In the digital realm, there are many online touchpoints.
That’s why digital marketers track and analyze data over and over again. Doing so makes it possible to connect the dots between the actions online users make.
Digital tracking is the best way to understand if online campaigns and strategies are actually working. Without tracking, user behavior would be unknown.
Let’s get into our recommendations on what to track online in order to connect the dots!
But First, Let’s Cover Deterministic Attribution Modeling
The most accurate way to credit sales and conversions connected to digital touchpoints is with deterministic attribution modeling. With this, you’re able to 100% credit actions to digital marketing efforts.
At HenkinSchultz, our goal is to provide the most direct one-to-one deterministic attribution available. Sometimes that involves using third party ad placement platforms that utilize first party and third party data to connect IP addresses to emails, and then emails to actions.
With that in mind, we recommend doing your research on deterministic attribution modeling to incorporate this highly informative tracking in with your digital reporting.
Now let’s get into the tools that are readily available for digital marketers to implement right now!
5 Free Ways to Track Digital Marketing
Here are five of the best types of digital tracking you can get started on today.
While tracking this data is a great place to start, the real value will come from analyzing results month-over-month and year-over-year — on the dot.
1. Call Tracking
Call tracking is a method of conversion tracking that attributes a phone call to an action.
Click-to-call tracking helps to understand how people discovered a site and where they went on a site before making a phone call to a business. Whether a user makes a call by clicking a phone number on your website or business listing, you’re able to track phone calls coming in.
How do I track phone calls?
There are a myriad of call tracking services available online. Or, tools like Google Tag Manager, Google Analytics, and Google My Business can be used for monitoring call activity.
2. UTM Tags
UTM stands for urchin tracking module and comes into play for tracking unique URLs.
A UTM tag contains a parameter and a value. The parameter is the source of where the traffic is coming from. The value comes after the parameter and describes the medium and campaign. The source, medium, and campaign all makeup the unique URL. Here’s an example of what this looks like:
henkinschultz.com?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=november
With UTM parameters and values in place, tracking website traffic sources is made possible.
How do I set up UTM tags?
Google’s Campaign URL Builder tool allows you to add parameters to URLs for tracking purposes.
3. Google Analytics Source Tracking
The acquisition section of Google Analytics has essential information on channels and sources.
A channel contains traffic sources coming to the site all from the same medium. Organic search or direct traffic are some examples of channels. On the other hand, a source is the specific origin of the website traffic, like Google or Bing.
So, analyzing the source of all traffic coming to a website gives a full picture of which channels are working the best.
Tracking this data can be automated with a reporting tool like DataStudio or by setting up a custom dashboard in a Google Analytics account.
Where in Google Analytics can I find my traffic sources?
Go to Acquisition > All Traffic > Source/Medium. Then, set the Primary Dimension as Source to isolate this traffic.
4. Marketing Attribution Tracking
Attribution tracking determines if or to what degree marketing efforts (online and offline) contributed to user actions.
By matching an online lead to a prospect from a list of people, it’s clear to see if ads and messages are reaching the intended audience. You get hard evidence on who took an action based on what motivated them to do so.
With marketing attribution tracking, digital marketers will know which tactics are effectively leading to sales and conversions. This also helps to refine a strategy since budget spend can be allocated accordingly to improve the return overall.
How is this different from Google Analytics?
Go to Acquisition > All Traffic > Source/Medium. Then, set the Primary Dimension as Source to isolate this traffic.
5. Facebook Tracking Pixel
If you’re advertising on Facebook, installing the Facebook Pixel takes your targeting and conversion tracking to a new level.
For example, placing a Facebook Pixel on a thank you page can help you track conversions after users complete an online form. You can set up goals in the Facebook Pixel section of Business Manager to keep track of the times when visitors landed on thank you pages or other key pages.
Having a Facebook Pixel installed also gives you an opportunity to set up audiences based on website activity, like a retargeting audience.
What do I need to set up a Facebook Tracking Pixel?
All you need is a Facebook Business Manager account and access to the backend of your website to implement the pixel. Find out more about installing a Facebook Pixel.
HS Tracks & Analyzes Data Points Everyday
Tracking and analyzing data points is a big part of our digital services at HenkinSchultz. We establish goals and key performance indicators (KPIs) upfront to measure digital marketing success.
Put the HS digital team to work, and we’ll create, coordinate, and track digital strategies for you. Contact us today!
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