Saved items and goal pacing
An explanation of why a saved item is a fixed copy, how versions relate to it, and how the Library decides that a tracked plan is on track, ahead, or behind.
Two ideas explain most of the Library. A saved item is a fixed copy, not a live view. A tracked goal compares the modeled outcome to date with the plan to date, not with the full goal.
Why is a saved item a fixed copy?
Section titled “Why is a saved item a fixed copy?”A chat changes each time you send a message, and the data behind an answer changes each day. A report that changes after you share it is not a reliable record.
So the Library copies the conversation when you save. The copy holds the messages, the charts, and the tables as they were. Three things follow.
- The chat and the item are separate. You can continue the chat, and the item stays the same. You can remove the item, and the chat stays in your history.
- The figures have a date. An item shows the data of the day of the save. The exported PDF says so in its footer.
- The conversation cannot be edited. You can change the title, the description, and the visibility of an item. You cannot change its answers.
How do versions fit in?
Section titled “How do versions fit in?”To bring an item up to date, you run it again. The questions go to a new chat, Prescient AI answers with the data of today, and the save adds a version to the same item.
A version is a new fixed copy. It does not replace the earlier one. The item then holds a record of the same questions at two or more dates, each with the name of the person who saved it. This is the way to compare the same analysis over time.
What is the goal of a tracked plan?
Section titled “What is the goal of a tracked plan?”The goal of a tracked plan is the outcome that the optimized plan expects over its whole planning period. The Library reads that value from the plan when the tracking starts and keeps it fixed. A later change in your data does not move the goal.
The goal uses the modeled outcome of the plan, so its name starts with MMM in the product, for example an MMM revenue figure.
How does a check-in judge the pace?
Section titled “How does a check-in judge the pace?”A check-in does not ask whether you reached the goal. It asks whether you are where the plan expected you to be by now.
Each Monday the check-in adds up two figures from the start of the plan to that day.
- Expected to date. The values of the plan for each day or week that has passed.
- Actual to date. The outcome that your models attribute to the campaigns of the plan in the same days or weeks. This is a modeled figure, not a reported figure. The spend in a check-in is your reported spend.
The pace is the difference between the two, as a percentage of the expected figure.
| Rule | Value |
|---|---|
| On track band | 5% above or below the expected outcome to date. |
| Check-in day | Each Monday at 14:00 UTC. |
| Last check-in | The last check-in is on the first Monday that is 7 or more days after the planning period ends. The tracking then completes. |
A plan that is within 5% of its expected figure is On track. More than 5% above is Ahead of plan. More than 5% below is Behind plan. Before the plan reaches its first full period, there is nothing to compare, and the badge reads Not started.
Why does the plan follow its own shape?
Section titled “Why does the plan follow its own shape?”The expected figure follows the plan, period by period. A plan that spends more in its later weeks expects less in its early weeks. The check-in compares your early weeks with those lower values, not with an even share of the goal.
What does a check-in name?
Section titled “What does a check-in name?”A check-in names the pace, the two figures, and the channel with the largest difference from the plan. It says whether that channel is a gap or a lift. This tells you where to look first when a plan is behind.