We analyzed aggregate, anonymized data from 2.4 thousand links created on the getowl platform. Here are the most interesting patterns we found.
Click-Through Rates by Industry
| Industry | Average CTR | Top Performer CTR |
|---|---|---|
| EdTech | 4.2% | 12.8% |
| SaaS | 3.1% | 9.4% |
| E-commerce | 2.8% | 8.1% |
| Media | 3.5% | 11.2% |
| Fintech | 2.4% | 7.3% |
| Events | 5.1% | 15.6% |
Events and EdTech consistently have the highest CTRs, likely because of time-sensitive content and strong audience intent.
Optimal Sharing Times
- Email: Tuesday and Thursday, 9-11am local time
- LinkedIn: Tuesday-Wednesday, 8-10am local time
- Twitter/X: Wednesday and Friday, 12-2pm local time
- WhatsApp: Evening, 6-8pm local time
These are averages across all industries. Your mileage may vary, but they're a solid starting point.
The UTM Discipline Gap
This was the most surprising finding: only 34% of links on our platform use UTM parameters consistently.
Of the 66% without consistent UTMs:
- 42% had no UTM parameters at all
- 24% had inconsistent naming (e.g., mixing
utm_source=Newsletterandutm_source=newsletter)
The teams with consistent UTM discipline reported 2.3x better attribution confidence in their analytics platforms.
Branded vs. Generic Links
- Branded links: 38% higher CTR on average
- The gap is widest in email (47%) and narrowest in paid ads (34%)
- Custom domains account for 62% of all links created on paid plans
Link Lifecycle
- 80% of clicks happen within the first 48 hours of sharing
- 90% of clicks happen within 7 days
- However, evergreen content links (guides, documentation) continue to receive traffic for months
- The average link receives clicks for 23 days before going dormant
Key Takeaway
The single biggest driver of marketing attribution quality isn't the analytics platform you use — it's UTM discipline. Teams that enforce consistent UTM naming across all links see dramatically better attribution, regardless of whether they use PostHog, GA4, Mixpanel, or any other tool.