Moz Q&A is closed.
After more than 13 years, and tens of thousands of questions, Moz Q&A closed on 12th December 2024. Whilst we’re not completely removing the content - many posts will still be possible to view - we have locked both new posts and new replies. More details here.
Google URL Builder / Campaign Tracking on two Different Domain using the Same Analytics Code
-
Hey Everyone,
I think I know the answer to this but I'd like to get some confirmation.
I currently have a landing page at "www.xyz.com", it's a separate domain in which only the landing page exists and not a vanity URL which redirects. However, the navigation and all the links on "www.xyz.com" actually link out to "www.abc.com". The domain / landing page "xyz" has the same analytics tracking code as domain "www.abc.com".
My question is this, if I use Google URL builder to create custom URL's to track for each ad that I'm running in Adwords, will this data show up in the analytics of "abc" even though it's a separate domain because it has the same analytics code?
In other words, does campaign data show only if the domain and the google analytics code line up, or does the domain not matter and as long as you have the same analytics code (despite two separate domains) that campaign data (built through Google URL builder) will show?
My hunch and best guess it that as long as the analytics code is the same (regardless of a separate domain) that the data in campaign will show with the custom URL's I build. I'm aware that I can test this and I will but I'd like to get an idea from the community first to make things easier. Anybody have experience with this? Answers greatly appreciated!
Thanks!
-
Thanks Tom, I'll try to implement this.
The link for http://psgrep.com/ isn't working? If I implement the solution for cross domain tracking above, will my adwords data flow through? Right now I'm getting no behaviour data even though my adwords and analytics are linked up or is there additional work I will need to do that is available on the link that isn't working?
Thanks!
-
Hey Jon,
I hope what is written above is more helpful and explains I do not want to copy the instructions Word for Word.
But I think this will give you enough to understand if you have implemented these changes you are all set if not please make the changes.
Because there are code changes that should be in place to use to different domains in order to track them you need to set up her primary and secondary.
You are on the right track I hope the information above gives you what you need if it does not.
Let me know and I would try using http://www.analytics-debugger.com/en http://memo.suan3se.com/?p=643 & http://psgrep.com/
in order to set up and know that it set up properly.
Sincerely,
Thomas
-
HI Jon,
There are because
Because cross domain tracking is dealing with a primary and secondary you do have to change the tracking snippet
For Adwords
by following the steps in the link above you will be able to set up Adwords
I have pasted example below using example1.com as well as example2.com represent the different domains. One of the easiest ways to set this up is to simply use the Google analytics debugger it is available in the chrome store as well as a this incredible resource
Here is exactly what you need to do for ad words because it is slight differences you will need to use Google auto linker plug-in
Step 1: Set up a property in your Google Analytics account.
autoLink plugin
to your tracking code, it automatically loads with your pages and does a substring match on all your links. It then recognizes any links that include a domain name that you’ve specified in your tracking code. Any traffic that clicks a link to those domains get counted as cross domain traffic.
The tracking code snippet must contain these changes every place it appears on your secondary domain.
For three or more domains
Follow the example above, but add the other domains to the autoLink plugin. Even the additional comma here is important:
ga('linker:autoLink', ['example-1.com', 'example-3.com'] );
See what this looks like in full context
The tracking code snippet on your secondary domain(s) should look like this:
https://developers.google.com/analytics/devguides/collection/analyticsjs/cross-domain
for GA
https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/1034342?hl=en&ref_topic=2772342
For cross domain tracking, set up one property in your Google Analytics account. Use the same tracking code snippet and tracking ID from that property for all of your domains.
You need to edit the tracking code snippet for cross domain tracking to work. If you haven’t already included the snippet on all your webpages, you might want copy and paste it into a text editor before continuing with the instructions here. This way, you only have to make the changes once before including the modified snippet on all your webpages.
For details on setup help, follow the instructions on how to set up the web tracking code, but remember: You must customize the snippet using the instructions in this article for cross domain tracking to work properly.
Step 2: Edit the tracking code for the primary domain.
Find the create line in the snippet. For a website called example-1.com, it looks like this:
ga('create', 'UA-XXXXXXX-Y', 'example-1.com');
Make the following changes to the snippet (the changes you need to make are in bold red text
ga('create', 'UA-XXXXXXX-Y', 'auto', {'allowLinker': true});
** ga('require', 'linker');**
** ga('linker:autoLink', ['example-2.com'] );**
Remember to replace the example tracking ID (UA-XXXXXX-Y) with your own tracking ID, and replace the example secondary domain (example-2.com) with your own secondary domain name.
http://www.analytics-debugger.com/en
https://www.google.com/search?q=google+analytics+debugger&oq=google-analytics-debugger
https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/google-analytics-debugger/jnkmfdileelhofjcijamephohjechhna
I hope this is more helpful and explains I do not want to copy the instructions Word for Word.
But I think this will give you enough to understand if you have implemented these changes you are all set if not please make the changes.
https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/1042508
TRACKING ACROSS MULTIPLE DOMAINS
autoLink plugin
https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/4627488
https://developers.google.com/analytics/devguides/collection/analyticsjs/cross-domain
I hope this will tell you yes or no
let me know,
Tom
-
Hey Thomas,
Just to be sure, could you answer the question whether my assumption is correct or not? I'll read through the resource you sent but your opinion would be great.
Thanks!
-
here is a detailed answer to your question.
https://developers.google.com/analytics/devguides/collection/gajs/gaTrackingSite
https://developers.google.com/analytics/resources/concepts/gaConceptsDomains
Please let me know if I can be of more help,
Thomas
Got a burning SEO question?
Subscribe to Moz Pro to gain full access to Q&A, answer questions, and ask your own.
Browse Questions
Explore more categories
-
Moz Tools
Chat with the community about the Moz tools.
-
SEO Tactics
Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers
-
Community
Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!
-
Digital Marketing
Chat about tactics outside of SEO
-
Research & Trends
Dive into research and trends in the search industry.
-
Support
Connect on product support and feature requests.
Related Questions
-
Clients Keep Googling Themselves
Hi, I have a common problem with my clients where they google their own business name or keywords they want to rank for and freak out when they don't show up on the first page of results. The same is true for my paid search clients. Is there a good way I can explain to them how Googleing themselves is not the best way to know if they are performing well? If there is an article out there that explains it that I can share that would be even better.
Paid Search Marketing | | GuardianOwlDigital0 -
301 Redirects and Google Shopping Feeds
I am moving my site from Volusion to Shopify. The domain remains the same but the URL paths are different. With respect to my Google Shopping feed, is it best to send old URLs (with 301 redirects) or to send the new URLs?
Paid Search Marketing | | vgusvg0 -
Is there a way to track visitors that watched my video on YouTube and became a direct visitor to my website after the fact?
I am trying to understand the impact my commercials are having on website beyond just the clicks I get from YouTube as a referring site. Google is telling me there is not a way to track users that have viewed a video. I am trying to think outside of the box to figure out a way to use the remarketing cookie to my advantage. Google says there is not a way to track a user that watched a video and then eventually came to my site. But at the same time the "Earned Views" metric is similar to what I am trying to accomplish. As per Google, "An earned view occurs when someone who views your video ad and then watches another video or videos in a linked YouTube channel within 7 days of the ad view." So I want to be able to apply this same method to people that view my video ad and then surface on my website eventually. Please let me know your thoughts on this and if there is a way to accomplish this goal. Thank you
Paid Search Marketing | | JoeyPasq0 -
Quick Question: Anchor links on Adwords main URL?
Is it OK to use anchor links on the main URL of an advert on Google Adwords? Example: www.example.com/#example Had a little Google, and not much was returned on the topic. Many Thanks, Alex
Paid Search Marketing | | Whittie0 -
Using multiple domains in one Adwords account
Hi, I am currently setting up an Adwords account and wanted to know if you can run multiple websites through one account. We have 2 domains each promoting a different one of our brands and i was wondering the best way to run the account. Regards Ben
Paid Search Marketing | | benjmoz0 -
Best practice to separate paid from organic conversions in Google Analytics
I have a PPC campaign for a client with standalone landing pages with a form, not reachable from the website (although in the same domain). I've added the AdWords conversion code to the "thank you" page and I also added a Goal in
Paid Search Marketing | | DoMiSoL
Google Analytics whose counter is increased every time the thank you page is reached. This way I can track conversions with both AdWords and Analytics. Is that correct? Should I import back in AdWords the goals from Analytics, as suggested in the AdWords account? I have another landing page with a form in the website, where I send users coming from
organic search, so I set up a second goal in Analytics for the thank you page of this form. Is this the reason why I am supposed to import in AdWords the analytics' goals, so that I could see both kind of conversions in both accounts? But the most important question is: If I send both PPC/organic visitors to the same landing page is there still a way to separate PPC from Organic conversions? Thank you very much for your advice. DoMiSoL Rossini0 -
Near-duplicate content for landing pages - use noindex?
We want to create 5-10 near-duplicates of our homepage to use as landing pages – nearly all same text, but some different images. We want to make sure Google doesn't ding us for duplicate content. Is the best way to do that to tag each of these pages with "noindex"?
Paid Search Marketing | | HopeIndu1 -
Can I dynamically add city name to my PPC ad text and URL based on the user's search?
I have looked into DKI (Dynamic Keyword Insertion), but have not found a solution and thought that some excellent Mozzer might be able to help. Here is the idea: We have landing pages for hundreds of cities. The local content on each of these cities changes page to page, however the keywords that we are going after are the same. So, I am trying to create a dynamic ad group that looks something like this: Headline: {City Name} {Keyword} Description: We cover {City Name} {Keyword}, get more info now! URL: http://www.website.com/{City Name} Please let me know if you can assist with this, B
Paid Search Marketing | | Reis_Inc.0