Custom Parameters allow an Advanced Tracking Website to attach Website-provided information to an AIUNIFY Analytics Visitor.
AIUNIFY describes the feature as:
“Dynamically link variables from your website to tracked visitors.”
This is particularly useful when your Website already knows something about a logged-in user, member, customer, lead, or account and you want that context associated with the person's Analytics Visitor record.
The basic workflow is:
Website Knows User → Website Supplies Custom Parameters → AIUNIFY Associates Parameters with Advanced Visitor → Fingerprint Appears → Parameters Become Available in Visitor-Related Analytics
Custom Parameters are user-defined:
Key → Value
pairs supplied by your Website to AIUNIFY Analytics.
For example:
name → John Doe
email → john@example.com
user_id → 58271
The AIUNIFY Help documentation specifically gives:
as examples of identifiers that can be supplied for logged-in Website users.
AIUNIFY identifies:
Custom parameters for visitors
as one of the capabilities of:
Advanced tracking mode.
The actual Visitor-processing logic for Custom Parameters is also part of Advanced Tracking Visitor initialization.
Therefore:
Supports Custom Parameters attached to persistent Visitor records.
Does not provide the same persistent Visitor identity and Custom Parameter relationship.
Without Custom Parameters, Analytics may know that a persistent Advanced Visitor:
but may not know how that Visitor relates to your own Website's user system.
Custom Parameters allow your Website to provide additional context.
Without Custom Parameters, a Visitor may appear primarily as:
Visitor
along with their:
The Visitor still has a persistent Analytics identity under Advanced Tracking, but no Website-provided business identifier has been attached.
Suppose a membership Website knows that the logged-in account is:
Member ID: 7842
Name: Maria Johnson
The Website could provide corresponding Custom Parameters.
The Analytics Visitor can then be associated with those Website-supplied values.
This allows you to interpret the Visitor's behavior with additional business context.
AIUNIFY specifically describes Custom Parameters as useful for:
Websites with membership systems.
When users log in, the Website can specify an identifier such as:
through the tracking implementation.
The same mechanism can be useful for Websites with authenticated or otherwise recognized users, such as:
The values available depend entirely on what your Website already knows and deliberately sends.
Custom Parameters are not automatically discovered by AIUNIFY Analytics.
Your Website must explicitly provide them.
For example, Analytics cannot automatically turn:
Visitor
into:
John Smith
unless the Website itself supplies that identifying information.
The built-in Help documentation instructs you to add:
data-custom-parameters='{JSON_PARAMETERS_HERE}'
to the AIUNIFY Analytics Tracking Code.
Conceptually, the implementation looks like:
Use your Website's actual AIUNIFY Tracking Code URL rather than the generic placeholder shown above.
The system's own Help example demonstrates Custom Parameters using:
name
and:
inside a JSON object attached to the Analytics script.
The important pattern is:
Parameter Name → Parameter Value
inside valid JSON.
The Tracking Code displayed in the AIUNIFY Help example is illustrative.
Your Website must use the Tracking Code generated for its own Website record.
As covered in Chapter 5:
Websites → Tracking Code → Install pixel
provides the correct Website-specific connection.
Custom Parameters are added to that implementation.
The real value of Custom Parameters comes from supplying values dynamically from your Website.
For example, instead of permanently hard-coding:
your Website could supply the name belonging to whichever authenticated user is currently logged in.
Conceptually:
User A logs in
→ user_id = 1001
User B logs in
→ user_id = 1002
User C logs in
→ user_id = 1003
Your developer is responsible for generating the correct Website-side values.
A Website could supply:
This lets the Analytics Visitor record carry the same identifier used by your Website's user system.
The AIUNIFY Help documentation explicitly lists user_id as an example identifier.
A Website could provide:
The value will then appear as a Custom Parameter associated with that Visitor when successfully received.
A Website could provide:
Email is also explicitly listed by AIUNIFY as an example Custom Parameter.
Because an email address is personal information, only send it when appropriate for your Website's privacy, disclosure, and consent obligations.
You can provide more than one parameter at the same time.
For example:
AIUNIFY stores Custom Parameters as key/value data on the Visitor record.
For long-term analysis, a stable Website identifier such as:
user_id
can often be more operationally consistent than values that may change, such as:
For example:
user_id = 7842
can continue identifying the same Website account even if that account later changes its email address.
This is a recommended implementation practice, not a requirement imposed by AIUNIFY.
AIUNIFY does not require every Website to use the same Custom Parameter names.
The system accepts supplied key/value pairs.
Examples could include:
user_idnameemailmember_idcustomer_numberaccount_typeHowever, use clear and consistent naming throughout your Website implementation.
Custom Parameters should provide useful Visitor context.
Avoid sending large amounts of unnecessary Website/account information simply because the feature allows variables to be attached.
A useful principle is:
Send what helps Analytics interpretation—not everything your application knows.
This also reduces privacy exposure.
During Advanced Visitor initialization, AIUNIFY:
The Visitor record is saved alongside other information such as Geography, Browser, Device, Screen Resolution, and activity dates.
This is an important distinction.
Custom Parameters belong to the Advanced:
Visitor record
rather than being merely a label attached to one Pageview.
That is why the same Custom Parameters can appear throughout Visitor-related Analytics areas.
When a Visitor has Custom Parameters, AIUNIFY Analytics replaces the ordinary Visitor-avatar presentation in several areas with a:
Fingerprint icon
The Help documentation explicitly explains that the fingerprint indicates a Visitor has been identified using Custom Parameters.
On:
Visitors
a Visitor with Custom Parameters displays the fingerprint icon.
Hovering over it provides a tooltip showing:
Suppose the Visitor has:
The fingerprint tooltip can display those key/value pairs.
This lets you obtain Visitor context without opening the full Visitor record.
The tooltip uses the label:
%s custom parameters
For example:
3 custom parameters
This indicates how many parameter entries are currently associated with the Visitor.
Clicking the fingerprint icon opens the individual:
Visitor
record.
There, Custom Parameters have their own dedicated section labeled:
Custom parameters.
Inside the Visitor profile, AIUNIFY displays each Custom Parameter as:
Key → Value
For example:
If no Custom Parameters exist, the interface displays:
None.
Once you open the identified Visitor, you can combine the supplied Website identity information with Analytics information such as:
This turns Custom Parameters into context for the Visitor Journey rather than a standalone report.
For Advanced Tracking, Custom Parameters can also appear in the:
Pageviews
table.
When a Pageview belongs to a Visitor who has Custom Parameters, AIUNIFY can display the fingerprint icon rather than the normal Visitor avatar.
Hovering over the fingerprint from an Advanced Pageview can display the Visitor's Custom Parameters.
This makes it possible to move from:
Pageview
to:
Known Website Context
without first opening the full Visitor profile.
Suppose you see:
Pageview: /pricing
with a fingerprint.
Hovering may show:
user_id → 7842
account_type → Enterprise Trial
You now know that this Pricing Pageview belongs to the Visitor carrying those Website-provided parameters.
Session Replays also use the Custom Parameter fingerprint.
A Replay belonging to an identified Visitor can display the fingerprint icon with its parameter tooltip.
This can be particularly useful when investigating a specific member or customer Website experience.
The individual Replay screen also includes the Visitor's Custom Parameters.
When parameters exist, the fingerprint control displays them and links back to the Visitor profile.
This creates the relationship:
Known Website User → Analytics Visitor → Session → Replay
Suppose a customer reports:
“I could not complete the application.”
If your Website supplies a stable customer/user identifier through Custom Parameters, you may be able to identify the associated Visitor.
You could then review:
Visitor
↓
Sessions
↓
Pageviews
↓
Session Events
↓
Replay when available
This can provide useful behavioral context around the reported problem.
Suppose your membership Website sends:
member_id → 88492
You could open that Visitor and review:
This is the type of membership-system use case AIUNIFY specifically identifies for Custom Parameters.
A SaaS Website could potentially provide:
user_id
and:
plan_type
to give the Visitor record application-level context.
For example:
This is an implementation example; the actual parameter names and values are determined by your Website.
A lead portal might use a non-sensitive internal identifier such as:
This could allow internal teams to associate Analytics behavior with an existing business record without necessarily placing a person's full name into the Analytics parameter set.
Custom Parameters add context to Analytics Visitors.
They are not a replacement for:
Think of Custom Parameters as a bridge between:
Website/User Context
and:
Analytics Behavior
Adding Custom Parameters does not create a separate Analytics Visitor every time a value is supplied.
The Custom Parameter data is stored with the persistent Advanced Visitor record identified by the Analytics Visitor identity.
This allows Website-provided context and Advanced Visitor history to coexist.
The Visitor storage process supports updating the Custom Parameter information associated with an existing Advanced Visitor as that Visitor is processed again.
This matters when Website-provided information changes.
For example, an account may later have a different:
How and when those new values are supplied depends on the Website implementation.
Because Custom Parameters can represent dynamic Website values, decide which attributes should remain stable and which should change.
For example:
user_id
email
membership_level
account_status
Your implementation strategy should reflect how you intend to interpret historical Visitor information.
The standard Advanced Visitor filter set includes attributes such as:
It does not expose Custom Parameter keys as a standard Add filter field in the current Analytics filter interface.
Therefore, do not expect a standard control such as:
Filter → user_id → Is → 7842
in the current Visitor filter panel.
Use the fingerprint/Visitor records to inspect Custom Parameter information.
The Tracking Code expects the value supplied to:
data-custom-parameters
to represent Custom Parameter data in JSON form.
For example:
Use properly formatted:
Key : Value
pairs.
The Help documentation specifically instructs users to place JSON parameters inside the attribute.
A common implementation error is incorrectly nesting quotation marks.
The AIUNIFY example uses:
Conceptually:
This keeps the JSON properly structured inside the HTML attribute.
Do not install a second AIUNIFY Analytics pixel just to provide Custom Parameters.
Instead, modify the appropriate existing Website Tracking Code so it includes the:
data-custom-parameters
attribute.
Conceptually:
Existing Analytics Script
data-custom-parameters
=
Advanced Tracking with Website-provided Visitor context
Use this process:
data-custom-parameters to the tracking script.After implementation:
Do not use sensitive real-customer information merely for a technical test when a safe test account can be used instead.
Check:
The Website must use:
Advanced Tracking
Confirm the correct Website's Tracking Code is installed.
Confirm the script contains:
data-custom-parameters
Confirm the JSON is valid.
Confirm the Website actually generated values for the current user.
Generate new Website activity and recheck Visitors.
If the fingerprint exists but the values do not match the expected Website account:
AIUNIFY displays the parameter values supplied to the Visitor record; it does not independently verify that your Website mapped them to the correct customer.
Check:
AIUNIFY processes supplied parameter keys and values before storing them.
Keep the parameter set focused rather than attempting to send large application records.
Custom Parameters are supplied through Website tracking activity.
Installing Custom Parameters today does not mean AIUNIFY can retroactively know historical Website account information that was never previously sent.
Generate new tracked activity for the applicable Visitor and verify the implementation.
On the individual Visitor page:
Custom parameters → None
means no Custom Parameter data is currently available on that Visitor record.
Check the Website implementation rather than expecting Analytics to generate identity values automatically.
Advanced Pageview data includes Visitor Custom Parameters in the JSON export representation, while the standard CSV field list does not include the Custom Parameters field.
This distinction matters if you use exported Pageview information for further analysis.
Export functionality itself will be covered in detail in Chapter 23.
The source also supports working with Visitor Custom Parameters through the user API.
The API can accept indexed:
fields for a Visitor.
Detailed API operation belongs in:
Chapter 30 — Using the Analytics API
For ordinary Website implementation, the Tracking Code method remains the primary workflow described by AIUNIFY Help.
Custom Parameters can contain personally identifiable or account-related data depending on what your Website sends.
Examples such as:
can increase the sensitivity of the Analytics Visitor record.
AIUNIFY's own Advanced Tracking Help states that permission should be considered for Advanced Tracking.
Your organization is responsible for determining its applicable privacy, disclosure, consent, and data-handling obligations.
Never use Custom Parameters to send:
Custom Parameters are meant to provide useful Analytics context—not to store authentication or security secrets.
Before adding a parameter, ask:
Do we actually need this value to understand Website behavior?
For example, an internal:
customer_id
may sometimes provide enough operational context without also sending additional personal details.
Choose the minimum information needed for the Analytics use case.
Where appropriate, an internal identifier can reduce the need to expose additional personal information within Analytics.
For example:
Your authorized business system can maintain the relationship between that ID and the customer.
This is a privacy-conscious implementation strategy, not an AIUNIFY requirement.
Because Custom Parameters can provide identity context alongside behavioral information, access to AIUNIFY Analytics should be limited appropriately.
Authorized users may potentially see:
Identity Context + Sessions + Pageviews + Goals + Replays
depending on the Website's configuration.
Use Team access and account security deliberately.
The most powerful Custom Parameter workflow is:
Website Account
↓
Custom Parameters
↓
Advanced Visitor
↓
Sessions
↓
Pageviews / Events
↓
Goals
↓
Replays when available
This lets Analytics behavior be understood in the context of a Website-recognized account.
Suppose the Visitor carries:
customer_id → C-58492
and has:
Total Conversions: 2
You can open the Visitor and review:
This connects Website-provided identity context with measurable business outcomes.
For Advanced Tracking:
Fingerprint → Replay
can be particularly useful for diagnosing specific reported user experiences.
For example:
Customer C-58492 reports an application problem.
If a Replay exists for the associated Session, you may be able to review the recording with that Visitor context.
Custom Parameters also make individual Advanced Pageview records easier to contextualize.
Instead of seeing only:
Visitor → /pricing
you may see:
Fingerprint → Customer/User Context → /pricing
This can help when analyzing authenticated user activity.
A useful support workflow is:
Custom Parameters can make this workflow substantially more useful than anonymous Analytics alone.
For logged-in software or membership applications, parameters can help distinguish different types of Website users.
For example:
You can then interpret that Visitor's journey with additional product/account context.
Remember that the current standard Analytics Filters do not automatically turn arbitrary Custom Parameter names into filter dimensions.
Before implementation, define a simple parameter standard.
For example:
Primary Stable Identifier
user_id
Optional Human Context
name
Optional Business Context
account_type
Avoid inconsistent naming such as:
userId
on one page,
user_id
on another,
and:
userid
elsewhere.
Consistency makes the Analytics data easier to interpret.
A conservative approach is:
The broader AIUNIFY privacy and opt-out features are covered in Chapter 22.
Before using Custom Parameters, confirm:
data-custom-parameters added to the correct tracking scriptThe Custom Parameter process can be summarized as:
Advanced Tracking Website
↓
Website Recognizes User
↓
Website Generates Key/Value Information
↓
AIUNIFY Tracking Code Receives data-custom-parameters
↓
Parameters Associated with Persistent Visitor
↓
Fingerprint Indicator Appears
↓
Custom Parameters Available in Visitor Context
↓
Visitor → Sessions → Pageviews → Goals → Replays
↓
Behavior Can Be Interpreted with Website-Provided User Context
You should now understand that Custom Parameters allow an Advanced Tracking Website to dynamically attach Website-provided variables to a persistent AIUNIFY Analytics Visitor.
AIUNIFY specifically recommends the feature for membership-style systems and identifies email, user_id, and name as example values.
Implementation uses the:
data-custom-parameters
attribute on the Website's Analytics Tracking Code, containing JSON key/value data.
Once Custom Parameters are associated with the Visitor, AIUNIFY uses the fingerprint icon to identify that additional context in areas such as Visitors, Advanced Pageviews, and Session Replays, while the individual Visitor page displays each parameter directly.
Most importantly:
Custom Parameters do not identify Visitors by themselves.
Your Website supplies the identity/context, and AIUNIFY associates it with the Advanced Visitor record.