UTM Tracking template

The Software Developer’s Guide to Growth presents an experimental, iterative approach to all sorts of growth activities, and SEO/SEM efforts are no exception.

UTM Tracking Template

Using the UTM tracking template

Use this worksheet to define UTM parameters for standardized conversion-tracking of “owned” campaigns (paid, email, social, etc).

  1. Update green boxes under utm_medium and utm_source with the list of valid mediums and sources your UTMs will use
  2. Add campaigns you’re running to the green boxes in the utm_campaigns tab
  3. Add UTM parameters to a new row in the UTMs tab
  4. copy the final link for use in emails, social posts, etc)

When not to track UTM parameters

UTM parameters are a necessity in attributing traffic that would otherwise be reported as “direct” in your Google Analytics instance, but there’s no need to track UTM parameters for links that will be correctly picked up by GA. Skip the parameters for:

  • links within the same domain
  • organic search
  • “organic” external referrals

If you just need a single campaign and no tracking of the UTMs you’ve shared over time, consider Google’s Campaign URL Builder instead!

And don’t stop here! The entire Guide to Growth is free to read and share. It’s important stuff, and I hope you’ll check it out.