A UTM stands for Urchin Tracking Module, which is a method of tracking website traffic sources using unique query parameters. UTMs allow you to tag links so that you can identify where your traffic is coming from and analyze the effectiveness of your marketing campaigns.
When someone clicks on a link tagged with UTMs, the parameters are passed along and show up in your analytics platform. This allows you to see valuable data like which campaign drove a specific visitor to your site, what keywords they used to reach you, and what medium brought them to you (email, social media, paid search etc).
Using UTMs for tracking and attribution is a critical component of any digital marketing strategy. With UTMs, you gain visibility into your highest converting campaigns, most effective channels, and which partnerships drive the most valuable customers. This insight empowers you to optimize where you spend your marketing dollars for maximum return.
What are the components of a UTM?
A UTM tag is made up of 5 parameters:
utm_source
This indicates where the traffic originated from. Common utm_source values include:
– Email
– Social media platforms (facebook, twitter, etc)
– Organic
– google
– Referral
utm_medium
This specifies the type of traffic source. Common utm_mediums include:
– Email
– Social
– CPC (cost-per-click ads)
– Banner ads
– Affiliates
– Organic
– Referral
utm_campaign
This denotes a specific marketing campaign, promotion, or initiative that the link is tied to. utm_campaign examples:
– Spring_sale_email
– July_newsletter
– 2021_Q4_offers
utm_term
This indicates search keywords for paid search/SEM campaigns. If a user clicked your ad after searching “blue sneakers”, the utm_term would be “blue+sneakers”.
utm_content
This identifies unique variants of a URL for A/B testing purposes. For example, if testing 2 email subject lines, you could have:
– utm_content=sale_email
– utm_content=coupon_email
Together, these 5 parameters provide a rich picture of your website traffic sources and help you identify opportunities to improve results.
How to implement UTMs
To add UTMs to your links, you simply append the tag structure to the end of each URL:
“`html
?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=summer_promo&utm_term=shoes&utm_content=ad1
“`
Here is an example applying UTMs to a link promoting a sale on Facebook:
“`html
https://www.myecommstore.com/summer-sale?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=summer_promo&utm_term=shoes&utm_content=ad1
“`
Now when someone clicks this link from the Facebook ad, it will show up in your analytics platform marked with the UTM parameters to identify:
– Traffic source = Facebook
– Type of traffic = Social
– Marketing campaign = summer_promo
– Keyword = shoes
– Unique URL variant = ad1
This makes it easy to segment out the traffic and analyze the performance of your Facebook campaign, down to the keyword and ad level.
Here are some tips for implementing UTMs:
– Use a UTM building tool to easily generate the parameters without manual effort each time. Google has a handy free UTM builder.
– Make sure to use consistent UTM values over time. For example, always tag Facebook traffic the same way so you can compare historical Facebook performance.
– Track UTMs on your website, mobile apps, and anywhere else you drive traffic. This provides a holistic view of customer touchpoints.
– Shorten UTMs using a link shortener like Bit.ly if character limits are an issue. Just be sure to customize your short links so UTMs are preserved.
– Set up goals/conversions in your analytics platform to see which UTMs are driving your most valuable customer actions.
Benefits of using UTMs
There are many advantages to implementing UTMs for campaign tracking:
Identify your best performing marketing channels
See which broad channels like email, social media, organic search etc. deliver the most traffic and conversions. Double down on what’s working.
Optimize within each channel
Drill into each channel to see what campaigns and content resonate. On Facebook, maybe lifestyle ads outperform promotional ads.
Attribute conversions to sources
Uncover which campaigns and keywords drive phone calls, form fills, purchases, and other conversions.
Inform budget allocation
Allocate marketing spend towards top converting sources. If Instagram drives 2X more revenue than Facebook, increase Instagram budget.
Personalize experiences
Use UTM data for behavioral targeting and personalized messaging based on source. Customers from Facebook may see different content than email subscribers.
Avoid overlapping efforts
If both a Google and Facebook ad target the same audience with the same offer, UTM tags will reveal any wasted overlap.
Measure partnerships
Add unique UTMs whenever you run a co-marketing campaign with a brand partner to quantify results.
Using UTMs with Google Analytics
Google Analytics offers robust reporting on UTM parameters to analyze your marketing and content performance.
Here are key ways to leverage UTMs in Google Analytics:
Traffic Sources report
This shows your top referral sources grouped by UTM medium (social, email, organic, etc). See breakdowns by UTM campaign and source as well.
Channel grouping
Channels in Google Analytics allow you to organize and view UTM data (i.e. group all social platforms into a Social channel).
Source/medium report
Shows your highest traffic sources based on UTM tags. Useful for comparing channel vs. channel.
Campaign reports
Analyze any specific UTM campaign by date range, location, device, conversions etc. See which performed best.
AdWords integration
UTMs enable you to track the performance of Google Ads campaigns within Google Analytics reporting.
Goal conversion tracking
See which UTMs and keywords result in phone calls, form fills, purchases, and other conversions you value.
Custom dashboards
Build customized dashboards to display your UTM campaign data tailored to your business goals.
Pro tip: Link Google Analytics to your AdWords account to automatically track UTMs from paid search. This eliminates manual tagging.
Best practices for UTM tracking
To get the most value from UTMs, keep these tips in mind:
– Be consistent – Reuse the same UTM values over time to maintain continuity in reporting. Don’t reinvent the wheel each campaign.
– Make them descriptive – Use campaign names and keyword values that clearly denote the promotional initiative and ad content.
– Track every link – Anywhere you drive website traffic should get UTMs – emails, social posts, PPC ads, affiliates, partners, etc.
– Customize them – Beyond the 5 basic parameters, you can append additional UTM keys like utm_country to track local factors.
– Shorten links (but maintain UTMs) – If lengthy UTMs push you over character limits, use a URL shortener.
– Set up goals and events – Define site actions as conversion events in your analytics to see which UTMs drive the most valuable customers.
– Connect platforms – Import cost, impression, click, and other data from ad platforms into analytics for deeper analysis.
– Analyze regularly – Schedule UTM reports to monitor performance daily or weekly so you catch any changes in channel contribution.
Using UTMs with other analytics platforms
While Google Analytics is the most widely-used analytics solution, marketing teams often track UTMs across multiple platforms:
Adobe Analytics
Adobe Analytics has robust UTMs tracking and visualizations built on Adobe Experience Cloud. Leverage this if you license Adobe tools.
Mixpanel
Mobile and web analytics platform that lets you analyze UTMs along with detailed user profiles and behavior cohorts.
Kissmetrics
Specialized tool for UTM tracking in conjunction with detailed customer journey mapping. Now part of Mixpanel.
Matomo
Open-source analytics alternative to Google Analytics with UTMs tracking capabilities.
Heap
Tracks customer interactions beyond page views to provide insights based on UTMs and other factors.
Amplitude
Analytics platform focused on analyzing mobile apps. Integrates UTMs from web referrals.
Tableau
Reporting platform where marketers can output UTMs data into customized visualizations.
The best solution depends on your existing tech stack, budget, data expertise, and analytics needs. Many analysts use both Google Analytics supplemented by another platform specifically for UTMs tracking and attribution modeling.
FAQs
How do I track UTM links from social platforms?
Most social platforms allow you to easily add UTM tracking codes before sharing links. For example, in the link sharing popup on Facebook, you can paste the full UTM-tagged URL.
What about tracking offline channels?
For offline channels like TV, radio and billboards, use a specific UTM campaign name indicating the channel, so you can distinguish that traffic in analytics. You can also set up unique phone numbers or landing pages for specific offline ads to track conversions.
How often should I update my UTMs?
You can update UTMs for each campaign, initiative, or significant change. But aim for consistency from month-to-month where possible to allow for accurate comparisons over time in analytics.
How do I know our UTMs tracking is set up right?
Check that your UTM parameters are populating as expected in analytics. Click your own UTM links to test they are passing through the tags. Also screen for any URL truncation issues losing UTMs. Monitoring UTMs regularly helps validate tracking quality.
Conclusion
UTM tracking should be a foundational piece of your digital marketing analytics framework. By tagging and following website traffic sources, you gain critical visibility into your best performing channels, campaigns, and partnerships.
Careful UTM implementation provides actionable data to optimize your budget allocations and marketing ROI. Yet many brands still neglect this quick win. Prioritize UTMs tagging starting today and you’ll see an instant boost in your analytics capability.