UTM parameters are tags appended to the end of a URL that tell analytics platforms exactly where your traffic comes from. When someone clicks a link tagged with UTM codes, those parameters are sent to Google Analytics, Plausible, Matomo or whichever tool you use. This means you can distinguish between a link shared on Twitter versus one placed in a newsletter, even if they point to the same page. trkm.cc lets you set UTM values when creating a short link and automatically appends them to the destination URL at redirect time, so the visitor never sees cluttered query strings in the address bar.
There are five standard UTM parameters. utm_source identifies the platform sending traffic, such as instagram or newsletter. utm_medium describes the marketing medium like social, email or cpc. utm_campaign names the specific effort, for example spring-sale-2025. utm_term is used mostly for paid search keywords, and utm_content differentiates variants within the same campaign, which is useful for A/B testing different creatives. At minimum you should always include source, medium and campaign on every link.
When you create a short link on trkm.cc, you can fill in UTM fields through the dashboard or pass them as JSON via the API. The values are stored alongside the link record. When a visitor clicks the short URL, the server constructs the final destination by merging any existing query parameters with your UTM tags and issues a redirect. If the destination already contains a parameter with the same key, the value you set in trkm.cc takes priority. This approach keeps your original URLs clean and gives you a single place to manage campaign tracking across all channels.
Keep values lowercase and use hyphens instead of spaces to stay consistent. Establish a naming convention document so every team member tags links the same way. Avoid putting sensitive information in UTM fields because they appear in analytics reports and server logs. Review your analytics weekly to spot miscategorized traffic early. With trkm.cc handling the tagging automatically, the risk of typos or forgotten parameters drops significantly, giving you cleaner data and more confident reporting.
Start shortening links →