What’s the Difference Between a Click-through URL, a UTM Code, and a Conversion URL?
This page explains the difference between Click-through URLs, UTM Codes, and Conversion URLs
🚀 Click-through URL (CTURL)
This is the landing page users go to when they click on your ad.
Example:
If someone clicks on your baby clothes ad, the click-through URL might be:www.babyclothes.com
🧭 UTM Codes
UTM (Urchin Tracking Module) codes are tags added to the end of your click-through URL to help track how users got to your site in Google Analytics.
We automatically add UTMs to your URLs unless you've already added your own.
Here’s how they work:
-
utm_source=3461
→ Tracks where the traffic came from (ex: Google, Facebook, etc.) -
utm_medium=display
→ Tracks the channel used (ex: display, video, email) -
utm_campaign=12345
→ Tracks which specific campaign drove the visit
Example of a full URL with UTMs:http://yourwebsite.com/?utm_source=3461&utm_medium=display&utm_campaign=12345
🎯 Conversion URLs
Conversion URLs are pages on your website you want to track visits to—like your contact or thank-you pages. They help you see what users do after seeing or clicking your ad.
You can track up to 5 conversion URLs per display campaign.
Example conversion URLs:
-
https://www.test.com/contact
-
https://www.test.com/locations
-
https://www.test.com/about
To track these, a tracking pixel must be installed on your site.
Fun fact: your click-through URL can also be used as a conversion URL if you want to track that too.
✅ Quick Recap:
Term | What it Does |
---|---|
Click-through URL | The page your ad links to when clicked |
UTM Code | Adds tracking info to URLs for Google Analytics reporting |
Conversion URL | Tracks important page visits (ex: contact, thank-you pages) |