UTM Shortcodes: UltraCart’s Solution to Attribution Issues

Tracking the success of your marketing campaigns is essential in eCommerce. You rely on UTM (Urchin Tracking Module) parameters to evaluate the performance of your campaigns across various platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Reddit, and more. However, one challenge we often face is the loss of these UTM parameters due to ad blockers, privacy tools, or certain browser settings. When these parameters are stripped, it becomes difficult to accurately attribute traffic to its source, leading to incomplete data and reduced campaign effectiveness.

To address this issue, UltraCart has developed a new feature called UTM Shortcodes, which helps ensure proper attribution and tracking, even when UTM parameters are at risk of being removed by privacy tools.

The Problem with Stripped UTM Parameters

UTM parameters are essential for tracking where your website traffic is coming from and how users interact with your site. When these parameters are removed from URLs, it results in inaccurate attribution, which makes it hard to measure the effectiveness of your marketing efforts. This can lead to poor decision-making and less optimized ad spend.

How UTM Shortcodes Work

UltraCart’s new UTM Shortcodes solve this problem by allowing the creation of clean, simple URLs that contain a shortcode instead of long, detailed UTM parameters. UltraCart handles the processing of the shortcode on the backend, assigning the appropriate UTM parameters for accurate tracking.

Here’s how to get started with UTM Shortcodes:

1. Navigate to UTM Shortcodes:
   • In the UltraCart dashboard, go to the Storefront you want to the ad traffic to, then click on Privacy and Tracking.
   • Within Privacy and Tracking select the UTM Shortcodes tab.
2. Create a New UTM Shortcode:
   • You’ll be presented with a simple UI, like the one shown in the image. Here, you can define a custom shortcode and assign the corresponding UTM parameters.
   • Short Code: Enter a descriptive, easy-to-remember shortcode (e.g., "summer2024" or "facebook_promo").
   • Description: Add a brief description of the campaign or platform being tracked (e.g., "Facebook Summer 2024 Promo").
3. Assign UTM Parameters:
   • Fill in the necessary UTM fields to track the specifics of your campaign. You can customize the following:
     • UTM Campaign: Name of the campaign (e.g., "summer_sale").
     • UTM Medium: The medium used (e.g., "social", "email").
     • UTM Source: The source platform (e.g., "facebook", "reddit").
     • UTM Content: Content variations (e.g., "ad_banner1").
     • UTM Term: Keywords for paid campaigns (e.g., "summer_discount").
     • UTM ID: Unique IDs for more granular tracking.
4. Save and Implement the Shortcode:
   • After assigning all relevant UTM values, click Save. Your shortcode is now ready to be used in your URLs.
   • Instead of using a long URL with visible UTM parameters like https://myurl.com/?utm_campaign=summer_sale&utm_source=facebook, you can use a clean, simple URL like https://myurl.com/summer2024. UltraCart will process the shortcode in the backend and apply the correct UTM parameters automatically.

Using UTM Shortcodes on External Sites

If your using UltraCart’s Checkout-Only Mode or running UltraCart on an external site, you can still take advantage of UTM Shortcodes as long as you have UltraCart Analytics Deployed. If you are using a third-party platform for your website but UltraCart handles the checkout process, you can include UTM Shortcodes in your external links to ensure proper tracking.

Here’s how to format your URLs for your external site:

• Add the UTM shortcode along with standard UTM parameters like this:
  ?usc=sample_short_code&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=sale

Even if ad blockers or privacy tools strip the standard UTM parameters (utm_source, utm_medium, utm_campaign), the usc (UltraCart Shortcode) parameter will remain intact, ensuring that attribution is still tracked correctly. As long as UltraCart analytics is installed on your checkout pages, the shortcode will be processed and the correct tracking data will be applied.

Why Use UTM Shortcodes?

• Preserve Tracking Data: UTM Shortcodes prevent browsers, ad blockers, or privacy tools from stripping the UTM parameters, ensuring proper attribution for every click.
• Cleaner URLs: Using shortcodes keeps your URLs neat and user-friendly, avoiding the clutter of long UTM strings while maintaining tracking accuracy.
• Accurate Attribution: With proper attribution intact, you get better insights into which campaigns, platforms, and distribution channels are performing best.
• Cross-Platform Compatibility: Whether your campaign is running on Facebook, Twitter, Reddit, or another platform, UTM Shortcodes ensure that you collect complete data across all channels.

Start Using UTM Shortcodes Today

To begin utilizing UTM Shortcodes, log into your UltraCart account and go to Storefront > Privacy and Tracking > UTM Shortcodes. Set up your shortcodes, configure the UTM parameters, and start gaining full visibility into your campaigns.

This feature is a game-changer for marketers who want to make data-driven decisions without losing valuable attribution information due to browser restrictions or privacy tools. With UltraCart’s UTM Shortcodes, you can rest assured that your marketing efforts are tracked accurately and efficiently.