How Email Link Tracking Works
When you turn on click tracking, your email platform rewrites each link in your email. The new link points to the platform's servers, records the click, then redirects the reader to your real page in a fraction of a second.
That gives you clicks per email and per link. What it doesn't give you, on its own, is which emails made money. That needs one more step.
Opens vs Clicks vs Sales
| Metric | How it's measured | Reliability |
|---|---|---|
| Opens | An invisible image loads | Low: Apple Mail preloads images, inflating opens |
| Clicks | A tracking redirect records the tap | Good, apart from security-scanner clicks |
| Conversions | A tracker links the click to a sale | Best: the number that pays the bills |
Apple's Mail Privacy Protection, introduced in 2021, preloads email content through Apple's servers. Many emails show as opened when nobody read them, so judge emails by clicks and sales instead.
Watch for Bot Clicks
Corporate security tools sometimes click every link in an email to check it's safe. Signs of scanner clicks include clicks within seconds of sending, every link clicked at once, and clicks from data-centre locations. Good trackers filter much of this out.
Tracking Email to Sales
- Tag every link with UTMsFor example utm_source=newsletter, utm_medium=email, utm_campaign=june-launch, utm_content=button. See our UTM guide.
- Use a branded tracking domainSo links look trustworthy and match your sending domain.
- Track conversions on your siteOpt-ins, purchases, bookings, recorded by a conversion tracker.
- Compare emails by revenueRevenue per email sent, or per click, tells you far more than open rate.
Buying Email Traffic
If you buy clicks from other people's lists, known as solo ads, independent tracking is essential. The seller reports their own click count; your tracker tells you how many were real, engaged and converting. See our solo ads tracking guide.
Common Mistakes
- Optimising subject lines on opens when opens are inflated.
- Inconsistent UTMs, such as "Email" in one send and "email" in another, which split your reports.
- Sending through a shared tracking domain with a poor reputation.
- Not tracking conversions, so the "best" email is just the clickiest.
Email Tracking With ClickMagick
ClickMagick tracking links and campaign tracking work for email traffic, with bot filtering and conversions credited to the exact email and link. It's especially useful for solo ads, where its engagement tracking shows which vendors send real readers. See ClickMagick for affiliate marketing.
See which emails actually produce sales.
Try ClickMagick FreeFrequently Asked Questions
How does email link tracking work?
Your email platform replaces each link with a tracking link that passes through its servers. When someone clicks, the click is recorded and the reader is redirected to the real destination.
Why are email open rates unreliable?
Apple Mail Privacy Protection preloads email images, including the open-tracking pixel, so many emails register as opened even if nobody read them. Clicks are a far more dependable signal.
Are email clicks affected by bots?
Yes. Security scanners at some companies click links automatically to check them, which can inflate clicks. Look for very fast clicks on every link as a sign of scanner traffic.
How do I track sales from email?
Tag every email link with UTM parameters and use a tracker that records conversions, so sales are credited to the specific email and link that sent the buyer.
Should I use a custom tracking domain for email links?
Usually yes. A tracking subdomain on your own domain matches your sending domain and avoids sharing reputation with other senders on a common tracking domain.