What are URL Parameters?
URL parameters, or query strings, are the letters, numbers, and symbols used for passing additional information about a URL. It could be used to indicate the source of the click or to modify the content of a webpage.
A URL parameter begins with a question mark ?, followed by a key-value pair.
https://yourdomain.com/products?category=yoga
The key-value pair is a string of text, numbers, and symbols that pass information about the parameter. It consists of a key, a value, and an equals to sign = called the value separator.
https://yourdomain.com/products?category=yoga
A URL parameter can contain multiple key-value pairs. In this case, the key-value pairs will be separated by an ampersand &.
https://yourdomain.com/products?category=yoga&difficulty=beginner
There are two types of URL parameters:
- Content-modifying parameters
- Tracking parameters
Content-Modifying Parameters (Active Parameters)
Content-modifying parameters are parameters that change the content on the webpage. They are commonly used on ecommerce sites. For example, https://yourdomain.com/t-shirts/?color=yellow&size=medium
- color indicates the color of the t-shirts the visitor is viewing. In this case, they are viewing yellow t-shirts
- size indicates the size of the t-shirts that the visitor is viewing. In this case, they are viewing medium-sized t-shirts
Tracking Parameters (Passive Parameters)
Tracking parameters are parameters that track the source of a click. They are often used to track email and ad clicks. For example, https://yourdomain.com/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=summer_sale
- utm indicates the parameter was created using the Urchin Tracking Module (UTM)
- utm_source indicates the source of the traffic. That is Google in this case
- utm_medium indicates the marketing medium. In this case, it is CPC (cost-per-click), meaning it was from a paid ad we are running
- utm_campaign specifies the name of the campaign. In this case, it is from a summer sale promo we’re currently running