UTM Best Practices
UTM links only help if everyone names things the same way. These seven rules keep your reports clean enough to make decisions from.
1. Lowercase everything
Analytics tools are case sensitive, so Facebook, facebook, and FACEBOOK show up as three separate sources. Use lowercase, and underscores instead of spaces. The builder does this for you by default.
2. Source is who, medium is how
Source names the sender: google, facebook, newsletter. Medium names the type of channel: cpc, email, social, qr. Stick to Google Analytics' standard mediums (cpc, email, social, organic, referral, display) so traffic lands in the right default channel group.
3. One name per campaign, everywhere
Pick one campaign name, like spring_sale_2026, and use it in every ad, email, and post for that promotion. That lets you see the whole campaign on one row and compare channels inside it.
4. Never tag links inside your own site
A UTM tag on an internal link starts a new session and overwrites where the visitor really came from. Use UTMs only on links that live somewhere else: ads, emails, social posts, QR codes, and partner sites.
5. Use content to split test
When one email has two links to the same page, give them different utm_content values, such as header_link and cta_button. You'll see which one people actually click.
6. Tag your offline marketing too
Flyers, yard signs, mailers, and business cards can all be tracked. Build a link with source like flyer and medium print, then turn it into a QR code.
7. Keep a shared list
Most messy reports come from two people naming the same thing differently. Export your saved links as a CSV and keep it where the whole team can see it.
Example naming
| Where the link goes | utm_source | utm_medium | utm_campaign |
|---|---|---|---|
| Google Ads | cpc | spring_sale_2026 | |
| Facebook ad | paid_social | spring_sale_2026 | |
| Email newsletter | newsletter | spring_sale_2026 | |
| Google Business Profile | google_business_profile | organic | gbp_listing |
| Printed flyer (QR) | flyer | spring_sale_2026 |