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Why UTMs track like a beagle!

dog tracking something off in the distance

Email Marketing Mastery: Tracking, Timing and UTM Dominance

We’ve crunched the data, and identified three critical challenges that impact your CPA firm’s email marketing success. We know you’re busy, so let’s jump right in:

  1. No Data: Flying blind is not helpful to anyone. First, determine your email marketing goal. If it’s conference signups, see below for our “UTM” tips. If you want to reach a 50% open rate (which is phenomenal, by the way) as the mark of a successful campaign – great. Make sure your tracking is set up in your CRM or email marketing software. If you just signed up for a new platform, double-check that your GA4 ID is there in the settings. Otherwise, your open rates can appear as “0%” and that’s not correct!
  2. Bad Timing: Choosing the perfect “send time” is an art form. Too early, and your audience is still sleeping. Too late, and they’ve already moved on to the next thing. With strategic A/B testing, you’ll uncover the golden hours when your subscribers are primed and ready to engage. It’s all about testing, testing, testing. Try Monday at 6 a.m. (your time), then try Wednesday at lunchtime, then try Sunday, midday. Track your numbers and nail your best times. Update it every six months…at least.
  3. No UTM Tracking: These three little letters are your new best friend. Using UTMs on your URLs is the EASIEST way to see which actions your email subscribers are taking in your emails and on your website. Add the campaign name, the source and even the name of an image in your UTM to see which ones work best. This process helps you dissect the performance of every click, visit and conversion (now called “key events” in GA4) driven by your email campaigns. Add UTM wizardry, and you’ll have a comprehensive view of your ROI that will help your marketing team take credit for leads and new clients! 🧙‍♂️

Definition: UTM tracking – “UTM” stands for Urchin Tracking Module and it’s basically a little bit of code you append to your URL so you can see where your website traffic is coming from. Here is a blog about it from HubSpot. And here is where you can come up with your own codes, straight from Google.

But wait – We’ve got a bonus tip for you: DNS Authentication. (We know…another acronym.) This crucial step ensures your emails arrive safe and sound, bypassing those pesky spam filters. With a solid DNS setup, your messages will have a direct line to your subscribers’ inboxes, ensuring maximum impact. And in some cases, like Constant Contact, your emails will look like they are from info@yourCPAdomain.com instead of a bunch of gobbledygook that your subscribers will think is spam and delete right away. (Constant Contact now uses @ccsend.com if you’re NOT DNS authenticated…you don’t want that.)

Drip, drip

Now, let’s talk about the grand finale: setting up a killer drip campaign that keeps your audience engaged and hungry for more. Imagine a perfectly orchestrated email series/sequence, where each message builds upon the last, guiding your subscribers to take action. With the right strategy, you’ll have them eagerly awaiting your next installment like die-hard fans. For even better results, segmenting by interest, industry or practice area helps you personalize the messages!

Side note: how is your GA4 setup looking? Analytics and emails go hand-in-hand, so check out Shannon’s video for some quick tips on setting that up correctly.

There are so many ways to use your marketing data now, and email marketing is just the start. Let us know if you have questions about this for your CPA firm.