UTM parameters are tags appended to a campaign URL. A spreadsheet inventory helps your team track the source, medium, and campaign names in use. The sheet itself does not measure visits; you need an analytics setup such as GA4 for traffic data.
What does each UTM parameter mean?
utm_source identifies a referrer such as newsletter, utm_medium a channel such as email, and utm_campaign a campaign such as october_newsletter. Optional utm_content can distinguish placements or creatives.
Example: https://example.com/product?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=october_newsletter. These values are visible in the URL, so do not include email addresses or other personal information.
| Field | Example | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| utm_source | newsletter | Source |
| utm_medium | Channel | |
| utm_campaign | october_newsletter | Campaign |
Build a campaign-link inventory in Excel
Give each published link one row. Include date, destination URL, source, medium, campaign, content, owner, and final tagged URL. Use lowercase, consistent names so one campaign does not fragment into several report rows.
After building a URL, test that it opens the right page and retains its parameters. The spreadsheet records your setup; add performance numbers separately from GA4 or an ad-platform export.
How to do it
- Agree on a naming convention for source, medium, and campaign.
- Record and test each link in a separate row.
- Compare names with session source/medium in the GA4 Traffic acquisition report.
Why can one campaign split into multiple rows?
GA4 treats parameter values with different capitalization as distinct. newsletter and Newsletter can split reporting. Standardize spelling, spacing, and separators before publishing links.
Session source/medium and first-user source/medium have different scopes. Compare like with like, using the same date range and report dimension.
What can SheetCommand do here?
It does not generate UTM links, install tracking, or connect to GA4. It can help clean duplicate rows, sort, and preview a supported CSV or Excel export.
Remove personal data before uploading and keep an untouched copy of a business-critical export.
Frequently asked questions
Does adding UTM parameters install Google Analytics?
No. UTM tags label a link; your site still needs a suitable GA4 setup to collect traffic data.
How are source and medium different?
Source names a specific referrer; medium groups the channel type, such as email or cpc.
Sources and further reading
SheetCommand
Prepare a CSV or Excel export
SheetCommand handles supported cleanup, sorting, and simple summaries; it does not connect to ad or analytics platforms.