Did Facebook just disable tracking? (11)
I use GA to track my normal page posts on my Facebook page, but i noticed now when i add the tracking code Facebook automatically removes it from the link. Even URL shorteners like bit.ly are no longer working. This is a HUGE problem for me. What the ZUCK 
Originally Posted by rebyrth
I haven't noticed that and I made ads all night last night and into the AM. It wouldn't make sense for Facebook to diss able the ability to track. Even white hat adverts need the ability to track. Maybe something is up with your account
Are you making ads/posts through the power editor?
A link post has several components of headline/image/description/caption etc. and the link itself need not be in the post text.
So, what are the links actually becoming? Are they just disappearing so that it is no longer a link post? Are the query strings being removed?
To echo what Jason said, Facebook simply won't change links like this, it would fundamentally break many campaigns and tracking processes.
Typically I paste in the link with the query string, and then delete it once it loads. The query string is being removed and only the original link remains. These are normal organic page posts, not ads, not boosted. Several other people i know are experiencing the same thing. Not using the power editor for posts, just the normal admin page timeline.
You should make the ads/posts through the power editor and use the base URL, then add the query string info in the optional URL tags box.
This is the most efficient way of doing this since you can make multiple ads with the same link post while changing the query string info.
If you use a link with query strings in it, then it locks you into that. It's possible that Facebook is removing the query strings to clean this up, forcing you to do it correctly through the optional URL tags.
Don't see any optional URL tags box.
Originally Posted by rebyrth
Use this to build a link post as you normally would.
Then, when you make an advert that uses this unpublished post, the optional URL tags box will be available on the first tab beneath where you select FB page / place and page post.
Okay, I see where the confusion lies, I'm not trying to create an ad at all, I am simply trying to create and track organic posts. I purchase traffic directly from page owners, so not really a viable option, but thanks I think adding the whole URL with tracking is working via power editor. Just explaining it to them if they never used power editor is still kind of a set back. I think this is some lame attempt at Facebook trying to stop 3rd party traffic providers to sell their (Facebook) traffic.
Ahh yes, that is a critical difference.
In this circumstance, I would think goo.gl or bit.ly would work best since you can't remove the query strings from those, as they are added after the user is redirected away from Facebook.
When you said the links were removed, do you mean the in-text link or the image as well? Or were these not link posts?
Seems odd, but yeah, go via the power editor for reliability.
I meant, just the string after, so if i post something on my page that is blahblah.com/article-headline/?utm_source=blahblah facebook only posts blahblah.com/article-headline/ besides that alteration everything still works as normal. I myself haven't tried, but have been told bitly is no longer working. Will have to test that and goo.gl.
That doesn't seem right.
A bit.ly or goo.gl link relies on the /something part to direct anyone anywhere.
Example http://goo.gl/wW9m3N >> stmforum.com.
That's not a query string, and if FB removes it they will simple send people to http://goo.gl, which is silly.
The only thing they could do is get the destination, see it's stmforum.com, and then change the link in the post to display the goo.gl anchor but direct link to stmforum.com
Again, doesn't make sense as using these links is an entirely legitimate way of tracking social traffic.
I scrolled through my feed and found a few bit.ly links but no domain.com?query=string&query=string kind of stuff.
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