Use a campaign code or custom parameter in Analytics reports
With our custom parameter field, you can collect additional data about every open. You could use this field to include a campaign code, web analytics code, or another merge field from your messaging platform or email service provider (ESP).
When you've configured your tracking code to include an additional parameter and send it out to your subscribers, the data will populate inside your Individual-level Data report, in the custom_type field.
Benefits of using a custom parameter or campaign code
We recommend you create a unique tracking code for every email you send, but if you need to use a single tracking code for multiple emails, as may be the case if you re-use a common email template, custom parameters will allow you to add a variable that will populate the custom_type field with a campaign-level unique identifier, and then automatically bring the data back to your organization via export of your Individual-level Data report or through an FTP feed (Enterprise customers only).
With analytics coverage across all of your sends plus the data collected with unique identifiers, you can easily generate insightful client reports, track campaign effectiveness over time, and much more with the analytics data you export for your tracking code.
Setting up a tracking code with a custom parameter
When you create a new tracking code, start by choosing your ESP. This will add the default unique user ID (UUID) merge tag your ESP uses to populate the recipient ID. The specific name varies depending on your ESP. This ID will tie back any received data to a specific recipient.
Next, you will be able to add as many custom parameters including other merge tags or classification tags as you would like. Separate each custom data tag with a + plus sign.
Example: *|CAMPAIGN_UID|*+*|custom-data1|*+*|custom-data-2|*+*|custom-data-3|*
Custom parameters can be static text or other merge tags that identify fields from your ESP.
IMPORTANT: When entering static text, be sure that you convert any spaces or special characters to their ASCII equivalents for proper URL encoding.
For example, &t=Café News would become &t=Caf%E9%20News.
W3Schools has a handy URL encoding reference and tool you can use.
When you export your individual-level tracking data, you'll see the additional custom parameters in the custom_type field in your CSV.
NOTE: To ensure no subscriber personally identifiable information (PII) is stored by Litmus, any data that is collected via this merge tag that resembles an email address will be scrubbed and will not be stored or appear in Email Analytics reports.
Mailchimp Campaign UID example
Mailchimp provides a Campaign_UID that displays the unique ID from your campaign archive URL. That Campaign_UID can be added as a custom parameter.
If you have an onboarding campaign or want to track engagement and opens across many email campaigns, you can get all the data into a single tracking code, instead of creating new tracking codes for every campaign.
Once you're using a merge tag in this configuration, you can log into your Litmus account and re-export the file containing data in the Custom Campaign Type field.
Enterprise plan customers can get FTP feed access by sending an email to hello@litmus.com with server credentials, so we can send you that data. Complete this form to have someone get in touch about our Enterprise plans!
If you're using our Reseller API, you may export your raw data.