Campaign Tracking Made Easy with A UTM Builder Tool

Posted on March 18, 2024 in Blog

UTM tools make building UTM parameters faster, more accurate and more useful for marketers in any industry. Using UTM tags generates incredibly valuable user insights and provides actionable data to improve marketing ROI – and that’s what we’re all about. So, we made our own UTM builder template, and you can give it a shot, too.

The Devil Is in the Details Data

Our free UTM builder tool makes building and tracking easy, but there are a few things to remember once you start. These tips apply to our free template and any tool you might use, so make sure everyone at your organization who’s creating UTMs is on the same page.

1. Be Consistent

Always use standardized UTM tags to avoid redundant tags that muddy the data. UTM parameters are case-sensitive and track hyphens and underscores differently as well. That means campaign tags like these:

Lance_Armstrong

and

lance-armstrong

…would be tracked as separate campaigns, making it a little harder to track performance accurately. Pick a style and stick to it! We’ve added a note to the template in bright red, reminding users to use underscores and lowercase; be sure to adjust this to match your standards.

2. View UTMs in Google Analytics 4

Keep your campaigns front and center in Google Analytics 4. Head to your GA4 property, select reports and choose user or traffic acquisition. Change the primary dimension to the “First User” or “First Session” campaign, and you’ll see traffic broken down by campaign.

Use our UTM parameter explainer to refresh your memory on how to choose the right source and medium options, plus a top-down how-to on UTM tags in general.

If you’re using Looker Studio, create a dedicated widget to display UTM data, so your team never loses sight of campaign performance.

You look ready; it’s time to make your UTM creator!

Slap the link to open Google Sheets.

Select File.
Select Make a Copy.
Make it your own!

Create Your Own UTM Builder Tool

More UTM Creator Options

There are several paid and free UTM tools available. These can be incredibly useful, and we’ve spent a lot of time testing these tools internally. Products like bit.ly, Buffer, UTM.io and Google’s UTM Builder Tool have a range of unique features, but don’t forget to follow our best practices above.

Bit.ly UTM Parameters

Once you have a free account, users can add UTM parameters during the link creation process. While you’ll always be able to view those UTMs in GA4, you’ll only get a running tally of clicks with a free account in Bit.ly. The paid version adds more granular analytics and can export data into a spreadsheet.

Pros: Easy to use, automatically shortens links, offers on-platform analytics.
Cons: You need a paid account for it to be really useful.

UTM Parameters in Buffer

Social media publishing tool Buffer has made adding UTM tags to social posts (almost) automated. Once you set up Google Analytics Campaign tracking, it will add default or customized parameters to everything published on the platform. As you might expect, this is a paid feature, but if you’re looking for a publishing tool, this is a great way to prove your marketing’s ROI.

Pros: Automates UTM building, features on-platform analytics, and integrates with Google Analytics.
Cons: Like Buffer, you need a paid account to rely on it.

Google UTM Builder Tool

Quick, easy – and free! Google’s UTM parameter tool is a one-shot deal; it only makes one link at a time and doesn’t save your information or settings, but if you’re only tracking a couple of links per campaign, it’s not a bad option!

Pros: Free.
Cons: Doesn’t save data, doesn’t create links in bulk.

Own Your UTM Tool with Oneupweb

Even compared to these paid options, it’s tough to beat having your own tool; the humble spreadsheet checks a lot of the boxes:

Creates UTMs in bulk.
Records all created links.
Custom or default UTM settings (depending on how you set it up).

Get started with your own UTM creator today.

You’ve Got an Eye for Analytics – We Do, Too

UTMs are an excellent way to evaluate campaign performance at the user level. We love getting granular, and it’s why our fully integrated marketing teams use data to shape everything we do. From Google Tag Manager audits to customized reporting and analytics, we make it so our clients never have to guess.

Learn more about our work; get in touch or call (231) 922-9977 today to get started.