What Is the Most Basic Thing in Digital Marketing That Experts Still Look Up on Google?
Short answer: Common ones are UTM tag formats, social image sizes, redirect types (301 vs 302), metric definitions like CPM and ROAS, and title and meta description lengths. These digital marketing basics are easy to forget because they’re rarely used every day and often change.
Nobody memorises everything. Here’s a cheat sheet of the small details marketers regularly search for.
1. UTM parameters
UTMs tell GA4 where a click came from.
utm_source= where (instagram, newsletter)utm_medium= type (social, email, cpc)utm_campaign= campaign name (diwali_offer)- Optional:
utm_contentandutm_term
Example: yourdomain.com/offer?utm_source=instagram&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=diwali_offer
Keep names lowercase and consistent. Missing UTMs create direct traffic and “(not set)”.
2. Metric definitions
| Metric | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Impressions | Times content was shown |
| Reach | Unique people who saw it |
| CTR | Clicks ÷ impressions |
| CPC | Cost per click |
| CPM | Cost per 1,000 impressions |
| CPL | Cost per lead. See what a good CPL looks like |
| CAC | Cost to acquire a customer |
| ROAS | Revenue ÷ ad spend |
| Engagement rate (GA4) | Engaged sessions ÷ sessions. See engagement rate in GA4 |
3. Redirects and status codes
- 301: permanent move, which passes SEO value
- 302: temporary move
- 404: page not found
- 410: permanently gone
- 500: server error
Wrong redirects hurt migrations. See how website migration affects SEO rankings and soft 404.
4. Title and meta description lengths
Google truncates by pixel width, not a fixed count, but a good working range is roughly 50 to 60 characters for titles and about 150 to 160 for descriptions. Put the main keyword near the start.
5. Social image and video sizes
Platforms change specs, so check the current guidance before designing. Stable starting points:
- Vertical video and Reels: 9:16 (1080 × 1920)
- Instagram portrait feed posts: 4:5 (1080 × 1350)
- Square posts: 1:1 (1080 × 1080)
Upload at good quality to avoid blurry Reels.
6. robots.txt, noindex and canonical
- robots.txt: controls crawling. See blocked by robots.txt.
- noindex: asks Google not to index a page.
- canonical: tells Google which duplicate is primary. See duplicate without user-selected canonical.
7. GA4 events and key events
Forms, calls and WhatsApp clicks need event tracking. See how to track form submissions in GA4.
Why bookmarking beats memorising
Details change, so a short, trusted reference saves time and avoids mistakes. Always confirm platform specs against current documentation.
Need a team that already knows these details? See our Performance Marketing and Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) services.
FAQs
What are the basics of digital marketing?
SEO, social media, paid ads, email and analytics, tied together with clear goals and tracking.
Why do marketers keep googling simple things?
Platforms and tools change often, and many details are used only occasionally.
What’s the difference between reach and impressions?
Reach counts unique people. Impressions count total views, including repeats.
Should I use 301 or 302 redirects?
Use 301 for permanent moves and 302 for temporary ones.
Where should I check current image sizes?
The official help pages of each platform, since specs change.
Conclusion
Even experienced marketers look up digital marketing basics like UTMs, redirects and metric definitions. Keep a cheat sheet, double-check platform specs and tag every link. More practical guides are on the Biznex blog.
