Set Up Affiliate Link Tracking with UTM Parameters

Help me set up affiliate link tracking and UTM parameters for my Shopify affiliate program.

Setup Details:

  Affiliate app: [AFFILIATE_APP_NAME]
  Store domain: [STORE_DOMAIN]
  Analytics platform: [GOOGLE_ANALYTICS_4 / SHOPIFY_ANALYTICS / TRIPLE_WHALE / NORTHBEAM / OTHER]
  Number of active affiliates: [COUNT]
  Primary affiliate channels: [BLOG / YOUTUBE / INSTAGRAM / TIKTOK / EMAIL / PODCAST]


UTM Parameter Convention Design:

Define a consistent naming standard for all affiliate links:


  utm_source: identifies the affiliate
    
      Format options: affiliate-[ID], aff-[NAME], creator-[HANDLE]
      Recommended: lowercase, no spaces, hyphen-separated
      Example: affiliate-johndoe or aff-jane123
    
  
  utm_medium: identifies the content channel type
    
      Allowed values: blog, youtube, instagram, tiktok, email, podcast, twitter, pinterest
      Must be lowercase and consistent across all affiliates
    
  
  utm_campaign: identifies the product focus or promotion
    
      Format: [PRODUCT_SLUG] or [CAMPAIGN_NAME]-[YEAR]
      Example: hero-bag-2026 or summer-sale-2026
    
  
  utm_content: differentiates multiple links from the same affiliate in the same campaign
    
      Use for A/B testing placement positions
      Values: header-link, in-content, sidebar, cta-button, bio-link, description
    
  
  utm_term: optional, use for specific keyword or audience segment tracking


Example UTM Strings by Channel:

  Blog post in-content link: ?utm_source=affiliate-johndoe&utm_medium=blog&utm_campaign=[CAMPAIGN]&utm_content=in-content
  YouTube description link: ?utm_source=affiliate-jane&utm_medium=youtube&utm_campaign=[CAMPAIGN]&utm_content=description
  Instagram bio link: ?utm_source=affiliate-mike&utm_medium=instagram&utm_campaign=[CAMPAIGN]&utm_content=bio-link
  Email newsletter mention: ?utm_source=affiliate-sara&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=[CAMPAIGN]&utm_content=newsletter


Short Link / Clean Link Options:

  Option A: Affiliate app default short links ([AFFILIATE_APP_NAME] generates unique codes)
  Option B: Custom subdomain go.[STORE_DOMAIN]/[AFFILIATE_CODE] for brand trust
  Option C: URL shortener (Bitly or similar) with UTM appended before shortening
  Recommendation based on my setup: [PROVIDE RECOMMENDATION]


Attribution Model Comparison:

  Last-click (default in most apps): credit goes to the last affiliate link clicked before purchase
  First-click: credit goes to the affiliate who first introduced the customer to the brand
  Multi-touch linear: credit split equally between all affiliate touchpoints
  Time-decay: more credit given to touchpoints closer to the purchase date
  Recommended model for my program and why: [PROVIDE RECOMMENDATION]


Testing Checklist Before Going Live:

  Click a test affiliate link and confirm UTM parameters appear in analytics
  Complete a test purchase and verify the order is attributed to the correct affiliate
  Confirm the affiliate dashboard and Google Analytics numbers match
  Test on both mobile and desktop browsers
  Test across at least 2 different browsers (Chrome, Safari)


Analytics Reporting Setup:

  Create a custom segment in GA4: source contains affiliate
  Build an exploration report: Sessions, Revenue, Conversion Rate grouped by utm_source and utm_medium
  Set up a monthly automated email report from GA4
  Create a master UTM tracking spreadsheet with columns: Affiliate Name, Affiliate ID, UTM Source, UTM Medium, UTM Campaign, Link Created Date, Link URL, Status


Provide the full UTM naming guide, example links for my store, and a complete UTM master spreadsheet template I can use to manage all active affiliate links.