Overview
UTM parameters help you track the performance of your WhatsApp campaigns and journeys in analytics tools like Google Analytics. In charles, you can set up UTM parameters in multiple places — both at a global level for campaigns and individually within campaigns and journeys. This article explains where to configure UTM parameters and how to review them.
What Are UTM Parameters?
UTM parameters are short text codes added to URLs that allow analytics tools to track where your traffic is coming from. charles supports the following UTM parameters:
Parameter | Purpose |
UTM source | Identifies the traffic source (e.g., charles) |
UTM medium | Identifies the marketing channel (e.g., whatsapp) |
UTM campaign | Identifies the specific campaign by name |
UTM ID | Uniquely identifies a campaign for analytics |
UTM term | Identifies paid search keywords |
UTM content | Differentiates links within the same campaign |
Where to Set Up UTM Parameters
1. Global Campaign UTM Settings
You can define default UTM parameters that will be pre-populated across all campaigns. This saves time and ensures consistency in your tracking setup.
How to access:
Go to Settings in the left-hand navigation
Select Link Tracking
Click on Campaign links
Open the Campaign UTM settings tab
Here, you can configure global values for each UTM parameter and toggle whether they should be automatically added to links when creating a campaign. Available default variables include:
campaign_name — automatically adjusts to the name of the campaign
campaign_id — automatically adjusts to the unique ID of the campaign
channel — automatically adjusts to the channel of the campaign
💡 Note: Global UTM settings apply to campaigns only (regular and carousel templates). They are not applied to journeys.
2. UTM Parameters in Campaigns
When creating or editing a campaign — whether using a regular template or a carousel template — you can set or override UTM parameters directly on the links included in your message.
For regular templates, UTM parameters can be configured on the links within the message.
For carousel templates, UTM parameters can be set individually per card, giving you granular tracking for each carousel item.
3. UTM Parameters in Journeys
In Journeys, UTM parameters can be configured on links within Send Message nodes and Update nodes.
How to access UTM parameters in a Journey:
Navigate to Journeys in the left-hand navigation
Open the relevant journey
Open the flow
Click on the link within the message node
Click the gear icon (⚙️)
Select Edit UTM parameters
This allows you to review and customize the UTM parameters attached to each specific link in your journey flow.
Where to Check UTM Parameters
Shortened Links Tab (Campaigns)
To review all tracked links from your campaigns:
Go to Settings → Link Tracking → Campaign links
Open the Shortened links tab
Here you will find a list of all campaign links, along with their click analytics. Clicking on a link will open the Link details panel, which shows:
Total clicks and Unique clicks
Original link and Tracking link
All UTM parameters applied to that link (source, medium, campaign, ID, term, content)
💡 Carousel campaigns: If a campaign used a carousel template, analytics are available per card individually, so you can compare performance across each carousel item.
Identifying Campaigns in Google Analytics
To find your campaign data in Google Analytics, use the Campaign ID as your reference. The Campaign ID is a unique identifier (e.g., 720c1122b-f346-4b23-859e-0de4) that is passed via the utm_id parameter and allows you to match traffic in Google Analytics back to the exact campaign in charles.
You can find the Campaign ID in the Link details panel under the Shortened links tab.
Summary
Where | What you can configure |
Settings → Campaign UTM settings | Global default UTM parameters for all campaigns |
Campaigns (regular & carousel templates) | UTM parameters per campaign link or per carousel card |
Journeys → Send Message / Update nodes | UTM parameters per link in the journey flow |
Settings → Shortened links | Review UTM parameters and click analytics for all campaign links |
By setting up UTM parameters consistently across your campaigns and journeys, you can gain a clear picture of how your WhatsApp marketing drives traffic and conversions directly within Google Analytics and charles.