How to Track Outbound Links in WordPress (Easy Guide)

Are you looking for a way to track your outbound links in WordPress?

Understanding which outbound links are more frequently visited requires identifying which leads people away from your site. Also, if you are an affiliate marketer and want to know which products your readers like best, tracking outbound links is a must.

This step-by-step guide will show you the easiest way to track outbound links in WordPress.

Let’s get started!

Why Tracking The Outbound Links Are Important

Tracking outbound links in WordPress is essential for understanding how users engage with your website and helping you optimize its performance.

By monitoring outbound links, you can gain insights into the types of content that resonate with your audience and determine which external websites they find valuable.

This information is crucial for businesses or bloggers who promote affiliate products, as it allows them to identify which products or services are most popular with their target audience.

You can uncover new content ideas and potential partnership opportunities by analyzing outbound links’ performance.

So, let’s find out how you can easily track outbound links on your WordPress website and understand your audience better.

Steps To Track Outbound Links in WordPress

Now that you understand the importance of tracking outbound links in WordPress let’s dive into the step-by-step process of setting it up.

In this guide, we’ll use MonsterInsights, the best Google Analytics plugin for WordPress, to track the external links in WordPress.

This awesome plugin will make your work easier and a lot faster. The best part is, it is not only compatible with AffiliateWP but almost every WordPress theme and plugin out there.

Here are the simple steps that you need to follow:

Step 1: Install the MonsterInsights Plugin

MonsterInsights is a popular Google Analytics plugin for WordPress that simplifies the process of connecting your website to Google Analytics and setting up advanced tracking.

Install and activate the MonsterInsights plugin on your WordPress website to get started.

For detailed instructions, refer to this guide on how to install a WordPress plugin.

Step 2: Set Up Google Analytics

Upon activating MonsterInsights, click the Launch the Wizard button to set up Google Analytics in WordPress.

Follow the on-screen instructions to connect your Google Analytics account with your WordPress site.

MonsterInsights will automatically enable outbound link tracking in Google Analytics once the setup is complete.

Step 3: View Outbound Link Reports

After enabling outbound link tracking, you can view the reports in MonsterInsights, Google Analytics 4, or Universal Analytics.

Viewing Outbound Link Reports in MonsterInsights

Viewing the outbound link reports in MonsterInsights as a pro user is the simplest way to find the top-performing outbound links by accessing the Publishers report.

Navigate to the Publisher tab on the Insights » Reports page to see the report. After that, check out the data on your site’s most popular outbound or external links.

Viewing Outbound Link Reports in Google Analytics 4

However, to view outbound link reports in Google Analytics 4, you need to create a custom report.

To do that, log in to your Google Analytics 4 account and navigate to the Explore tab.

Remember that it may take up to 24 hours for Google Analytics to collect and display the data in the reports.

Add dimensions for your custom report by clicking the + sign next to Dimensions.

Select the following dimensions in the search bar: Event name, Link text, Page title, and Outbound.

Click Import after selecting these dimensions.

Drag the Link text and Page title dimensions and drop them in the Rows section.

Add a metric to your report by clicking the + sign next to Metrics.

Add a metric to your report

Select Event Count under Event and then click Import.

Drag the Event count metric and drop it under the Values area.

Drag Event count drop it under Values area

Add the Event name dimension to the Filters section.

Select exactly matches from the Filter dropdown menu and type in click, and then click Apply.

Add the Outbound dimension to the Filters section.

Select exactly matches from the Filter dropdown menu and type in true. Click Apply.

Now you will see a custom report showing which outbound links get the most clicks and which pages.

Viewing Outbound Link Reports in Google Universal Analytics

To view your outbound link tracking report in Universal Analytics, log in to your Google Analytics account and go to Behavior » Events » Top Events.

Your affiliate links will be labeled as such in the plugin settings, and any external links will be recorded in the outbound-link event category.

Viewing events in Google Analytics to Track Outbound Links

Click on the outbound-link event to see the external URLs users clicked on your website.

Boost Your Business with Outbound Link Tracking

In this detailed guide, we’ve shown you the importance of tracking outbound links in WordPress and how to do it using Google Analytics and MonsterInsights.

Understanding which outbound links are popular can help you optimize your content, create new partnerships, and grow your online presence.

Don’t forget to check out more helpful resources if you want to grow your online business:

Now, if you want to take your business to the next level, consider incorporating affiliate marketing with the help of AffiliateWP.

AffiliateWP is the best affiliate tracking software for WordPress, enabling you to set up affiliate link tracking in minutes and providing powerful link-tracking features.

With AffiliateWP, you can attract top affiliates, minimize your time commitment, and boost your sales. Not only will AffiliateWP help you manage your affiliate program more effectively but it also offers seamless integration with popular e-commerce and membership platforms.

So, don’t wait any longer.

Enhance your business with AffiliateWP today!