When a visitor arrives without UTM parameters in the link, the plugin works out where they came from automatically. This article explains how the source and medium are decided.
UTM parameters always win
If the link contains UTM parameters (for example utm_source and utm_medium), those values are used exactly as provided. Automatic detection only kicks in when UTM parameters are missing.
The mediums the plugin assigns
- Organic – the visitor came from a search engine such as Google, Bing, Yahoo, DuckDuckGo, Yandex, or Baidu. When available, the search term is captured too.
- Social – the visitor came from a social network such as Facebook, Instagram, X/Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, TikTok, YouTube, Reddit, or WhatsApp.
- CPC (paid) – the link carried a paid-click identifier such as
gclid(Google Ads),fbclid(Facebook),msclkid(Microsoft/Bing), orwbraid/gbraid. - Referral – the visitor came from another website that is not a search engine or social network.
- (Direct) – there was no referring website, for example the visitor typed your address, used a bookmark, or clicked a link in an app that hides the referrer.
Click identifiers from ad platforms
Ad platforms append their own identifiers to your links. The plugin recognises and stores these so paid traffic is correctly marked as cpc even when you forget to add UTM tags:
- gclid / gclsrc / wbraid / gbraid – Google Ads
- fbclid – Facebook / Meta Ads
- msclkid – Microsoft Advertising (Bing)
Internal links
Moving between pages on your own site does not overwrite the original source. The first real source a visitor arrived with is preserved throughout their session.