UTM Parameters and Custom Data

The UTM parameters on an Ice Cream Social link tell us:

whether a potential lead arrived at a url provided by Ice Cream Social (utm_source)
whether this was an influencer link or not (utm_medium)
how the link was generated (utm_content)
the campaign it is part of (utm_campaign)
the name of the campaign (utm_term).

These parameters are captured before redirecting to the final URL provided by a client in the ICS Admin. All UTM parameters will be forwarded to the final URL along with any other custom parameters provided. This allows us to accurately attribute conversions without having to rely on 3rd part cookies and allows clients to map some of their analytics data to ICS functions. This also gives us potential to serve different experiences based on the link parameters provided. Additionally, the custom data also allows clients the ability to pass any other tracking information that might not be standard or any other flags for their needs.

Parameter Values

All UTM parameters on links generated by ICS will explicitly contain ics or ice_cream_social in the value in order to clearly differentiate between other data from platforms that might utilize UTM as well (such as Facebook ads or non-ICS email campaigns). The following values are generated automatically by ICS without any client intervention:

UTM	Possible Values	Description

UTM	Possible Values	Description
source	`ice_cream_social`	The only allowed value. If source is not ice_cream_social, it will not be tracked by ICS because either: the link was not generated through ICS the link was tampered with
medium	`ics_influencer` `ics_conversion_email` `ics_goal_reached_email`	This is a link that was generated by an influencer and shared on social media or other channels. If a user arrives on a landing page with this parameter in the URL, we know that they were sent here by an influencer which we can credit later This is a link that is included on one of ICS’s automatic emails. If a user arrives on a landing page with this parameter in the URL, we know that this is a re-engaged influencer. This is to encourage sharing more to reach their goal or to drive another conversion This is a link that is included on one of ICS’s automatic emails. If a user arrives on a landing page with this parameter in the URL, we know that this is a re-engaged influencer. This is to encourage sharing more to reach their goal or to drive another conversion
content	`ics_modal` `ics_embedded` `ics_fab` `ics_email_cta`	If a user arrives on a landing page with this parameter in the URL, we know that the influencer shared using the popup modal version of the ICS widget If a user arrives on a landing page with this parameter in the URL, we know that the influencer shared using the embedded (seamless) version of the ICS widget If a user arrives on a landing page with this parameter in the URL, we know that the influencer shared using the floating action button version of the widget If a user arrives on a landing page with this parameter in the URL, we know that the influencer clicked a button in one of ICS’s automatic emails
campaign	`ics_campaign_[CAMPAIGN_ID]`	The ID of the campaign this link belongs to. If campaign does not contain `ics_campaign`, the campaign is not found, or the campaign does not belong to the domain it is shown on, it will not be tracked by ICS because either: the link was not generated through ICS the link was tampered with
term	The words in the name of the campaign and the offer, delimited by `+` instead of spaces. ex: Campaign Name: Buy one, get one utm_term: `Buy+one+get+one`	This parameter is not really used much any more. This is usually for paid search, but in our case it is purely cosmetic. It contains all the custom copy that the end user is able to see. This will not do anything special for now, but can be used to create a database of keywords that we can run data analytics on to see what keywords perform better.