What are UTM Parameters and How to Use Them?
With iOS 15, advertising was put through a whirl especially when it came to tracking campaign performance. Well, we’ve got your covered on the 6 most important things to remember when you create UTM parameters for ad tracking. Out preference our team usually tracks performance through a 3rd party aggregator but it still means we have to add UTM parameters to all advertising efforts. Here are the 6 reasons, UTM parameters are important and necessary:
1. What are UTM parameters and what do they track?
UTM parameters are codes that are added to the end of a URL in order to track specific data about your campaign. There are six different UTM parameters that can be used, and each tracks a different type of data within your ad or link. For example, the "utm_source" parameter tracks where traffic is coming from, while the "utm_medium" tracks how the traffic was referred to the site. The other four parameters are "utm_campaign," "utm_term," "utm_content," and "utm_source" All of these parameters can be used to track data within Google Analytics, and they can be helpful in understanding where your traffic is coming from and what type of content is most popular with your audience aka more granularity.
2. How can you use UTM parameters to track the success of your marketing campaigns?
UTM parameters are a great way to track the success of your marketing campaigns. By adding UTM parameters to your links, you can track where traffic is coming from and how it is converted into leads or sales. This information can be used to improve your marketing strategy and ensure that your campaigns are successful especially within the iOS 15 marketing era. Here are some tips on how to use UTM parameters:
1. First, add UTM parameters to the links in your marketing campaign. This will allow you to track where traffic is coming from and how it is converted into leads or sales. This process should be done for every campaign, adgroup or adset and ad.
2. Next, monitor your campaign's performance over time. This will help you identify any patterns or trends in your results - you can verify the UTMs are working by click or copying and pasting to your browser and checking Google Analytics.
3. Finally, use this information to improve your marketing strategy. For example, if you see that a particular campaign is not performing well, you can make changes to improve its effectiveness. By using UTM parameters, you can ensure that your marketing campaigns are successful and provide valuable data that can be used to improve your overall strategy.
3. How do you create UTM parameters for your links?
To create UTM parameters for your links, you'll need to use a URL builder. A URL builder is a tool that allows you to add parameters to your links, so you can track where your traffic is coming from. There are a few different ways to build URLs, but the most common method is to use Google's URL builder. To use the Google URL builder, you'll need to enter the following information:
- The website URL you want to promote
- The campaign name (this is up to you)
- The campaign source (e.g. Facebook, Twitter, etc.)
- The campaign medium (e.g.banner, email, etc.)
- The campaign term (optional)
- The campaign content (optional)
Once you have all of the information entered, you'll be given a link with UTM parameters attached. You can then use this link on your website or in your marketing campaigns.
For $1.99, you can get our UTM Parameter guide to copy and paste to EVERY network you use. It’s that simple.
4. What are some best practices for using UTM parameters in your marketing campaigns?
As a marketer, you know that making your campaigns successful means understanding your audience and where they come from. What better way to do this than to use UTM parameters? By tracking how users interact with your website, you can learn what's working and what's not, and make necessary adjustments to improve your campaigns.
Here are 3 things to remember when using UTM parameters in your marketing campaigns:
1. Keep them consistent: Have a clear and consistent naming convention for your UTMs across all of your campaigns. This will make it easier to track and compare results. If you use our $1.99 UTM Parameter guide, you do not even need to think, you just get to copy and paste in each ad.
2. Use short, descriptive names: Long, complicated UTMs are more likely to be entered incorrectly. Keep them short and sweet so that users can accurately enter them.
3. Test, test, test: Always test your UTM before launching a campaign. This will help ensure that they're working properly and that you're getting accurate data.
5. Are there any tools that can help you with creating and tracking UTM parameters?
While UTMs are not required for every campaign, they can be helpful in certain situations. For example, if you are running a paid ads campaign, you may want to use UTMs to track which ads are performing well. Or, if you are promoting a specific landing page or product, you can use UTMs to see how much traffic is coming from your marketing efforts - we use these for local SEO on our Google My Business page. There are a few different tools that can help you with creating and tracking UTMs. Google Analytics is one option that provides detailed insights into your website traffic. Another tool is UTM Builder, which offers a simple way to create UTMs for your links. Whichever tool you choose, make sure to test it out before using it for live campaigns. This way, you can ensure that it works as intended and that you are able to track your results accurately.
6. What are some common mistakes people make when using UTM parameters?
There are a few common mistakes people make when using UTM parameters. One is failing to properly tag their links. This can result in lost data and analytics that don't accurately reflect where your traffic is coming from. Another mistake is not tagging all of the links on your website. This can make it difficult to track the efficacy of your marketing campaigns and make it harder to optimize your website for better results. Finally, some people forget to update their UTM parameters as their campaigns change. This can lead to inaccurate reporting and wasted time spent trying to figure out why your data doesn't match up. By avoiding these mistakes, you can ensure that you're getting the most out of your UTM parameters.
By following these best practices, you can make sure that you're getting the most out of your UTM parameters and improving the performance of your marketing campaigns.
