Tracking links and sub IDs explained
Your tracking link is how Summit knows a lead came from you, and sub IDs are how you know which of your ads, keywords or pages produced it. This guide explains both. By the end you will be able to read a tracking link, design a sub ID naming system, fill sub IDs automatically on each ad platform, test every link before launch and match your reports back to your spend.
Published 5 October 2026. How we write and check guides: editorial standards.
Already generating leads on your own forms? Sell your leads instead.
What a tracking link does
A tracking link is a URL issued to you for a specific offer. When someone clicks it, they are sent to the Summit lander for that offer, and the visit is tied to your account. If that person submits the form, the lead is attributed to you. Leads are reported by tracking link, so the link is the basis of every report you read and every rev share payment you receive.
You get your tracking links after approval to the publisher program. Each offer has its own link. Do not swap the lander URL in for your tracking link, shorten it through an outside service, or edit the parts of it that identify your account. If the link breaks, the lead cannot be attributed.
What a sub ID is
A sub ID is a value you add to your tracking link to label the traffic. The tracking link says "this lead came from you". The sub ID says "this lead came from this campaign, this ad set and this ad". Summit does not decide what goes in your sub IDs. You do, and the values come back to you in your reports next to each lead.
Sub IDs are added as parameters at the end of the link. The exact parameter names and how many sub ID fields you can use come with your tracking links. This guide uses the generic names sub1, sub2 and sub3 in examples, so swap in the names from your own links.
This guide covers tracking links and sub IDs. Ask during onboarding which other tracking options apply to your account, and how reporting is delivered.
Step 1: Design a naming system
Decide what each sub ID field means before you build a single ad, and keep that meaning the same across every campaign. A common layout:
| Field | What it holds | Example value |
|---|---|---|
| sub1 | Traffic source and offer | meta-car |
| sub2 | Campaign or state group | tx-ok |
| sub3 | Ad set, ad group or audience | broad-25-64 |
| sub4 | Ad, creative or keyword | ad-situation-v2 |
| sub5 | Placement, site or page | feed |
Rules that keep the system readable:
- Use lowercase letters, numbers and hyphens only. Spaces and symbols can break links or change in reports.
- Keep values short. A code you can read at a glance beats a full campaign name.
- Never change what a field means halfway through a test.
- Never put personal information in a sub ID: no names, emails, phone numbers or user IDs from the ad platform tied to a person.
- Keep a log that maps every code to the campaign, ad set and ad it stands for.
Step 2: Fill sub IDs on each platform
Typing values into every link by hand leads to mistakes. Where the platform can fill a value in for you, let it.
Meta
Put your tracking link in the website URL field and add your sub IDs through Meta's URL parameters field. Meta's help page on how to add URL parameters to your Meta ads explains where the field is and what values it can fill in for you. Use your naming codes for anything Meta cannot fill. The tracking Meta campaigns with tracking links guide has a full Meta walkthrough.
Google Ads
Google Ads can add values to your links through a final URL suffix or a tracking template, both covered in About tracking in Google Ads. ValueTrack parameters fill in details at click time. Google's page on setting up tracking with ValueTrack parameters lists them, including {campaignid}, {adgroupid}, {keyword}, {matchtype} and {device}. For example, map {campaignid} to your campaign field and {keyword} to your ad or keyword field.
Native ad networks
Native ad networks have their own macros for campaign, ad and the site where the ad showed. Use the network's documentation to find them, and put the site or placement value in its own field. On native, the site is often the most useful split, because results can differ a lot between sites. See how to run native traffic to lead offers.
SEO and owned sites
On a site, set sub IDs by page and by link position, for example the page slug and whether the link was in the header, the body or a sidebar. This shows which pages and placements send leads that sell.
Step 3: Test every link before launch
- Open each final ad URL from the ad platform preview, not from your notes.
- Confirm it lands on the right Summit lander for the offer.
- Check the address bar or your tracker to confirm the sub ID values arrived as you set them, with no blank fields or raw macro text like {keyword}.
- If you use your own tracker in front of the tracking link, confirm it passes every sub ID through to the Summit link unchanged.
- Do not submit test leads with fake details. If you need to confirm attribution end to end, ask us by email how to test.
Step 4: Match reports to spend
Your ad platform knows what you spent. Your Summit reports, by tracking link, show leads and their sub IDs. Sub IDs are the join between the two.
- Export spend from the ad platform at the same level as your sub IDs (for example by ad set and ad).
- Export or copy your lead data with sub IDs and lead status.
- Match rows on the sub ID codes, using your log for any names that changed.
- For each row, compare spend with sold leads, returned leads and rev share earned.
The reading your publisher reports guide explains what each report field means.
Have a tracking setup ready to go? Apply with your traffic sources and states.
Apply as a publisherWhat sub IDs can and cannot tell you
Sub IDs answer one question well: which slice of your traffic produced which leads. They do not explain why. Use them to find the pattern, then look at the ad, the state, the hour or the page to find the cause.
- They can show which ads, keywords, audiences, sites or pages produce sold leads, unsold leads and returns.
- They can show whether a change helped, if you gave the new version its own sub ID value.
- They cannot show anything you did not put in them. If state is not in a field, you cannot split by state later.
- They cannot fix a bad link. A sub ID on a broken or edited tracking link records nothing.
When you start a split test, give each version its own value before launch, for example ad-situation-v1 and ad-situation-v2. Renaming an ad later does not change the sub IDs already recorded on its leads.
Common mistakes
- No sub IDs at all. Every lead looks the same, and you cannot tell which ad sold.
- Changing field meanings. If sub2 was state last month and audience this month, old and new data cannot be compared.
- Raw macros in the report. A value like {keyword} means the macro was not filled. Check the platform setting.
- Personal data in sub IDs. Sub IDs are labels for traffic, not for people.
- Editing the tracking link itself. Only add sub ID parameters. The rest of the link must stay as issued.
Frequently asked questions
Do I get a different tracking link for each offer?
Yes. Each offer has its own tracking link, and leads are reported by tracking link. Use sub IDs to split results inside each offer.
Can I use my own tracker with Summit tracking links?
Yes, as long as the visitor ends up on the Summit lander through your tracking link and your sub IDs pass through unchanged. Ask during onboarding which other tracking options apply to your account.
How many sub IDs can I use?
The number of sub ID fields and their names come with your tracking links. Plan your naming system around the fields you have.
What happens to a lead if my sub ID is wrong?
The lead is still attributed to you through the tracking link. Only your own breakdown is affected, because the lead carries the wrong label. Fix the setting and note the date in your log.
Can I see which keyword produced a lead?
Yes, if you pass the keyword into a sub ID. On Google Ads, the {keyword} ValueTrack parameter can fill it in at click time.
Related guides
The Meta setup step by step.
What each report field means.
Use your sub IDs to run a clean test.
Lead statuses and a simple profit sheet.
Why traffic goes to Summit landers.
Sources
- Add URL Parameters to Your Meta Ads, Meta Business Help Center
- About tracking in Google Ads, Google Ads Help
- Set up tracking with ValueTrack parameters, Google Ads Help
Get your tracking links
Every publisher is reviewed before going live. Email us your verticals, traffic sources, states and expected volume.
Apply as a publisherOr write to team@summitleads.ai. We reply by email.
Already generating leads on your own forms? Sell your leads instead.