UTM parameters

The name comes from the Urchin Tracking Module of Urchin, the analytics company Google bought in 2005. The tags are ordinary query parameters, so any page accepts them, and analytics tools read them when the visit arrives. Google Analytics says to always use three:

• utm_source: where the visitor came from, such as flyer or newsletter.
• utm_medium: the channel, such as print or email.
• utm_campaign: the campaign, product or promotion, such as spring_menu.

Optional tags include utm_content to tell placements or designs apart, utm_term for paid keywords, and utm_id, which GA4 recommends for matching imported campaign data. Values are case-sensitive in GA4, so Print and print are reported separately.

A phone camera opens a link without a referring page, so an untagged QR visit looks the same as someone typing the address and usually lands in Direct. Tags are what connect the visit to the printed piece.

How you add them matters. In a static code the tags are part of the encoded address: fixed forever, and they make the code denser. In a dynamic code the redirect can append them at scan time, so the printed pattern stays small and the tags can be corrected later. Either way, give each placement its own code or its own utm_content value, keep a consistent naming scheme, and check that your site does not drop query strings when it redirects.

https://example.com/spring-menu?utm_source=flyer&utm_medium=print&utm_campaign=spring_menu is 90 characters and needs a version 6 code (41 × 41) at level M. Without the tags, the 31-character address fits version 3, and a dynamic code can add the same tags at scan time.