The short answer is no…but that’s not a bad thing. Here’s why.

It’s a question we hear all the time from Amazon brands: “Can I give a publisher a custom tracking link or UTM so I can see how much traffic or sales their story drives?” 

We get it… clicks and sales are an important metric of many marketing programs. But when it comes to earned media placements – the holy grail of PR and a growing priority for AI search – the answer is no. And here’s why (plus what you can do instead).

1. Influencers? Yes. Publishers? Nope.

Influencers are typically fine with custom links, which means you can track their direct impact. The catch? Influencers vary wildly in reach and results, so you’ll need to commit to broad outreach and sampling to get meaningful data.

Publishers, on the other hand, can’t – and won’t – use tracking links. Here’s why:

  • Editorial standards – Most publications have strict style guides that forbid third-party tracking in articles. Even if a writer adds it, the editor or the content management system (CMS) will strip it out before going live.
  • Privacy & trust – Earned media is about credibility. Readers expect clean, direct URLs that take them exactly where they expect, not a detour through a tracking service.
  • Technical risk – If your tracking provider changes ownership, has an outage, or shuts down, every one of those links becomes broken. That’s a headache for you and the publisher.
  • Spam filters & deliverability – Even before publication, tracking links in your pitch can get your email flagged as spam or blocked by antivirus software. If your email never reaches the journalist, there’s no chance of coverage.

2. How to Measure PR Impact Without Direct Links

For Amazon brands, this means you can’t directly tie a single press mention to an exact sale. But you can monitor:

  • Traffic spikes around the time coverage goes live
  • Sales trends over time that align with PR efforts
  • Increased positive reviews as more customers find and buy your product
  • Higher search rankings – Amazon rewards you for driving external traffic
  • Long-tail lift – the steady brand awareness and conversion boost that comes with ongoing PR visibility 

Our experience? While influencers are great for buzz, media placements often outperform influencer campaigns over time in reach and ROI, even without the perfect tracking link.

3. The Exception: Your Own E-Com Site

If you’re not on Amazon – or even if you are – and you want to send press to your own site, you have more options when it comes to tracking links. Earned media is all about affiliate links – so if they’re not driving traffic to a major retailer, they’ll want to make sure you have a strong affiliate program on your e-commerce site’s back end.

This is an easy and low-cost fix – simply set up a program like Impact (sign up for Impact Agency Starter Program using our special link and mention Resound to get the best pricing), which connects seamlessly with Shopify and other major e-platforms. There’s a low monthly fee that’s covered once you start seeing clicks and commissions from earned media – which you can track directly in the platform for a clear view on how and where PR is driving clicks and sales.

Bottom line: Tracking is easier with influencers, but don’t discount the power of publisher coverage. Even without direct click data, it’s often the bigger long-term sales driver.

Still have questions? Feel free to reach out or schedule a call.