Submission source tracking using UTM parameters
Submission source tracking in Creatio is a built-in attribution mechanism that determines the origin and channel of form submissions based on URL parameters and referrer data. The mechanism relies on standard UTM parameters appended to landing page URLs and a predefined set of attribution rules applied at the moment a submission is registered.
The primary purpose of submission source tracking is to populate structured attribution fields in the submission record and, if applicable, propagate this data to related contact records. This ensures consistent first-touch attribution across marketing and sales analytics without custom integrations or manual data enrichment.
Submission source tracking is designed to work with native Creatio landing pages as well as externally hosted pages that register submissions in Creatio.
Tracked submission data
When a user opens a landing page that contains a form registering submissions, Creatio captures attribution data as soon as the page loads.
The key data points include:
- Channel field: the type of traffic that delivered the submission, for example social accounts, search-based advertising, direct traffic, or AI platforms.
- Source field: the specific platform or resource name, such as a social network, advertising system, or external service.
- Redirection website field: the domain that redirected the user to the landing page.
- UTM parameters area: raw values from the submission URL, including utm_medium, utm_source, utm_campaign, utm_content, and utm_term fields.
Together, these fields form the basis for first-touch attribution in Creatio.
Submission source tracking mechanism
Creatio landing pages automatically include hidden technical fields that capture URL information:
- Page URL: records the full URL of the landing page, including UTM parameters.
- Referrer URL: records the website from which the user navigated to the landing page.
Landing pages created in the third-party page designers need to be configured in a similar way.
When a submission is created, Creatio analyzes these values and applies predefined rules to determine the submission channel and submission source. The system evaluates UTM parameters first and then falls back to referrer-based logic if no UTM data is available.
This approach ensures consistent attribution even when users arrive from different types of links or platforms.
Submission channel identification
Creatio determines the submission channel using a priority-based set of rules. The first matching rule defines the channel, and lower-priority rules are not evaluated. At a high level, the logic works as follows:
- If the URL contains a recognized utm_medium value, Creatio assigns the channel linked to that parameter. For example, the redirection URL value is
http://example.com/page?utm_medium=social. In this case, the channel will be populated with the "Social accounts" value. - If utm_medium is not found but utm_source is present, Creatio uses the default channel associated with the identified source. For example, the redirection URL value is
http://example.com/page?utm_source=creatio, which means the customer clicked the link in the Creatio bulk email. In this case, the channel will be populated with the "Email" value. - If the URL contains a Google advertising identifier (
gclid), the submission is classified as paid search traffic. For example, if the redirection URL ishttp://example.com?gclid=123abc. - If no UTM parameters are present, Creatio analyzes the referrer website and maps it to a known source and channel. For example, the referrer is
creatio.com. - If neither UTM parameters nor a referrer are identified, the submission is classified as "Web: direct traffic".
This layered approach minimizes data loss and ensures that every submission receives the most accurate channel classification possible.
Submission source identification
Submission source identification follows a similar priority-based principle but focuses on determining the exact origin of the traffic. In general it works as follows:
- When utm_source is present, Creatio uses its value to identify the submission source. For example, the redirection URL value is
http://example.com/page?utm_medium=social&utm_source=linkedin. In this case, the source will be populated using the "LinkedIn" value. - If only utm_medium is available, the source is classified as a generic or "other" source. For example, if the redirection URL value is
http://example.com/page?utm_medium=social. - If the URL contains a Google advertising identifier (
gclid), the source is identified as Google Ads. For example, if the redirection URL value issite.com/?gclid=123abc, then the source will be populated using the "Google AdWords" value. - If no UTM parameters are present, Creatio attempts to identify the source using the referrer website. For example, if the source website value is
creatio.com, then the submission source will be populated using the "Creatio" value. - If no information is available, the submission remains without a specified source.
These rules help maintain consistent source attribution across different marketing scenarios.
Attribution configuration entities
Creatio uses lookups to translate raw URL values into meaningful business data:
- Lead channels define how utm_medium values map to high-level traffic categories.
- Lead sources define individual platforms or resources and their default channels.
- Lead source URL lookup links known websites to corresponding sources.
These lookups act as a semantic layer between raw technical parameters and marketing-friendly analytics. They can be extended to support custom channels, communities, or partner platforms without changing the tracking mechanism itself. Learn more: Manage lookup values.
Attribution data propagation
When a new contact is created from a submission, Creatio can automatically transfer attribution data from the submission to the contact record. This includes the identified channel and source. Learn more: Contact identification from web form submissions.
As a result, Creatio preserves first-touch attribution data beyond the initial submission and makes it available for further analytics, segmentation, and reporting across the customer lifecycle.
Typical usage scenarios
Submission source tracking with UTM parameters is especially useful when:
- running campaigns across multiple external platforms
- comparing the effectiveness of different acquisition channels
- analyzing the quality of leads from professional communities, ads, or social media
- building attribution-based dashboards and reports
By standardizing how traffic sources are identified and stored, Creatio helps marketing teams move from assumptions to data-driven decisions. Learn more: Use UTM parameters in Creatio.