Google Ads UTM Tracking

When you set up UTM tags for Google Ads, you can send detailed metadata to your analytics destinations.

How It Works

1. Add a tracking template with UTM parameters in Google Ads
2. Google resolves ValueTrack parameters and custom parameters into the final URL
3. Vendo reads the template and custom parameters from Google Ads, resolves them and extracts the UTM values

Setup

1. Add Tracking Template on Account Level

In Google Ads, go to Account Settings. Add your UTM tracking template at the account level:

{lpurl}?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign={_campaign}&utm_content={_content}&utm_term={keyword}

The template uses 2 custom variables: {_campaign} and {_content}. You must set their values at the campaign and ad levels.

Tip: Google Ads Editor can make these steps faster.

2. Update _campaign Parameter Values for Campaigns

In the campaign settings, open Campaign URL options (under Additional Settings). Add a custom parameter named _campaign that contains the URL-encoded campaign name.

3. Update _content Parameter Values for Ads

Set up a parameter named _content that contains the URL-encoded ad title. You can set it at the ad group level or at the individual ad level.

Supported Variables

For more information, see Google’s ValueTrack parameters documentation .

Extracted Parameters

Click ID Tracking

Google automatically adds the gclid parameter to landing page URLs. Make sure that your website captures and stores this parameter. Vendo uses it to match conversions to ad clicks.

https://yoursite.com/product?gclid=abc123def456

Best Practices

• Always include utm_source=google and utm_medium=cpc in your tracking template
• URL-encode custom parameter values
• Use consistent naming conventions for campaigns and ads

Verify Setup

1. Click a test ad
2. Confirm that the landing URL contains UTM parameters
3. Confirm that UTM values appear on events in your destination or in Vendo