The Future Of Shoppable Video Ads In Performance Marketing

The Future Of Shoppable Video Ads In Performance Marketing

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The Role of UTM Parameters in Performance Marketing
Performance marketing aims to drive measurable business results. UTM parameters work with analytics tools to provide a clearer picture of campaign effectiveness.


Consistent tagging enables accurate tracking and allows for comparison of data. Inconsistent tagging, on the other hand, can lead to duplicated sessions or incorrectly attributed conversions. To avoid these issues, implement a uniform naming convention and regularly audit links to identify and correct discrepancies.

1. Tracking Traffic
Using UTM parameters within your digital marketing efforts allows you to gain valuable insights on what is driving traffic and conversions. When used correctly, this data can help you identify the exact channels and campaigns that are reaching your ideal customers with relevant messaging so they convert faster.

There are three main UTM tags that marketers typically use: source, medium, and campaign. Adding these tags to links can help you sort incoming traffic into easily digestible reports in your analytics tools. It’s important to remember that when it comes to tagging URLs, consistency is key. Mixing up conventions can lead to inconsistent tracking and skewed results in your reporting. Avoid using punctuation in your tagging and try to keep the parameters short, meaningful, and clean.

2. Attribution
Detailed attribution data allows marketers to identify high-performing channels and shift budgets accordingly. It also enables teams to create and test new marketing strategies from a unified analytics report, such as using gated content with cold emailing campaigns to attract high-value prospects sooner.

UTM parameters are essential for granular attribution reporting. They can include multiple identifiers, including the campaign name and medium used to track traffic. They can also include a term, which can be used to manually identify paid keywords for PPC campaigns, and content, which can be employed to distinguish different versions of the same piece of marketing content for A/B testing.

Adding these identifiers to links can be a little time-consuming, but it’s worth the couple of seconds to ensure you’re getting accurate, insightful analytics reports from your digital marketing efforts. Inconsistent or ambiguous parameters can lead to misleading data, so it’s important to establish clear naming conventions and adhere to them across the team.

3. A/B Testing
When marketing teams have accurate attribution data, they can make informed decisions that improve campaign performance. For example, they can see which campaigns are attracting the most traffic and which are driving conversions. They can also measure the effectiveness of specific marketing channels and shift budgets to maximize ROI.

Using UTM parameters is simple, and there are tools to help marketers create and use them. It is important to be consistent when naming parameters to avoid confusion and ensure all marketing teams are on the same page. Keeping a shared spreadsheet for tracking and sharing links can help to keep everyone aligned.

Some of the most useful naming conventions include utm_source, utm_medium, and utm_campaign. The utm_source and utm_medium are required for analytics reporting, while the utm_campaign is used to identify a specific product promotion or overall marketing campaign.

4. Cross-Channel Marketing
Using UTM parameters correctly helps marketers track off-site customer segmentation tools and on-site marketing campaigns, showing traffic sources in their analytics tool. This provides valuable insights that can lead to better campaign planning and budget allocation.

For example, if you’re running multiple campaigns to drive new users to your website, you could tag any social media posts or digital advertising links with a utm_campaign code like “bfcm”. When you look at the Acquisition - Source/Medium report in Google Analytics, this will help you identify the specific channel that drove traffic and conversions to your site.

Similarly, you can use utm_content tags to build and track gated content like whitepapers or eBooks. These tagged links provide intent data, allowing marketers to reach high-value prospects and increase their chances of conversion.

5. Attribution Reporting
The utm_content parameter allows you to identify the specific content within your ads or promotions that drove traffic. Having this data at your fingertips can be critical for attribution reporting, especially when tracking your paid search campaign performance.

Adding these parameters to your links can be time-consuming, but it’s an essential marketing tool that can help you gain valuable insights into your off-site and on-site campaigns. Using a UTM tracker like DashThis or Rebrandly can make the process even easier and help you create consistent naming conventions for your links.

Having a solid UTM strategy is crucial to measuring the effectiveness of your marketing efforts. It helps you optimize your campaigns, allocate budgets better, and increase overall ROI.