relate to a metric beyond the event it is set on. It uses a combination of allocation and expiration.

• Allocation lets you determine which value is kept when more than one dimension item can persist at a time in a single column.

  NOTE

  If you have a non-default attribution model set on a metric in a report, the attribution model ignores the allocation you set on the dimension for the same report.

  However, when doing a full table export that includes multiple dimensions, attribution retains the allocation models applied to each dimension.

• Expiration lets you determine how long a dimension item persists beyond the event it is set on.

Persistence is available only on dimensions, and is retroactive to the data it is applied to. It is an immediate data transformation that happens before filtering or other analysis operations are applied.

Allocation settings

Details around the available allocation settings.

• Most Recent: persists the most recent (by timestamp) value present in the dimension. Any subsequent values that occur within the dimension’s expiration period replaces the previously persisting value. If “Treat ‘No Value’ as a value” is enabled on this dimension under No value options, empty values overwrite previously persisted values. For example, consider the following table with Most recent allocation and Session expiration:

  Dimension	Hit 1	Hit 2	Hit 3	Hit 4	Hit 5
  Dataset values		C	B		A
  Most recent allocation		C	B	B	A

• Original: Persists the original value by timestamp present within the dimension for the duration of the expiration period. If this dimension has a value, it is not overwritten when a different value is seen on a subsequent event. For example, consider the following table with Original allocation and Session expiration:

  Dimension	Hit 1	Hit 2	Hit 3	Hit 4	Hit 5
  Dataset values		C	B		A
  Original allocation		C	C	C	C

• All: Acts similarly to the Participation attribution model for metrics. Persists all values equally so each get full credit for the metric in reporting. For example, consider the following table with All allocation and Session expiration:

  Dimension	Hit 1	Hit 2	Hit 3	Hit 4	Hit 5
  Dataset values	A	B	C		A
  All allocation	A	A,B	A,B,C	A,B,C	A,B,C

• First Known and Last Known: (Jan 19, 2022 ) These two allocation models satisfy “entry” and “exit” dimension use cases. They take the first or last observed value for a dimension within a specified persistence scope (session, person, or custom time period with lookback) and apply it to all events within the specified scope. Example:

  Dimension	Hit 1	Hit 2	Hit 3	Hit 4	Hit 5
  Timestamp (min)	1	2	3	6	7
  Original values		C	B		A
  First known	C	C	C	C	C
  Last known	A	A	A	A	A

Expiration settings

Details around the available expiration settings.

• Session: Expires after a given session. Default expiration window.
• Person: Expires at the end of the reporting window.
• Custom Time: Expires after a specified time period (up to 90 days). This expiration option is only available for Original and Most Recent allocation models. When using time-based expiration, values previous to the start of your reporting window (up to 90 days) are considered.
• Metric: When this metric is seen in a event, immediately expire the persisted value in the dimension. You can use any metric as the expiration end for this dimension. This expiration option is only available for Original and Most Recent allocation settings.

Binding Dimension

A drop-down list that lets you bind the persistence of a dimension value to dimension values in another dimension. Valid options include other dimensions included in the data view.

See Using binding dimensions and metrics in Customer Journey Analytics for examples around how to effectively use binding dimensions.

Binding Metric

A drop-down list that lets you choose a metric that acts as a binding trigger. Valid options include metrics included in the data view.

This setting only appears when the Binding Dimension is lower in the object array than the component. When the binding metric is present in an event, dimension values are copied from the event-level dimension down to the lower schema level of the binding dimension.

See the second example under Using binding dimensions and metrics in Customer Journey Analytics for more information around how to effectively use binding metrics.