Step-by-Step Guide: Capturing Tracking IDs with URL Parameters and Referrer Parameter in Marketo Form

How to Identify the Lead Source Using Marketo Forms

Introduction:

When promoting your page through various channels like emails, social media, and webpages, it's crucial to understand which source brings in the leads or customers. In this blog post, we'll explore the technical aspects of implementing lead source identification using Marketo forms in a simple and effective manner.

Segregating Links Based on Promoted Media

To begin, categorize your links based on the media used for promotion, such as social media, webpages, email campaigns, or personal sharing through. Let's proceed with an example throughout this guide.

Imagine you have a registration page with a Marketo form at "https://www.example.com/download.html". The goal is to promote this page through emails and LinkedIn and track registrations from each source.

Create Tracking URLs for Different Campaigns:

Generate unique tracking URLs for each campaign using tools available for creating tracking IDs. For simplicity, we'll keep the example straightforward:

- Email Campaign Source: "https://www.example.com/download.html?source=email"

- LinkedIn Campaign Source: "https://www.example.com/download.html?source=linkedin"

Setting Up the Marketo Form:

1. Create the Form: Design the form that needs to be embedded on the required page.

2. Add a Hidden Form Field: Within the form, create a hidden form field and set its type as "Hidden".

3. Configure Hidden Field Settings: Marketo provides settings for hidden fields. Select "URL parameter" and enter the parameter name used in the URL. In our case, it will be "source".

Once this setup is complete, you're ready to test it. Register yourself using the tracked link and observe the captured source in the form field you selected in Marketo report.

Extra Topics

Referrer Parameter:

The Referrer Parameter captures data from the previous page the lead visited before filling out the form. To set this up:

1. Create a Form with a Hidden Referrer Parameter Field: Add a hidden field to your form, such as "source".

2. Add the Form to the Page: Embed the form on the page, e.g., "https://www.example.com/download.html".

3. Capture Referrer Source: When a visitor converts on the download page, the hidden field will capture the source parameter from the lead's previous web page visit. For example, if the lead visited "https://www.example.com/content.html?source=email" before converting, the source would be attributed to "email".

Note: The Referrer Parameter only works when the referrer page and the form-embedded page are on the same domain. If they are not under the same domain, the UTM parameter will not be captured, and the field will be empty.

Capturing the Complete URL:

To capture the complete host URL instead of just the tracking parameter, you can add a small JavaScript snippet to your page. This code will save the complete URL in the hidden field:

```

MktoForms2.whenReady(function(mktoForm){

  mktoForm.setValues({[Marketo hidden field system name]: document.location.href});

});

```

Conclusion:

By implementing lead source identification using Marketo forms, you can gain valuable insights into your campaign performance. With the step-by-step process outlined in this guide, you'll be able to capture the source information and analyze it effectively. Remember to utilize tracking URLs, hidden form fields, and the Referrer Parameter to optimize your marketing strategies based on accurate lead source data.