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How to create a Google Analytics campaign for your mailings

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In this article:

What is Google Analytics and why should you use it in your email?

Google Analytics is a tool that allows you to track activity on your website. By using this function, you'll be able to access data such as:

  • the amount of users who visited your website from your email;
  • pages visited on your website by the user;
  • the number of sessions;
  • the number of pages visited;
  • the average time spent on your website per session.

You'll then be able to compare those statistics with other entry sources on your website. If you wish to get more information on Google Analytics, we invite you to read more about this subject on Google's website.

What is a session?
The period of time a user is active on your site or app. By default, if a user is inactive for 30 minutes or more, any future activity is attributed to a new session. A user that leaves your site and returns within 30 minutes is counted as a single session.
Source: Google Analytics

How to integrate Google Analytics to an email and create a campaign?

To use this functionnality in your emails, it is imperative that you have a Google Analytics account for your website and that the tracking code has been installed properly and is valid. (The tracker code need to be installed within the <head> tag. More information here.)

Make sure all the links in your email are supporting the UTM parameters:  adding these parameters to a website that doesn't support them will create a wide variety of problems: broken links, 404 errors, wrong web page display and many more. To be sure everything within your email works correctly, we strongly suggest to send yourself your email with Google Analytics activated and to click every link in your email. If some links come back broken or inactive, know that it is possible to manually add the UTM parameters to the links supported without activatig the Google Analytics function in your email.

To integrate Google Analytics to your email:

All you have to do is activate the option in the very last step of your mailing configuration. After checking the box to activate the function, validate the campaign name. It will, by default, be the subject of your mailing. Take note of it to find the correct campaign in your Google Analytics account after your mailing is sent.

Google Analytics

If you wish to change the campaign name to something else, make sure the campaign name is short, without accents, without special characters or spaces (you can use a hyphen between words if you wish). Our tool will automatically add the necessary parameters to every link in your email when delivery will start.

How to test your links with Google Analytics UTM parameters

We strongly suggest that you test every link when using Google Analytics in your emails. The only way to test this function is to send out a complete mailing to a test group with only a few selected email addresses (these addresses can be yours, friends, colleagues, etc) with the Google Analytics function activated and to click every link in the email received.

If some of your links don't work or give errors, read our section on the matter here.

How to see the  results of your Google Analytics campaign

In order for your campaign and its results to appear in Google Analytics, there will need to be at least one click on a link to your website from your email. Also note that there will most likely be a delay for the campaign to appear and the clicks to show. Additionally, you will simply be able to see data pertaining to your own website. You won't have access to results for links to web pages that belong to other owners.

To find the results of your campaign in Google Analytics:

  1. Log into your Google Analytics account.
     
  2. Click on "Acquisition", then "Campaigns" on the left menu to open the sub-menus.
     
  3. Click on "All Campaigns".


     
  4. Find the name of your campaign. You can use the search bar if needed.
     
  5. Click the name of the campaign to access your report.

The number of clicks in my email is higher than the number of visitors recorded in my campaign...why?

Many factors we sadly have no control over can alter the data gathered by Google Analytics. Here are a few:

  • using "AdBlock";
  • "Do not track" activated by default on Safari;
  • sharing the email by forwarding it from the inbox;
  • connection problems.

Also note that if you've integrated several links to your website, Google Analytics will only count the visitor once, even if several links were clicked.

Are your clicks disregarded when coming from your domain name? It's possible to configure a filter that will ignore clicks and visitors coming from your workplace's IP address. Click here if you wish to have more details on these filters. If it's the case, use an email address that you can access outside of the office or open your email from your phone, making sure to use your mobile network instead of the office wifi and click your links. It's also possible to deactivate these filters while testing.

For more help on Google Analytics, we invite you to read Google's support website here.

I activated the Google Analytics option in my email but there is no campaign created?

How can I make sure I properly activated the option in my email?
To do so, go to "Mailings", then select "Previous Mailings". Click the action menu (three dots) and select "Statistics". Scroll down to the "Link statistics" section and pay attention to your links. When Google Analytics has been activated in your email, special UTM parameters will be added to your links. It will look a little like this, at the end of your link: utm_source=...

If your campaign doesn't appear in Google Analytics despite having been properly activated in your email, make sure to check these few things:

  • Did you only test your links from work?

    If so, make sure you don't have a filter set to ignore clicks coming from your work IP address : it's possible to configure a filter that will disregard clicks and visitors coming from your workplace's IP address. Click here if you wish to have more details on these filters. If it's the case, use an email addresse that you can access outside of the office or open your email from your phone, making sure to use your mobile network instead of the office wifi and click your links. It's also possible to deactivate these filters while testing.
     
  • Was there at least one link to your website in your email? Was it clicked? Is the tracker code for Google Analytics properly installed on the page?

    To see your campaign appear in Google Analytics, all these conditions need to be met. Note that Google Analytics statistics for websites other than yours are not accessible.
     
  • There may be a delay between clicks, visits and the apparition of the Google Analytics campaign.

    It's however possible to see these statistics "live". Click here to know how.

For more help on Google Analytics, we invite you to read Google's support website here.

One or more links are broken in my email...why?

First step is to make sure your links are valid without the UTM parameters from Google Analytics. If it's the case, make sure the Google Analytics tracker code has been installed properly on the page you tried to reach. The code needs to be properly installed in the <head> tag of your website. Keep also an eye on the name of your campaign. Even if the code has been properly integrated, some characters or a campaign name that is too long could be badly supported.

 

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