Email Marketing terms

UTM Parameters

Tags added to a URL to track the performance of campaigns and content in analytics tools.

What are the UTM parameters in email marketing?

UTM parameters in email marketing are specific text strings that you can append to URLs that allow you to track those URLs when they get clicked on. UTM stands for Urchin Tracking Module, a format system that was used by Google Analytics' predecessor, Urchin, to track unique URLs and gather insights about the traffic coming to a webpage.

These parameters help marketers track the effectiveness of their campaigns and identify where the traffic is coming from. They can provide information about the source, medium, campaign name, term, and content associated with a URL. By using UTM parameters, marketers can understand the behavior of their audience, measure the success of their marketing efforts, and optimize their future campaigns.

How do I use UTM parameters in email marketing?

UTM parameters can be used in email marketing to track the effectiveness of your campaigns. They are simply tags that you add to a URL. When someone clicks on a URL with UTM parameters, those tags are sent back to your Google Analytics for tracking.

To use UTM parameters in email marketing, you would first need to decide what exactly you want to track. This could be the source, medium, campaign name, term, or content. Once you've decided, you can use a UTM builder to create your URL. For example, if you're sending out an email campaign about a new product, you might use "email" as your medium, the product name as your campaign, and the specific link you're tracking as your content. Once the URL is created, you can insert it into your email. When a recipient clicks on the link, the data will be sent back to your Google Analytics account, allowing you to track the success of your campaign.

Why are UTM parameters important in email marketing?

UTM parameters are crucial in email marketing as they allow marketers to track the effectiveness of their campaigns. They are tags added to a URL that, when clicked, send data back to Google Analytics about where the visitor came from. This means marketers can see exactly which emails are driving traffic to their website, what specific content within the email is most effective, and how users are interacting with their site once they arrive.

Furthermore, UTM parameters provide valuable insights into user behavior and campaign performance. They can help identify which email campaigns are most successful in terms of engagement, conversions, and sales. This data can then be used to refine and optimize future email marketing strategies, making them more targeted and effective. Without UTM parameters, it would be much more difficult to measure the success of an email marketing campaign and understand how to improve it.

What are the best practices for using UTM parameters in email marketing?

UTM parameters are essential tools in email marketing as they help track the effectiveness of campaigns by providing data on where the traffic is coming from. One best practice is to use a consistent naming convention for your parameters. This will make it easier to analyze your data later on. For example, you could use "email" as the medium, the name of the email campaign as the campaign, and the specific link or call to action as the content.

Another best practice is to use UTM parameters for all links within your email, not just the main call to action. This will give you a more comprehensive view of how subscribers are interacting with your email. It's also important to use a URL builder to ensure that your UTM parameters are formatted correctly. Lastly, remember to review and analyze the data collected from UTM parameters regularly. This will help you understand what's working and what's not in your email marketing strategy, allowing you to make data-driven decisions.

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