> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.linkutm.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# UTM naming convention
> An opinionated, copy-paste-ready standard for utm_source, utm_medium, utm_campaign, utm_content, and utm_term so every link in GA4 lands in the right row.
## Why this matters
Every marketer on your team types UTMs differently. `Newsletter` vs `newsletter` vs `news_letter` creates three separate rows in GA4. Six months later, your channel attribution is split across dozens of near-duplicate source/medium combos and no one can tell you what drove pipeline last quarter.
A naming convention costs 30 minutes to set up. The cleanup it prevents costs weeks.
This is an opinionated default. Pick the parts that fit your team, enforce them with [UTM Rules](/utm-rules/overview), and update the vocab list quarterly. A convention that gets followed beats a perfect one that doesn't.
***
## The format
```
utm_source = {channel}
utm_medium = {traffic-type}
utm_campaign = {quarter}-{theme}
utm_content = {creative-variant}
utm_term = {paid-keyword} ← paid search only
```
**Rules that apply everywhere:**
* Lowercase only: `google` not `Google`
* Hyphens between words: `q2-launch` not `q2_launch` not `Q2 Launch`
* No spaces, no slashes, no special characters
* No dates inside `utm_campaign` (the date is in your analytics tool, not your UTM)
* No PII: no email addresses, user IDs, or names
***
## Parameter guide
### utm\_source: where the traffic came from
Use the **platform name**, lowercase, hyphen-separated. Lock this to a fixed vocab list.
| Value | Use for |
| ---------------- | ---------------------------------------------- |
| `google` | Google Ads, Google Shopping |
| `meta` | Facebook Ads, Instagram Ads |
| `linkedin` | LinkedIn Ads |
| `tiktok` | TikTok Ads |
| `x` | X (Twitter) Ads |
| `newsletter` | Your own email sends |
| `youtube` | YouTube Ads or organic video |
| `podcast` | Podcast sponsorships |
| `affiliate` | Affiliate/referral partners |
| `partner-{name}` | Named partnerships, e.g. `partner-hubspot` |
| `direct` | QR codes, offline, vanity URLs |
| `organic-social` | Non-paid social posts (Instagram, LinkedIn, X) |
Don't use `email` as a source. It's ambiguous. Is it your newsletter, a cold outreach sequence, or a transactional send? Use `newsletter`, `outbound`, or `transactional` instead.
**Enforce it:** Configure [UTM Rules](/utm-rules/overview) to block values outside your approved list. Anyone using an off-list value gets a rejection on save, not a messy row in GA4 three weeks later.
***
### utm\_medium: what kind of traffic
Medium = the marketing mechanism, not the platform.
| Value | Use for |
| ---------------- | ------------------------------------------ |
| `cpc` | Cost-per-click paid search (Google, Bing) |
| `paid-social` | Any paid social placement |
| `email` | All email: newsletter, nurture, outbound |
| `display` | Banner/programmatic display |
| `video` | Pre-roll, connected TV, YouTube TrueView |
| `affiliate` | Revenue-share or performance partner links |
| `organic-social` | Non-paid social posts |
| `podcast` | Audio sponsorship read |
| `qr` | QR codes (physical → digital) |
| `referral` | Inbound from other sites (unpaid) |
GA4 uses `medium` to populate the **Default channel grouping** report. Stick to these values and your channels will auto-group correctly. Invent your own and they fall into "Unassigned."
***
### utm\_campaign: what campaign this link belongs to
Pattern: **`{quarter}-{theme}`**
```
q1-brand-search
q2-pricing-relaunch
q3-enterprise-outbound
q4-black-friday
evergreen-free-trial
```
Rules:
* Always start with the quarter (`q1` / `q2` / `q3` / `q4`) or `evergreen` for always-on
* Theme is 1-3 words, hyphen-separated, describing the campaign's purpose
* No year in the value; your analytics date filter handles that
* Same campaign name across all channels that belong to one campaign
If your Google Ads and your newsletter and your LinkedIn post are all promoting the same Q2 pricing page, they should all share `utm_campaign=q2-pricing-relaunch`. That's how you see cross-channel campaign performance in one row.
***
### utm\_content: which creative or placement
Use `utm_content` to tell variants apart within a campaign + channel combo.
Common patterns:
| Pattern | Example | Use for |
| ------------------------ | -------------------------------- | ----------------------------- |
| `{creative-name}` | `hero-cta-blue` | A/B ad creative variants |
| `{placement}` | `sidebar` `footer` `inline` | Placement within a page/email |
| `{subject-line-variant}` | `subject-a` `subject-b` | Email subject line tests |
| `{cta-copy}` | `start-free-trial` `see-pricing` | CTA copy variants |
| `{format}` | `video` `static` `carousel` | Ad format |
Leave `utm_content` **blank in templates**; fill it per link. If you bake it into a template, every link inherits the same content value and the variant data is useless.
***
### utm\_term: paid search keywords only
`utm_term` = the keyword that triggered the ad. Used almost exclusively for paid search.
```
utm_term=utm+tracking+tool
utm_term=link+shortener+for+marketing
utm_term=bitly+alternative
```
If you're not running paid search: leave it empty. Don't repurpose `utm_term` for audience segments or targeting notes; that data belongs in your ad platform, not your UTM.
***
## Channel cheatsheet
Copy-paste starting points per channel. Fill `utm_campaign` and `utm_content` per link.
```
utm_source=google
utm_medium=cpc
utm_campaign=q2-brand-search
utm_content=headline-a
utm_term={keyword}
```
Use `{keyword}` as a literal ValueTrack parameter in Google Ads; it auto-populates the triggering keyword.
```
utm_source=meta
utm_medium=paid-social
utm_campaign=q2-retargeting
utm_content=carousel-pricing
```
Meta auto-populates `utm_content` if you use `{{ad.name}}` in the URL parameter field, but stick to your own naming pattern for consistency across platforms.
```
utm_source=linkedin
utm_medium=paid-social
utm_campaign=q2-enterprise-demand
utm_content=cta-book-demo
```
LinkedIn's `{{CAMPAIGN_NAME}}` macro inserts the campaign name. Override it with your standard pattern instead of letting LinkedIn name it.
```
utm_source=newsletter
utm_medium=email
utm_campaign=q2-product-update
utm_content=hero-cta
```
Every link in a single email send should share the same `utm_campaign`. Use `utm_content` to tell the hero CTA from the footer link from the inline text link apart.
```
utm_source=organic-social
utm_medium=organic-social
utm_campaign=evergreen-product-awareness
utm_content=linkedin-post-may-19
```
Source and medium are the same here; that's intentional and how GA4 groups organic social correctly. Use `utm_content` to identify the specific post.
```
utm_source=partner-hubspot
utm_medium=affiliate
utm_campaign=evergreen-integration-promo
utm_content=blog-inline
```
Name the partner in `utm_source` using the `partner-{name}` pattern. That way you can filter GA4 by source to see partner-by-partner performance without needing a separate dimension.
```
utm_source=direct
utm_medium=qr
utm_campaign=q2-event-booth
utm_content=conference-badge
```
QR codes generated in linkutm carry the short link + these UTMs. Attendees scanning the badge → `source=direct / medium=qr` in GA4.
***
## Bad to good examples
| Before | Problem | After |
| ------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------- |
| `utm_source=Email` | Caps → splits from `email` in GA4 | `utm_source=newsletter` |
| `utm_source=email` | Ambiguous. Which email type? | `utm_source=newsletter` |
| `utm_medium=Social Media` | Spaces + caps | `utm_medium=paid-social` |
| `utm_campaign=Q2 2025 Campaign` | Spaces, caps, year | `utm_campaign=q2-brand-awareness` |
| `utm_campaign=newsletter_may_19_2025` | Date baked in, will duplicate each week | `utm_campaign=q2-weekly-digest` |
| `utm_content=` *(empty)* | No way to tell creative variants apart | `utm_content=hero-cta` |
| `utm_term=linkedin` | Term field used for channel | Delete; that's what source/medium is for |
| `utm_source=FB` | Abbreviation, won't match `meta` filter | `utm_source=meta` |
| `utm_campaign=test` | Will pollute prod data, no meaning | Block with UTM Rules prohibited values |
***
## Enforce it with UTM Rules
Setting this convention once doesn't help if someone ignores it two weeks later. Pair this playbook with [UTM Rules](/utm-rules/overview) to make the convention self-enforcing.
**Minimum ruleset to configure:**
Turn on **Force lowercase** and set **Space character** to hyphen (`-`). This catches 80% of drift automatically. No more `Google` vs `google` or `Q2 Launch` vs `q2-launch`.
Under **Prohibited values**, add: test, draft, tbd, todo. Prevents test links from leaking into production data and polluting your reports.
Under **Allowed characters**, select lowercase, numbers, and hyphens. Rejects anything with special characters or accidental spaces that slipped through.
***
## Governance
A naming convention rots if no one owns it. Assign these before you ship.
| Role | Responsibility | Cadence |
| ---------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ---------------------------- |
| **Convention owner** (usually MOPs lead) | Approves new source/medium values, updates UTM Rules allowed lists, resolves disputes | On-demand + quarterly review |
| **All link creators** | Use linkutm templates for every new link; never hand-type UTMs | Per link |
| **Analytics owner** | Flags new GA4 "Unassigned" rows as signal that convention has drifted | Weekly |
**Adding a new source or medium:**
1. Convention owner approves the new value
2. Update UTM Rules with the new approved value
3. Create a new template for the channel (see [Create a template](/utm-templates/create-template))
4. Update this playbook
Don't let individuals add new values ad hoc. One rogue `utm_source=IG` takes one week to create and six months to clean up.
***
## Quick-start checklist
Edit them to match your actual channels. Delete any you don't use.
Minimum: force lowercase on, hyphen as space character, blocked values: test/draft/tbd.
Newsletter, Google Ads, Meta, LinkedIn, and your highest-volume partner. See [Create a template](/utm-templates/create-template).
Filter GA4 → Source/Medium report → look for rows with caps, spaces, or off-list values. Those are your cleanup targets.
Bookmark it. Link to it in your team wiki. This is the source of truth, not a Notion doc only you can find.