Using Source Tracking and UTM Parameters

Track where your form submissions come from with automatic UTM parameter capture and source analytics - available on the Individual Tier plan.

What Is Source Tracking?

Source tracking captures valuable information about where your form visitors come from and how they interact with your forms. FormRobin automatically records:

  • UTM Parameters - Marketing campaign tracking (utm_source, utm_medium, utm_campaign, etc.)
  • Referrer URL - The page that sent visitors to your form
  • Landing Page URL - The exact URL where users accessed your form
  • Device Information - Device type, browser, operating system
  • IP Address - Visitor network location (privacy-compliant)

Plan Requirement: Source tracking data is captured for all users, but viewing and analyzing this data requires the Individual Tier plan.

How Source Tracking Works

FormRobin automatically captures tracking data when someone views your form:

  1. User clicks a link with UTM parameters or visits your form from another page
  2. FormRobin creates a form session and captures all tracking data
  3. When the user submits the form, their response is linked to the tracking data
  4. Individual Tier users can view this data in the Responses dashboard and CSV exports
  5. Free Plan users cannot view the data (but it's captured in case they upgrade)

UTM Parameters Captured

FormRobin automatically captures all standard UTM parameters:

  • utm_source - Campaign source (e.g., google, newsletter, facebook)
  • utm_medium - Marketing medium (e.g., cpc, email, social)
  • utm_campaign - Campaign name (e.g., spring_sale, product_launch)
  • utm_term - Paid search keywords
  • utm_content - Ad variation or content identifier

Example UTM URL

If you share your form with this URL:

https://forms.formrobin.com/yourform?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=summer2024

FormRobin will capture:

  • Source: facebook
  • Medium: social
  • Campaign: summer2024

Device and Browser Tracking

FormRobin automatically captures device information for every form session:

  • Device Type - Desktop, Mobile, or Tablet
  • Browser Name - Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge, etc.
  • Browser Version - Specific version number
  • Operating System - Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, Linux, etc.

This helps you understand how users access your forms and optimize for their devices.

Viewing Source Tracking Data (Individual Tier)

  1. Log in to your FormRobin account
  2. Go to Forms and select a form
  3. Click the Responses tab
  4. Individual Tier users will see filter options at the top:
    • Filter by UTM Source
    • Filter by UTM Medium
    • Filter by UTM Campaign
    • Filter by Device Type
  5. Click on any response to view detailed source tracking information

Note: Free Plan users will see an "Upgrade to Individual Plan" banner instead of tracking data.

Source Tracking in CSV Exports

When Individual Tier users export form responses to CSV, the export includes additional source tracking columns:

  • UTM Source
  • UTM Medium
  • UTM Campaign
  • UTM Term
  • UTM Content
  • Referrer URL
  • Landing Page URL
  • Device Type
  • Browser Name
  • Operating System
  • IP Address

Free Plan users will only see basic response data without source tracking columns.

Common Use Cases

  • Marketing Campaign ROI - Track which campaigns generate the most form submissions
  • Traffic Source Analysis - Identify your best-performing traffic sources
  • Content Performance - See which blog posts or landing pages drive submissions
  • Ad Effectiveness - Compare Facebook vs Google Ads using UTM parameters
  • Device Optimization - Understand mobile vs desktop conversion rates
  • Partner Attribution - Track submissions from affiliate or partner links

Creating UTM-Tagged URLs

To track specific campaigns, add UTM parameters to your form URLs:

  1. Start with your form URL: https://forms.formrobin.com/yourform
  2. Add a question mark ?  followed by parameters
  3. Separate multiple parameters with &

Examples:

  • Email campaign: ?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=march2024
  • Facebook ad: ?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=spring_sale
  • Blog post: ?utm_source=blog&utm_medium=content&utm_campaign=tutorial

💡 Tip: Use Google's Campaign URL Builder to create properly formatted UTM URLs: ga-dev-tools.google/campaign-url-builder

Privacy and Data Handling

  • IP addresses are captured in a privacy-compliant manner
  • No personal data is extracted from UTM parameters or referrers
  • Data retention follows FormRobin's standard policies
  • GDPR/Privacy compliance - Tracking data is treated as submission metadata

Limitations

  • Free Plan users cannot view or export source tracking data (data is captured but not accessible)
  • Data captured on initial session only - If a user returns later, original tracking data is preserved
  • Browser restrictions - Some browsers may block referrer headers for privacy
  • No retroactive data - Source tracking was added in a specific version; older submissions may not have this data

Troubleshooting

Issue: I can't see source tracking data in my responses.

Fix: Source tracking requires the Individual Tier plan. Free Plan users see an upgrade banner instead of tracking data. Check your plan in Account Settings. Upgrade to Individual Tier to unlock this feature.

Issue: UTM parameters aren't being captured.

Fix: Verify your URL includes properly formatted UTM parameters with ?  before the first parameter and &  between parameters. Example: ?utm_source=test&utm_medium=email . Check that users are clicking your UTM-tagged links (not typing the URL manually).

Issue: Referrer URL is empty or missing.

Fix: Some browsers block referrer headers for privacy. This is normal browser behavior. Users coming from direct links, bookmarks, or privacy-focused browsers may not have referrer data.

Issue: Device type shows "Desktop" for mobile users.

Fix: FormRobin parses the user agent string to determine device type. Some mobile browsers may send desktop user agents. This is a limitation of browser user agent detection.

Issue: CSV export doesn't include source tracking columns.

Fix: Only Individual Tier users see source tracking columns in CSV exports. Free Plan users will only see basic response data. Upgrade to access source tracking in exports.

FAQ

Q: Is source tracking data captured for Free Plan users?

A: Yes, data is captured for all users. However, only Individual Tier users can view and export this data. If you upgrade later, you'll have access to all previously captured tracking data.

Q: Can I track custom parameters (not UTM)?

A: FormRobin only captures standard UTM parameters. Custom query parameters are not tracked. Use the five standard UTM parameters (source, medium, campaign, term, content) for tracking.

Q: How long is source tracking data stored?

A: Source tracking data is stored with your form responses indefinitely, following the same retention policy as your response data.

Q: Can I filter responses by multiple UTM parameters?

A: Yes. Individual Tier users can apply multiple filters simultaneously (e.g., filter by utm_source=facebook AND device_type=mobile) in the Responses dashboard.


Need help setting up source tracking? Contact our support team - we're here to help!

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