UTM Parameters Explained

utm_source: Identifies the traffic source - where visitors clicked the link. Examples: google, twitter, newsletter, reddit. This tells you WHICH platform sent the traffic.
utm_medium: Identifies the marketing medium or channel type. Examples: cpc (paid search), social (organic social), email, referral. This tells you WHAT TYPE of channel it was.
utm_campaign: Names your specific campaign or promotion. Examples: spring_sale, product_launch, weekly_newsletter. Use consistent naming conventions across campaigns.
utm_term: Used for paid search to identify keywords. If you're running Google Ads, this tracks which keyword triggered your ad. Optional for non-paid campaigns.
utm_content: Differentiates similar content or links within the same campaign. Use it for A/B testing - e.g., 'hero_cta' vs 'footer_link' to see which placement converts better.

UTM Link Examples

Newsletter
https://buildandmarket.dev/en/blog/migrating-from-nextjs-to-astro?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=astro_migration
Use the same utm_campaign across every channel promoting the post so you can compare them in a single report.
LinkedIn post
https://buildandmarket.dev/en/blog/migrating-from-nextjs-to-astro?utm_source=linkedin&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=astro_migration
Keep utm_medium=social for every social network and put the platform in utm_source. If you pay to promote the post, use a separate medium such as paid_social to keep paid traffic apart from organic.
Two buttons, one email
https://buildandmarket.dev/en/tools/utm-builder?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=utm_builder_launch&utm_content=hero_cta
The second button gets utm_content=footer_link. Everything else stays the same, so the report compares only where people clicked.

What is a UTM link?
A regular page URL with utm_ parameters added to the end. They don't change what visitors see, but your analytics tool reads them on arrival and attributes the visit to a specific source, medium, and campaign.
Which UTM parameters are required?
The builder requires the page URL, utm_source, and utm_medium - without them, traffic can't be attributed in any useful way. Add utm_campaign whenever links belong to one initiative. utm_term and utm_content are optional.
Where do I see UTM traffic?
In the traffic sources report of your analytics tool. Google Analytics, PostHog, Plausible, and Umami read UTM parameters automatically, so you can filter visits by source, medium, and campaign without extra setup.
Are UTM parameters case-sensitive?
Yes. Most analytics tools are case-sensitive, so Newsletter and newsletter show up as two separate sources. Write everything in lowercase and use _ or - instead of spaces.
Do UTM parameters hurt SEO?
Not if the page has a correct canonical tag - Google treats the URL with UTMs as the same page. Just don't add UTMs to internal links: clicking one overwrites the real source of the visit and skews your campaign data.
Can I shorten a UTM link?
Yes. Shorteners like bit.ly redirect to the full URL with its parameters intact, so they reach your page unchanged. A short link works well in a bio, on flyers, and in QR codes.