google analytics campaign tracking

Google Analytics accurately tracks visitors from a source, such as a search engine or email link, to a conversion or transaction on your site.

Tagging your online ads is an important prerequisite to enable Analytics to show you which marketing activities are generating any kind of ROI (and which are not!).

Here is Google's 3 step starter process:

1. Tag only what you need to

If your Google Analytics account is linked to an active Google AdWords account and you have auto-tagging enabled, you don't need to tag your AdWords URLs. Google Analytics will automatically track all of your AdWords campaigns. You'll still need to tag all of your non-AdWords paid keyword links, though, as well as your banners and other ads, and the links inside your promotional e-mail messages.

There are certain links that you don't need to tag, and many times will not be able to tag. You should not attempt to tag organic (unpaid) keyword links from search engines and it isn't necessary to tag links that come from referral sites, such as portals and affiliate sites. Google Analytics automatically detects the name of the search engine and the keyword from organic (unpaid) keyword referrals, and you'll see metrics for these referrals in your reports, typically under "Organic" listings. Google Analytics also detects referrals from other websites and displays them in your reports, whether or not you have tagged them. And again, you don't need to tag your AdWords URLs if your Analytics and AdWords accounts are linked.

2. Create your links using the URL Builder

Campaign links consist of a URL address followed by a question mark and your campaign variables. But, you won't need to worry about link syntax if you fill out the URL Builder form and press the Generate URL button. A tagged link will be generated for you and you'll be able to copy and paste it to your ad. If you're wondering which fields to fill in, you're ready for Step 3.

Here's an example for a fictional Vie Digital email campaign sending people to this very page:

http://www.viedigital.com/resources/google_analytics_campaign_tracking/?utm_source=examplenewsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_term=march2010&utm_campaign=gacampaigntracking

Note how each parameter (utm_source, utm_medium, utm_term, utm_campaign) adds information to the string to help us marketers see if we are driving traffic to the site AND (with Golas setup correctly) if this traffic is worthwhile generating!

Check out the really handy Google Analytics Campaign URL builder at http://www.google.com/support/googleanalytics/bin/answer.py?answer=55578&hl=en

3. Use only the campaign variables you need

Google Analytics' link tagging capabilities allow you to uniquely identify virtually any campaign you can think of. But, don't think that you must use all six fields in the URL Builder form in each of your links. On the contrary, you'll usually only need to use Source, Medium, Name, and Term (for paid keywords). The table below shows how you might tag the three most common kinds of online campaigns - banner ads, email campaigns, and paid keywords.

  Banner Ad Email Campaign PPC Keywords
Campaign Source citysearch newsletter1 overture
Campaign Medium banner email cpc
Campaign Term Boston July purchased keyword
Campaign Content      
Campaign Name productxyz productxyz productxyz