A long time ago businesses and marketers would use different
phone numbers to track the effectiveness of their advertising. A jump page or vanity URL is a more advanced
way to do this, but does not apply equally to all ad campaigns the same. Example:
Online Advertising such as web banners, sponsorships on other websites, and
email blasts typically have their own tracking metrics, so they do not require
a vanity URL. Also, “call to action” vs “branding
campaigns” are treated differently. Since
a branding campaign is about branding your business, it will get more benefit
directing to your business website domain name directly. On the other hand, a “call to action” campaign
is perfect for vanity URLs. Creating one
will allow you to compare different campaigns and track how your advertising
dollars are working for you.
Vanity URLs can be used
for any “call to action,” or “direct response” ad campaign running offline.
·
Radio
·
TV
·
Newspaper
·
Direct
Mail
·
Billboards
Want to track mobile
apps? Find
instructions here.
Custom Vanity URL’s and
Jump Pages for your ads
Most users will prefer to go to your website homepage to find
your advertising offer or incentive. If
you create a vanity URL or jump page outside of your homepage, make sure it redirects
to your business website. Make sure that
the process of finding you is user friendly and super fool-proof. Because it will not be printed for reference
later, radio, billboard and TV ads will require a URL that is very simple, and
very easy for people to remember. Here’s an example of an easy to remember
URL: /yumyogurt/free-taste offer. After you have chosen your short and creative
vanity URL, you can purchase it using any domain registration site for a very
small annual fee. (ow.ly), (bit.ly) and
others are URL shorteners used by Hootsuite and Twitter. You can also use them, and they are
free. However, the most benefit would be
to create a vanity URL specifically for your business.
Google analytics
campaign parameters
So, the whole purpose of using Google
analytics is to track your advertising return on investment. If you need help with this process, there
are plenty on online tutorials to get you started. (Google URL
building link here.) Once you have a URL, and are at the Google URL
building tool, you’ll need to enter some basic campaign parameters such
as: Your real website URL, the source of
the campaign, (campaign medium), the type of marketing it is, and that easy to
remember campaign name that we spoke of in last paragraph. Lastly, you’ll need to log back into the site
where you purchased the vanity URL and ensure that the “redirect” or “forward” options
are selected so you can past in the URL generated using the Google URL
tool. Once all of this is complete, test
to be sure it’s been done correctly.
Hopefully your ads are working great for you, and leading to many
conversions!
