This appends standardized tracking parameters to a URL so clicks from a specific post or campaign can be identified separately in an analytics tool. Rather than typing out query parameters by hand and risking a typo, you fill in a few labeled fields and get a correctly formatted link.
How to use it
- Enter the destination URL.
- Enter a source, describing where the traffic is coming from, like instagram or newsletter.
- Enter a medium, describing the type of channel, like social or email.
- Enter a campaign name to identify this specific push.
- Optionally add a term or content value for more detailed tracking.
- Copy the finished link once every field is filled in correctly.
When it helps
- Tagging a link in an Instagram bio so its clicks show up separately from other traffic.
- Creating distinct tracked links for the same page shared across different platforms.
- Comparing two ad creatives by giving each a different content value pointing to the same page.
- Tracking a specific time limited campaign separately from a site's general traffic.
- Keeping a team's link tagging consistent so campaigns stay comparable over time.
Good to know
- Stick to lowercase, consistent naming for source, medium, and campaign, since analytics tools often treat different capitalisation as separate values.
- Agree on a naming convention with your team before tagging links at scale, so campaign names stay easy to filter later.
- Avoid tagging internal links within your own site, since that can interfere with tracking a visitor's original source correctly.
- Keep a shared spreadsheet of past campaign names your team has used, so new links stay consistent instead of drifting into slightly different variants.
- Before sharing a newly built link widely, click it yourself first to confirm the destination page actually loads and the parameters didn't get mistyped.
Questions
What's the difference between source and medium?
Source identifies the specific place traffic came from, like instagram or newsletter. Medium describes the general category of that channel, like social or email. Together they let analytics group traffic both broadly and specifically.
Do I need to fill in every field?
No, source, medium, and campaign are the most commonly used. Term and content are optional and mainly useful for more detailed tracking, like comparing keywords or ad versions.
Will the link look different to the person clicking it?
It will visibly include the extra tracking parameters at the end, which is normal and doesn't change where it leads, though some people shorten longer links before sharing them.
Will UTM parameters slow down my page or hurt SEO?
No, they're simply read by analytics tools and don't affect how a page loads. They shouldn't create duplicate content issues either, as long as your site's canonical tags are set up correctly.
Can I use spaces in a campaign name?
Better to avoid them and use underscores or hyphens instead, since a space in a URL gets encoded, making the link harder to read at a glance.
Do UTM parameters work on any website, or just certain platforms?
They work on any URL, since they're just standard query parameters. Whether your analytics tool reports on them depends on that tool, not the website receiving the click.