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UTM (Urchin Tracking Module) parameters are small snippets of text added to the end of your form URLs that allow you to track the effectiveness of your various marketing campaigns and content sources with high precision. When users click these tagged links and submit your form, Formora captures the UTM information, associating it with their submission. This provides much more granular and reliable insights than relying solely on Referrer Data, especially for email campaigns, paid advertising, specific social media posts, or QR codes.

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Understanding Standard UTM Parameters

There are five standard UTM parameters you can use. Formora will capture any data passed under these standard keys (utm_source, utm_medium, utm_campaign, utm_term, utm_content).
Purpose: Identifies the source of your traffic – the specific advertiser, site, publication, platform, etc., that is sending users to your form. Examples: google, facebook, newsletter_jan, partner_blog, linkedin_profile
Purpose: Identifies the marketing medium or channel used. Examples: cpc (cost-per-click), social_organic, social_paid, email, banner_ad, affiliate, qr_code
Purpose: Identifies the specific marketing campaign, promotion, or strategic initiative. Examples: summer_sale_2024, q4_product_launch, free_trial_webinar, brand_awareness_drive
Purpose: Used to identify paid search keywords. Examples: form_builder_software, online_survey_tool
Purpose: Used to differentiate between multiple links or ad creatives within the same campaign that point to the same URL. Examples: blue_button_v1, footer_link, sidebar_ad_variant_b
If a UTM parameter is not present in the URL, its value will be stored and displayed as ”-” (a hyphen) in the analytics table.

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Building UTM-Tagged URLs

To use UTM tracking, you need to append these parameters to your Formora form’s shareable link. Parameters are added after a question mark ?, and multiple parameters are separated by an ampersand &. Structure: YOUR_FORM_URL?utm_source=your_source&utm_medium=your_medium&utm_campaign=your_campaign Example: If your form URL is https://formora.site/f/survey123 and you want to track a Facebook CPC ad for a spring promotion: https://formora.site/f/survey123?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=spring_promo_2024&utm_content=ad_creative_A
Text showing a URL with utm_source, utm_medium, and utm_campaign parameters.

Example of a Formora form URL with UTM parameters appended

Tools for Building UTM URLs: While you can construct them manually, it’s often easier and less error-prone to use a URL builder tool. Many are available online, such as:
  • Google’s Campaign URL Builder
  • Facebook’s URL Parameters tool (within Ads Manager)
  • Many email marketing platforms also have built-in UTM tagging features.

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How Formora Captures and Displays UTM Data

When a user clicks on a UTM-tagged link and lands on your Formora form:
  1. Formora’s backend captures the utm_data (as a JSON object containing all found UTM key-value pairs, e.g., {"utm_source": "facebook", "utm_medium": "cpc"}) from the URL parameters at the point of submission.
  2. This utm_data is then saved along with the submission record in Formora’s database.
  3. In the Formora analytics dashboard, the “UTM Campaign Performance” card features an AdvancedDataTable that displays this data.
Accessing UTM Data in Analytics:
  • Look for the card titled “UTM Campaign Performance.”
  • This card presents a table (UTMSourcesTable) detailing submissions by their associated UTM parameters within the selected date range.
Mockup of an analytics dashboard area dedicated to UTM campaign data in a table.

UTM Campaign Performance table in Formora Analytics

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UTM Data Table Features and Metrics

The UTMSourcesTable provides a comprehensive view of your UTM-tagged submissions:
  • Columns Displayed:
    • Source (utm_source): Shows the utm_source value.
    • Medium (utm_medium): Shows the utm_medium value.
    • Campaign (utm_campaign): Shows the utm_campaign value.
    • Term (utm_term): Shows the utm_term value.
    • Content (utm_content): Shows the utm_content value.
    • Submissions: The total count of successful submissions for that unique combination of UTM parameters within the selected date range.
  • Sorting: All columns are sortable, allowing you to rank your UTM combinations by any parameter or by submission count.
  • Filtering & Search:
    • Global Search: A search bar allows you to filter the entire table by any text present in the UTM data.
    • Column Visibility Toggle: You can show or hide specific UTM parameter columns if needed (though all are shown by default).
  • Pagination: The table includes pagination controls (e.g., 5, 10, 20, 50 rows per page) to manage large datasets.
  • Data Aggregation: The table groups submissions by unique combinations of all five standard UTM parameters. If any parameter is missing for a submission, it’s treated as ”-” for grouping purposes.
Mockup of a table displaying UTM source, medium, campaign, term, content, and submission counts.

Table showing form submissions broken down by UTM parameters, with sorting and filtering options.

Currently, the UTM analytics focus on submission counts. It does not directly display form views by UTM combination or calculate conversion rates per UTM tag within this specific table.

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Interpreting and Using UTM Data

  • Identify Top-Performing Campaigns: Which combinations of source, medium, and campaign are driving the most submissions?
  • Compare Channel Effectiveness: Is email marketing (e.g., utm_medium=email) converting better than your paid social ads (utm_medium=social_paid) for a particular campaign?
  • Optimize Ad Spend: Allocate more budget to sources, mediums, and campaigns that deliver a higher number of submissions.
  • A/B Test Content: Use utm_content to test different ad creatives or call-to-action button text and see which results in more submissions.
  • Refine Targeting: If a campaign aimed at a specific audience (tracked via utm_campaign) isn’t resulting in many submissions, you might need to adjust your targeting or messaging.

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Best Practices for UTM Tagging

  • Consistency is Key: Establish a clear and consistent naming convention for your UTM parameters before you start tagging. Use lowercase, and choose a consistent separator (e.g., underscores _ or hyphens -). Avoid spaces.
    • Good: utm_source=facebook, utm_medium=social_paid, utm_campaign=summer_promo
    • Bad (Inconsistent): utm_source=Facebook, UTM_MEDIUM=SocialPaid, utm_campaign=Summer Promo
  • Be Descriptive but Concise: Your tags should be easy for you and your team to understand.
  • Document Your Strategy: Keep a spreadsheet or shared document outlining your UTM naming conventions and a list of all campaigns and their tags. This is vital for team collaboration and long-term analysis.
  • Use All Three Main Parameters: Always use utm_source, utm_medium, and utm_campaign for comprehensive tracking.
  • Test Your Links: After creating a UTM-tagged URL, click it to ensure it goes to the correct form and that the parameters remain in the URL bar.
  • Do Not Use for Internal Links: UTM parameters are for tracking traffic from external sources. Using them for internal links on your own website can overwrite the original campaign data and skew your analytics.
UTM tracking provides powerful insights into your marketing effectiveness, enabling you to make data-driven decisions to optimize your campaigns and maximize form conversions. After UTMs, explore Date Filtering options to refine your analytics views.
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