What is the correct syntax for query strings?

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SYMPTOMS

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Need to know how to format the landing URLs for ConversionRuler, how to deal with landing pages which already have query strings, how to deal with landing pages to my home page, etc.

SOLUTION

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The query string format is, actually, an internet standard. With all standards, the implementation of the standard is up to the browser vendors, e.g.

• Microsoft Internet Explorer
  
• Netscape, Mozilla, Navigator, Communicator, etc.
  
• Opera
  
• Cell phone browsers
  

We have taken great pains to make our software as compatible as possible with all browsers, however, some best practices will ensure the highest level of compatiblilty.

A URL (Uniform Resource Locator) is the web address you see so commonly in your web browser's Address bar. It typically looks like:

http://www.some-address.com/some-page.asp?articleid=232

Let's break this into it's pieces:

• http:// - The protocol prefix. This identifies how your web browser communicates with the server. Typically, this is either "http://" or "https://" where both mean a "web page" and "https://" is a secure page. You may see ones that look like "ftp://" (File Transfer Protocol). The protocol is actually the "http", and the "://" indicates that this is a URL.
  
• www.some-address.com - Your web site address which you registered with some internet registrar. The web site address usually ends in .com, .net, .co.uk, .fr, etc. This portion of the URL should always have a slash "/" after it.
  
• some-page.asp - The page on your site to be displayed. This may come in any number of forms but typically corresponds to a file or a script on your site which does something, or shows the user something.
  
• ?articleid=232 - The query string. This always is identified by a question mark "?", then a series of encoded strings which appear as "name1=value1&name2=value2", etc. and are separated by the ampersand character "&".
  

Now that we should be speaking the same language, let's cover the best practices when generating query strings:

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Landings to just your domain name
We recommend using

http://www.some-address.com/?crcat=test&crsource=test&crkw=buy-a-lot

Order: Protocol "://" Domain Name "/?" Landing Parameters
Important is the slash after the domain name, followed by the question mark for best compatibility with browsers.

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Landings to a page within your domain name with no query string
We recommend using

http://www.some-address.com/mypage.html?crcat=test&crsource=test&crkw=buy-a-lot

Order: Protocol "://" Domain Name "/" Page Name "?" Landing Parameters
Important is the question mark after the page name and no slash after the page name. Placing a slash after your Page Name will most likely cause an error for the user.

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Landings to a page within your domain name with a query string
We recommend using

http://www.some-address.com/catalog.asp?itemid=232&template=fresh&crcat=ppc&crsource=google&crkw=buy-a-lot

Order: Protocol "://" Domain Name "/" Page Name "?" Existing Query String "&" Landing Parameters
Important is the ampersand after the page and query string and no additional question mark or slash after the Existing Query String. Placing a slash or question mark after your Page Name will most likely cause an error for the user.

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In summary:

• A URL should always contain "http://"
  
• A URL should always have a slash "/" after the domain name
  
• A Page Name on your site should NEVER have a "/" after it (e.g. "foo.html/")
  
• A URL should always have a single question mark in it "?"
  
• URL Query String parameters should be separated by the ampersand "&"
  

Now, playing around, the following landings are all correct:

http://www.some-domain.com/index.html?&crsource=google http://www.some-domain.com/?&&&&crsource=google

The following landings will most likely cause problems or not work:

http://www.some-domain.com/catalog.cgi?pid=232?crsource=google http://www.some-domain.com?crsource=google

If you have specific question about query strings, submit a ticket.

If you have any additional questions, please Submit a ticket to our help desk, or phone us directly at +1 866-622-8636.