Newsletter Placement Tracking

Prerequisites

• PostHog project with tracking snippet on your landing page
• Landing page URL for this campaign
• Newsletter name and placement date
• PostHog API key for server-side event creation if needed

Steps

1. Build the UTM-tagged URL. Every newsletter sponsorship placement gets a unique tracked URL:

   {base_url}?utm_source={newsletter_slug}&utm_medium=paid-newsletter&utm_campaign=newsletter-sponsorships&utm_content={placement_id}
   

   Parameter definitions:

   • utm_source: Slugified newsletter name (e.g., the-saas-weekly, morning-brew-tech)
   • utm_medium: Always paid-newsletter to distinguish from organic/partner newsletters
   • utm_campaign: Always newsletter-sponsorships for this play
   • utm_content: Unique placement ID combining newsletter + date + variant (e.g., saas-weekly-2026-04-01-v1)

   Example: https://yourproduct.com/demo?utm_source=the-saas-weekly&utm_medium=paid-newsletter&utm_campaign=newsletter-sponsorships&utm_content=saas-weekly-2026-04-01-v1

2. Verify PostHog captures UTM parameters. Load the tracked URL in a browser and confirm PostHog records:

   • $pageview event with properties: utm_source, utm_medium, utm_campaign, utm_content
   • $set on the person: $initial_utm_source, $initial_utm_medium, $initial_utm_campaign

   If UTM parameters are not captured, check that PostHog autocapture is enabled or add explicit UTM capture in your tracking code:

   const params = new URLSearchParams(window.location.search);
   posthog.capture('newsletter_sponsor_click', {
     utm_source: params.get('utm_source'),
     utm_medium: params.get('utm_medium'),
     utm_campaign: params.get('utm_campaign'),
     utm_content: params.get('utm_content'),
     newsletter_name: '{newsletter_name}',
     placement_date: '{YYYY-MM-DD}',
     placement_cost: {cost_in_cents}
   });
   

3. Create the conversion event. Define a PostHog event that fires when a newsletter-sourced visitor takes the primary CTA action:

   // Fire when the visitor completes signup, demo request, or form submission
   posthog.capture('newsletter_sponsor_lead', {
     utm_source: params.get('utm_source'),
     newsletter_name: '{newsletter_name}',
     placement_id: '{placement_id}',
     lead_type: 'demo_request' // or 'signup', 'download', etc.
   });
   

4. Build a PostHog funnel for this placement. Create a saved insight:

   • Step 1: $pageview where utm_campaign = newsletter-sponsorships AND utm_source = {newsletter_slug}
   • Step 2: newsletter_sponsor_lead where utm_source = {newsletter_slug}

   Save as: "Newsletter Sponsorship — {Newsletter Name} — {Date} — Funnel"

5. Set up real-time monitoring. On the day the newsletter sends, create a PostHog live view filtered to:

   • Events where utm_medium = paid-newsletter
   • Grouped by utm_source

   This gives you real-time click velocity per newsletter placement.

6. Calculate placement ROI after 7 days. Pull from PostHog:

   • Total clicks: count of $pageview where utm_content = {placement_id}
   • Total leads: count of newsletter_sponsor_lead where placement_id = {placement_id}
   • CPC: placement_cost / total_clicks
   • CPL: placement_cost / total_leads
   • CTR: total_clicks / estimated_newsletter_audience (use the subscriber count from your research)

   Store these metrics in Attio on the newsletter placement record.

Error Handling

• If clicks appear but UTM parameters are missing, the landing page may be stripping query parameters — check for redirects that drop UTMs
• If zero clicks appear within 24 hours of the newsletter send, verify the publisher actually included your link (ask for a screenshot of the sent email)
• If PostHog shows clicks but no leads, the landing page is the bottleneck — optimize the page before rebooking

Alternative Tools

• Bitly: URL shortener with click tracking (backup if UTM capture fails)
• PostHog: Primary analytics platform
• Mixpanel: Alternative analytics for event tracking
• Amplitude: Alternative analytics platform
• Google Analytics 4: Alternative with UTM capture built in
• Plausible: Privacy-focused alternative analytics