> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.stage.systems/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Campaign links

> Every link in a post carries a short code. The visitor sees a clean address, and their visit counts toward the post for 30 days.

## What a link looks like

| Use                                     | The link                                            | Where the visitor lands          |
| --------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------- | -------------------------------- |
| A link inside a post                    | `example.com/news/spring-launch?c=spring-launch.x1` | `example.com/news/spring-launch` |
| The campaign link, for a bio or QR code | `example.com?c=spring-launch`                       | `example.com`                    |

The link is the **real page plus one code**. The page always loads, even if tracking is down. The code says which campaign and which post sent the person. Links to other sites are never changed.

## Codes

Codes are readable. The campaign code is the campaign's title. Each post gets its own: `spring-launch.x1` for the first X post, `spring-launch.li1` for LinkedIn, `spring-launch.ig1` for Instagram.

<Note>
  Once a code is out in the world it never changes, even if you rename the campaign.
</Note>

## What happens on a click

1. Stage counts the click.
2. The visitor lands on the clean address, with no code and no tracking tags visible.
3. For the next 30 days, that person's visits count toward the post that brought them.
4. If they fill in a form or write to you, the enquiry counts toward that post too.

## Two numbers, on purpose

| Number          | Counts                                                            |
| --------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Link clicks** | Every tap, including bots, link previews and people tapping twice |
| **Site visits** | Real people who arrived, one per session                          |

Clicks are usually higher than visits, and that gap is normal. The reverse can happen too: one click starts a 30-day window, and a person who comes back several times in it counts as several visits.

## The campaign link

The chip beside the campaign title holds the campaign's own link. Press **Copy** and paste it into your Instagram bio, your email signature, a QR code, anywhere a post cannot carry its own link. From then on the chip shows how many times it was tapped.

<Tip>
  **For Google Analytics users** Links carry standard UTM tags underneath (source, medium, campaign, content), so campaigns show up in Google Analytics too. The visitor never sees them.
</Tip>

## Next steps

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="The funnel" href="/campaigns/funnel">
    Clicks, visits, engaged, enquiries.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>