UTM parameters are customized tags that can be added to URLs. They don't change how the link works, they only provide you with useful information so you can analyze where your customers come from. They can be used both in Google Analytics and Exponea. Exponea automatically recognizes some UTM parameters from links as well as adds some into all the emails sent.

How UTM parameters work in Exponea

UTM for the session_start events

When a visitor comes to your website with UTM parameters present in the URL, Exponea JS SDK automatically parses (transforms) the following into attributes of the session_start event:

• utm_campaign
• utm_source
• utm_medium
• utm_content
• utm_term
• campaign_id
• gclid

More information on these attributes can be found in the System events article.

Other URL parameters are not parsed but you can add more event attributes like these into session_start by following our guide to tracking events.

Automatic UTMs for emails and push notifications

When working with emails and push notifications in Exponea, the following UTM tags are added to hyperlinks automatically:

• utm_campaign
• utm_source
• utm_medium

For example, if you send an email with an email action node named "April newsletter" with a link to https://exponea.com/, the final link will look like this:

https://exponea.com/?utm_campaign=april-newsletter&utm_source=exponea&utm_medium=email

Modifying automatic UTM parameters

You can define your own values for the UTM parameters in campaign settings, under "Link transformation".

You can also change the default value of utm_source in Project settings > Campaigns > General.

Adding other UTM parameters

If you want to add other UTM parameters, which are not added by Exponea by default, you can do so by directly modifying the links within your campaign. For example, to add utm_id you can write your link like this: https://exponea.com/?utm_id=442178.
The automatic UTM parameters will then be added to this link automatically, keeping your custom UTM tag as well.

Best Practices

Using UTM parameters alone is not enough to be able to analyze them successfully. Here are a few tips that can help you use them effectively:

Create a naming convention

• Be consistent in naming (have a guideline to be shared within the team) - do not use different terms in different campaigns to prevent duplicates (e.g. fb, facebook, etc...)
• Use dashes instead of underscores, percentage and plus scores - This helps different browser and search engines recognize the words
• Use only lowercase - when analyzing, the terms are case-sensitive, and it prevents having different duplicates
• Use simple, easy-to-read naming - don't use internal numbering system or other terms that are not obvious
• Each parameter should provide different, but useful information -e.g. when you already use NL03052017 as a campaign name, it is not necessary to put newsletter into utm_source.

Choose the correct parameter:

• Campaign Source – The platform (or vendor) where the traffic originates, like Facebook, Google, etc..
• Campaign Medium – You can use this to identify the medium like Cost Per Click (CPC), social media, email, SMS, affiliate or QR code. This can be used to e.g. differentiate links from paid traffic, profile info links, posts on wall, etc.
• Campaign Term – You’ll use this mainly for tracking your keywords during a paid Ads campaign.
• Campaign Content – If you’re A/B testing ads, then this is a useful metric that passes details about your ad. You can also use it to differentiate links that point to the same URL, e.g. from a picture, from text link, from a button, etc. If there are multiple links with the same URL, they should each have a different UTM parameter.
• Campaign Name – This is just to identify your campaign. Like your website or specific product promotion, date of the newsletter, etc.

You can use this table as a guide when creating your own UTM tags.