Google Analytics - Record Outbound Links - open new window

Question

I have used the following link to record outbound links through google analytics. Is it possible to open the link in a new window?

<script type="text/javascript">
function recordOutboundLink(link, category, action) 
{  
try {    
    var myTracker=_gat._getTrackerByName();    
    _gaq.push(['myTracker._trackEvent', category ,  action ]);    
    setTimeout('document.location = "' + link.href + '"', 100)  
 }
catch(err)
{
}
}
</script>

 <a href="http://www.example.com" onClick="recordOutboundLink(this, 'Outbound Links', 'example.com');return false;">

Scriptor · Accepted Answer · 2012-04-23T13:03:37.450

5

edit, I forgot to add target="_blank":

I would do it this way tracking outbound links:

<a href="http://outgoinglink.com" target="_blank" onclick="_gaq.push(['_trackEvent','outgoing_links','outgoinglink.com'])">Link Text</a>

edited Apr 23 '12 at 13:03

answered Apr 22 '12 at 22:09

Scriptor

1,125
1
6
13

score 1 · Answer 2 · answered Oct 30 '13 at 04:08

Jeff's answer was very close to solving this problem for me. The recommended code from Google breaks target = _blank, and window.open strategies get caught by popup blockers. I modified the test for target like so:

if (!link.target || link.target.match(/^_(self|parent|top)$/i)){
    return false;
    setTimeout(function() { document.location = link.href }, 100);
} else {
    return true;
}

score 1 · Answer 3 · edited Sep 27 '16 at 04:24

1

Replace the document.location = url; with window.open(url), that opens in a new window and tracks at the same time. You don't need to modify the link, just call the JS function on the onclick.

edited Sep 27 '16 at 04:24

answered Sep 27 '16 at 00:04

itisMo

11
1

score 0 · Answer 4 · edited May 23 '17 at 11:48

Here's a modified snippet from the link you provided that should work both for links that open in the current window and links that open in a new window without any modification:

<script type="text/javascript">
// Records an event for an outbound link.  Supports links even if they open in a
// different window (target="_blank").
// Don't forget to return the return value of this function from the onclick handler.
// link - A reference to the <a> anchor object to which this call is attached
// parameters - Parameters to pass to the event, in an array:
//              category/action/label/value/noninteraction or some subset; see GA docs.
//              Pass "undefined" (the value, not the string) for unspecified optional params if necessary.
// Exmaple:
// <a href="http://www.google.com"
//    onclick="return recordOutboundLink(this, ['category', 'action', 'label', 6.6, false);">link</a>
function recordOutboundLink(link, parameters) {
    try {
        _gaq.push(['_trackEvent'].concat(parameters));
        if (link.target == '_blank') {
            return true;
        } else {
            setTimeout(function() { document.location = link.href }, 100);
            return false;
        }
    } catch (err) {
        return true;
    }
}
</script>

Here are the two link types. Note that the onclick handler is the same in both:

<a href="http://www.example.com"
   onClick="return recordOutboundLink(this, ['Outbound Links', 'example.com']);">

<a href="http://www.example.com"
   target="_blank"
   onClick="return recordOutboundLink(this, ['Outbound Links', 'example.com']);">

Limitations:

If the browser ignores the 'target="blank"' and instead opens the URL in the same window (e.g. a UIWebView inside the Facebook iOS app), then the link may not get tracked. This is also true of ErikdR's accepted answer. You can add code to detect cases like this (e.g. detect ipad/iphone webview via javascript).
If the user tries to ctrl-/shift-/cmd-click (i.e. open in a new tab or window) a link that doesn't have 'target="blank"', the URL will open in the existing window rather than opening in a new window. The same is true of Roslyn's code snippet (and Google's official code sample). Again, you can add code to handle these special cases.

I don't know if I'd consider this a complete answer, since there are other values to target than _blank. — Artem Russakovskii, Apr 19 '13 at 09:35
Fair enough, though the original question specifically asked for opening in a new window. You could see how the code could be updated to handle this (and anyone may feel free to do so). To me, this solution is far better than having to update/switch your javascript every time you change a link from target="_blank" to target="" or vice versa, because a) that's tedious and b) you'll forget to do it. — Jeff, Apr 22 '13 at 15:55

score 0 · Answer 5 · edited May 23 '17 at 12:15

In the general case

In the more general case of target being anything, like

empty string - default for <a> elements. same meaning as _self.
_blank - URL is loaded into a new window/tab
_self - URL replaces the current page.
_parent - URL is loaded into the parent frame
_top - URL replaces any framesets that may be loaded
name - The name of the window

you can modify the line

setTimeout('document.location = "' + link.href + '"', 100)

to this:

setTimeout('window.open("' + link.href + '", link.target == "" ? "_self" : link.target)', 100)

The odd thing is that providing "" to window.open is the same as providing _blank, therefore the extra ?: operator is necessary.

By the way: Your provided code (and the code provided by official google examples) shall be modified slightly to work correct, see How do I set up Google Analytics to track outbound links? The official example doesn't work

Google Analytics - Record Outbound Links - open new window

5 Answers5

In the general case

Linked