How do I track performance and analytics (streams, saves, Meta Pixel, smart links, promo codes, dashboards)?
TL;DR - One source of truth, pixels and UTMs, weekly roll-ups
Case Study - “Blue Mirage”
Meta Reels ads
Spend: $180
Streams: 12,500
Saves: 1,580
Email sign-ups: 110
Revenue: $140 merch
Key metric: $0.11 per save
TikTok Spark Ad
Spend: $120
Streams: 8,900
Saves: 1,070
Email sign-ups: 65
Revenue: —
Key metric: $0.11 per save
Smart-link, Linkfire
Streams: 6,300
Saves: 740
Email sign-ups: 95
Key metric: 11.7% save rate
Promo codes, HOODIE10
Revenue: $520
Key metric: 8.3% code usage
Playlist campaign CSV, exported from pitching dashboard and pasted into the master sheet
Spend: $90
Streams: 9,600
Saves: 1,020
Key metric: $0.09 per save
Result
Blended cost per save $0.10
Algorithmic share climbed from 9% to 26%
Merch profit covered 53% of ad spend
Capture every data source
Streams, saves, skips: Spotify for Artists, Export CSV
Playlist adds: Chartmetric, SubmitHub, Groover, One Submit, platform exports
Pixel events: Meta Events Manager, TikTok Ads Manager
Smart-link clicks: Linkfire, ToneDen, Koji dashboards
Promo-code sales: Shopify, WooCommerce, Bandcamp reports
Ad spend: Meta, TikTok, Google Ads CSV
Revenue and payouts: DistroKid, TuneCore, label statements
Tag and fire correctly
UTMs: utm_source=tiktok, utm_campaign=hook_chorus
Pixels
Meta: PageView, OutboundClick, custom Stream 30s event
TikTok: ViewContent, CompleteEvent 25s
Promo codes: unique per channel, for example HOODIE_TT, HOODIE_IG
Smart-link alias: /new_single_tiktok and /new_single_email for fast lookup
Build the master sheet, one tab per week
Include columns: Date, Channel, Spend, Streams, Saves, Clicks, Pixel 30s fires, Email opt-ins, Revenue, Cost per save, Save percent, ROAS, Notes
Use simple formulas
Cost per save = Spend divided by Saves
Save percent = Saves divided by Streams
ROAS = Revenue divided by Spend
Add conditional formatting: green when Cost per save is below target, red when above.
Turn the sheet into a dashboard
Pivot by channel and week to see trends
Use Looker Studio or DataBox to connect Google Sheets for graphs: cost per save, saves per week, ROAS
Set a Slack or Discord zap for Mondays at 09:00 that posts Green rows to scale and Red rows to pause
Weekly decision ritual
If Cost per save is at or below target, for example $0.20, increase budget 50% next week
If Save to stream is at or below 8%, fix targeting or creative and retest
If ROAS is at least 1.2, duplicate the ad set to a new audience
If algorithmic share is flat, add a fresh content push, Shorts or Reels
Common pitfalls
Multiple dashboards, nobody knows the real numbers
Forgetting to tag organic posts, wins cannot be credited
Promo codes too generic, for example SUMMER10, hard to trace origin
Judging playlists by streams, not saves; bot lists skew data
Pixel firing after the link-out rather than before, attribution is missed
Key takeaways
One master sheet rules them all, merge streams, saves, clicks, and spend.
Tag everything with UTMs, pixels, promo codes before you launch.
Review weekly, cost per save, save percent, and ROAS decide budget moves.
Green means scale, red means pause. Let data, not feelings, drive spend.
Automate exports where possible so reporting takes minutes, not hours.