Context
A dimension that covers every source, campaign type and so on, and is also extended to Analytics, can grow very fast. Especially when the naming taxonomy isn't consistently followed: you have to juggle several conditions within a step, and they quickly pile up.
The idea is to keep a single condition per step thanks to a regex, which handles the ORs and absorbs potential naming errors (typos, variants, encodings).
OR inside a regex
If you want to put an OR on several values in a single step, write them in one regex separated by |. A single condition then replaces several steps, and keeps its AND with the first "when" filter.
Without regex: 3 steps "UTM source = meta AND campaign contains branding", OR "… brand", OR "… notoriete".
With regex: 1 step "source = meta AND campaign matches regex
branding|brand|notoriete".
The same principle applies to the source itself: ^meta|^fb$|^ig$|^facebook|^tiktok|^snap|^pinterest groups every way the social UTM sources are written into one condition.
How to add it to the dimension
In the step, keep the first condition on the UTM source or another filter.
Add the condition on the field you need (UTM campaign, UTM content...) with the Matches regex operator, and paste the regex without quotes.
Tick "Not case sensitive": no need to write
[Bb]randing.
Order the steps from most specific to broadest: only the first matching step applies.
End each source with an "Others" step (no field condition) rather than a list of "do not contains".
Note in the step comment what the regex covers, then test the rule before saving.
How to build the regex
Need | Syntax | Example |
OR between several values |
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Starts with |
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|
Exact value |
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|
Optional character |
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Segment surrounded by spaces or + |
| "- YT -", "+yt+" |
Encoded spaces in UTMs |
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Tip: ask an AI assistant to build the regex for you.
Before / after example
A "Strategy" dimension blended across Ads + Analytics goes from 50 to 20 steps, with the same output values.
Value | Before | After (1 step, after the social UTM source filter) |
Brand | 3 steps: branding, brand, noto |
|
Performance | 4 steps: performance, perf, vente, sales |
|
Other | list of "do not contains" | "Other" step with no condition |