A UTM code is a simple code that is attached to your campaign URL and contains sections for source, medium and name. It stands for Urchin Tracking Module but helps you track your marketing efforts more easily within Google Analytics.
Why Use UTM Tracking
There are many benefits to using a UTM tracking code. We will be diving deeper into each of these benefits in a future blog post so stay tuned!
Some of the benefits include:
- Ability to Track All Marketing Efforts
- Ability to Better Determine the ROI of Your Campaign
- Data is Power
How to Create UTM Codes
There is a tool available to create a UTM code for any of your campaigns. Visit this URL where you can enter in the various parameters and the new URL will be generated for you. Here are some helpful tips on what to include in each of the parameters.
- Source
Where will the user be coming from? Will this link be used from a newsletter, AdWords campaign, social media, etc? - Medium
What type of source did you list above? For example, AdWords is a Cost Per Click (CPC) channel. While a Newsletter would be an email. The medium is typically a more generic term. - Name
This is a great place to put a specific campaign name or product. For example, if you are using the UTM code for a promotional campaign the “Name” field could be Promo-WomensClothing. This will help you isolate the traffic from this specific campaign versus all of your potential AdWords campaigns.
One thing to keep in mind when filling in each section is to exclude any spaces. When a URL is generated it cannot interpret a space so use a dash or no space at all.
If you need help creating UTM tracking URLs for your next campaign, contact Informatics for a quick tutorial.
