How Click Tracking Works
Click tracking works by automatically rewriting all eligible links in your HTML emails to redirect through AhaSend’s tracking servers. When a recipient clicks a tracked link, they’re briefly redirected through AhaSend’s servers before being sent to the original destination, allowing the click to be recorded.The Tracking Process
The Tracking Process
- Link Detection: AhaSend scans HTML emails for eligible links
- URL Rewriting: Original URLs are replaced with AhaSend tracking URLs
- Email Delivery: Email is delivered with rewritten tracking links
- Link Clicked: Recipient clicks on a link in the email
- Redirect & Track: AhaSend records the click and redirects to original URL
- Analytics Updated: Click data appears in your dashboard and webhooks
Link Requirements
Link Requirements
Eligible links must be:
- Wrapped in HTML
<a>
tags withhref
attribute - Use
http://
orhttps://
protocol - Properly formatted with quoted URLs
- No spaces around the
=
in href attribute
<a href="https://example.com">Click here</a>
<a href="http://www.example.com/page">Visit page</a>
<a target="_blank" href="https://example.com">Open in new tab</a>
Common Accuracy Issues
Links Not Tracked
Links Not Tracked
Common causes of untracked clicks:
- Links missing
http://
orhttps://
protocol - Malformed HTML anchor tags
- Links embedded in custom template variables
- Plain text emails (tracking requires HTML)
- Links with
data-as-no-track
attribute
Invalid Link Formats
Invalid Link Formats
These formats will NOT be tracked:
<a href="example.com">Link</a>
(missing protocol)<a href="www.example.com">Link</a>
(missing protocol)<a href= "https://example.com">Link</a>
(space before quote)<a href = "https://example.com">Link</a>
(spaces around =)<a href="{{ url_variable }}">Link</a>
(custom variable only)
Email Client Variations
Email Client Variations
Click behavior varies by client:
- Some clients pre-fetch links, inflating click counts
- Mobile clients may handle redirects differently
- Corporate firewalls may block tracking redirects
- Email security scanners may trigger false clicks
Privacy Considerations
Click tracking has significant privacy implications that you should consider:Privacy Compliance: Ensure your use of click tracking complies with applicable privacy laws (GDPR, CCPA, etc.) in your jurisdiction. Consider disclosing tracking in your privacy policy.
Privacy Impact
Information Collected
Information Collected
When someone clicks a tracked link, AhaSend may collect:
- Timestamp: When the link was clicked
- IP Address: Recipient’s approximate location
- User Agent: Browser and device information
- Original URL: The destination they were trying to reach
- Click Count: How many times the link was clicked
Recipient Awareness
Recipient Awareness
Recipients may notice:
- Brief redirect through AhaSend’s tracking domain
- Different URL in browser address bar during redirect
- Slight delay before reaching final destination
- That their clicks are being tracked
- What information is being collected
- Analytics and reporting data
Opt-out Considerations
Opt-out Considerations
Recipients can avoid tracking by:
- Disabling JavaScript in their browser
- Using privacy-focused browsers or extensions
- Reading emails in plain text mode
- Manually copying/pasting URLs instead of clicking
Enabling Click Tracking
Click tracking can be controlled at different levels depending on how you send emails:Account-Wide Settings
Configure your default click tracking preference in your AhaSend dashboard:- Navigate to Account Settings in your dashboard
- Toggle Click Tracking on or off
- This setting applies to all emails unless overridden per message
Per-Message Override
Override account settings for individual emails using different methods:SMTP with Special Headers
For SMTP email sending, use theahasend-track-clicks
header to control tracking:
SMTP Example
Header Details: The
ahasend-track-clicks
header accepts true
or false
values and overrides your account-wide click tracking setting for individual emails.API v2 Implementation
API v2 (/v2/accounts/{account_id}/messages
) provides native support for tracking configuration:
API v2 Example
API v2 Advantage: API v2 provides dedicated
tracking
field at the root level, making it easier to manage tracking settings without dealing with custom headers.API v1 Implementation
For API v1 (/v1/email/send
), include tracking headers in the content.headers
field:
API v1 Example
Excluding Individual Links
To exclude specific links from click tracking while keeping it enabled for the email, add thedata-as-no-track
attribute:
HTML Example
Use Case: Commonly used for unsubscribe links, privacy policy links, or other administrative links where tracking isn’t needed or desired.
Best Practices
Link Formatting
Link Formatting
Ensure proper link structure:
- Always include
http://
orhttps://
protocol - Use proper HTML anchor tag formatting
- Avoid spaces in href attribute formatting
- Test links across different email clients
- Use absolute URLs rather than relative paths
Privacy and Compliance
Privacy and Compliance
Respect recipient privacy:
- Disclose click tracking in your privacy policy
- Consider providing opt-out mechanisms
- Comply with GDPR, CCPA, and other privacy regulations
- Be transparent about data collection purposes
Link Strategy
Link Strategy
Optimize link placement and content:
- Use clear, descriptive link text
- Place important links prominently in email content
- Avoid too many tracked links in a single email
- Use
data-as-no-track
for administrative links - Test link functionality before sending campaigns
Data Analysis
Data Analysis
Analyze click data effectively:
- Focus on engagement trends over time
- Compare click performance between campaigns
- Segment data by recipient characteristics
- Use A/B testing to optimize link placement and content