Interpreting the medium of origin correctly

by Katrin Nebermann

Interpret the medium of origin correctly.

In the so-called referer header, browsers send the address of the previously visited website from which a link to the currently requested page was followed. Based on the URL contained, the source of origin is automatically categorized as type-in, link/referrer, social media or SEO, provided the link does not contain any (etracker or UTM) campaign parameters. The automatic assignment can be overridden using campaign parameters. This means that the parameter information trumps the automatic assignment.

All accesses that do not contain referrer or medium parameter information are assigned to the medium type-in. These are often referred to as direct accesses. In addition to entering the URL in the browser, type-in accesses can also be triggered by using bookmarks or the history. In order to prevent cross-site tracking, referrer strings are increasingly being shortened, removed or falsified (spoofing) by browsers. Therefore, increases in type-in accesses can be explained by both real direct accesses and technical causes.

The allocation to SEO and social media is based on lists that are continuously updated. SEA accesses can only be distinguished from SEO accesses if the ads are provided with suitable suffix information.