How to interpret source contribution, overlap, and unique yield
A source is valuable when it contributes useful candidates the other lanes did not already produce. Large discovery counts can still have low marginal value when most results are duplicates or poor fits.
Last reviewed: 2026-09-06
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Measure sources under the same role artifact
Comparisons are only meaningful when every source is evaluated against the same strict requirements, flexible criteria, geography, and evidence threshold.
Resolve identity before measuring uniqueness
Missed duplicates inflate unique contribution, while false identity merges suppress it. Identity quality is part of source analytics.
Separate discovered, retained, and unique retained
These three numbers answer different questions: how much a source returned, how much survived the review threshold, and how much useful net-new discovery it added.
Include cost and rights context
A source with modest unique yield can still be valuable if it is inexpensive, fast, rights-safe, or especially strong for one role family. Source decisions should not be reduced to one global winner.