Pass-through variables let you add data you already know about your respondents—like a customer's vehicle make or the channel they came from—directly to your List Survey link. aytm saves those values with each response, so you can pipe them into questions, use them in logic, and filter, analyze, and export by them in your results without asking respondents for the information.
In This Article
- Planning and Naming Your Variables
- Building the Survey Link
- Piping Variables into Your Survey
- Testing Variables in Preview
- Finding Variables in Your Results
- Using Your CRM to Fill in Variables
Planning and Naming Your Variables
Before you build your survey, decide which variables you want to pass through the link and map out where you'll use them, so you can set up piping and logic ahead of time.
For example, imagine you own a car dealership and want to survey your customer list. Your database already has each customer's vehicle make, model, and purchase type (lease or buy), and you'd like to use that information without asking for it in the survey. You could name your variables varmake, var_model, and varpurch. To target Chevy Avalanche leasers, you'd add this to the end of your survey link:
?varmake=Chevy&var_model=AVALANCHE&varpurch=lease
Naming Rules
| Rule | Details |
|---|---|
| Start every name with "var" |
This is required, not a style suggestion. Only parameters whose
names start with "var" are saved to your results. Case doesn't
matter here—VARmake
and
Varmake
both work.
|
| Use only letters, digits, and underscores |
Names like
var-make
or
var.make
are still saved, but you can't pipe them or use them in logic
conditions.
|
| Names are stored in lowercase |
?VarMake=Chevy
is saved, piped, and shown in results as
varmake.
The "var" prefix and any underscores stay in the name.
|
| Keep every name unique |
Because names are lowercased, two parameters that differ only
by case (e.g.,
varMake
and
varmake)
count as the same variable, and only the last one is kept.
|
| Watch for accidental matches |
Any parameter that starts with "var" is captured—including ones
you may not intend as variables, like
variant=.
|
Building the Survey Link
To find your respondent link, open the survey's menu on the Dashboard and select Get survey link. A List Survey link looks like https://aytm.com/rAb3dE9. If your team uses a custom subdomain, your link will use that address instead.
Add your variables to the end of the link in this format:
?var{variable name}={variable value}
?var{first variable name}={first variable value}&var{second variable name}={second variable value}Put ? before the first variable and & before each one after it. If your link already contains a ? (for example, ?uuid=…), start every variable with &. Using the car dealership example, the full link would be:
https://aytm.com/rAb3dE9?varmake=Chevy&var_model=AVALANCHE&varpurch=lease
Spaces and Special Characters
Don't type raw spaces into the link—they can break it in emails and CRMs. Instead, encode spaces and other special characters so values arrive intact. For example, varmodel=Silverado%201500 is saved as "Silverado 1500".
| Character in your value | Write it as |
|---|---|
| Space |
%20
or
+
|
| & |
%26
(otherwise it cuts the value off and starts a new parameter)
|
| # |
%23
(otherwise everything after it is lost)
|
There's no set limit on how many variables you can add or how long names and values can be, but browsers and servers do cap total link length, so keep your links as short as practical.
⚠️ Note: Add variables to your regular survey link, not the QR code link. QR code links redirect to the survey and drop any variables you've added to them.
Piping Variables into Your Survey
To show a variable's value in a question or answer option, write its name in square brackets using aytm Logic piping—for example, [varmake] or [var_model]. Name case doesn't matter in logic.
You can also use variables in logic conditions, the same way you'd use any other variable—for example, varpurch = "lease". Text comparisons ignore case, so this condition also matches "Lease" and "LEASE".
Below is an example of piping customer vehicle information into survey questions, where varpurch is either "buy" or "lease".
Here's how the piped text appears to respondents:
Testing Variables in Preview
Preview links read variables the same way respondent links do, so you can check your piping and logic before you send anything out. Preview answers aren't added to your results.
- Open your survey in the survey editor.
- Click Share, next to Preview in the sidebar.
- Click Copy next to Survey preview link.
-
Paste the link somewhere you can edit it, then add your variables to the end. Using the car dealership example, it would look like this:
https://aytm.com/preview/{preview key}?varmake=Chevy&var_model=AVALANCHE&varpurch=lease - Paste the full link into your browser and check that your piping and logic work as expected.
If Enable researcher preview tool is selected, your preview link already ends with ?mode=researcher. In that case, start your variables with & instead of ?:
https://aytm.com/smart_preview/{preview key}?mode=researcher&varmake=Chevy&var_model=AVALANCHE&varpurch=leaseFinding Variables in Your Results
Variables are saved for every respondent who starts your survey—including screen-outs and partial responses, not just completes. Here's where they show up:
| Where | What to expect |
|---|---|
| Filters |
Each variable appears in the Variables filter
group, titled with its lowercase name (e.g.,
varmake).
Filter options are shown in lowercase, and matching ignores case,
so "Chevy", "chevy", and "CHEVY" are one option. If a variable
has more than 250 different values, you'll see "This filter has
N values. Please use advanced mode for this filter".
|
| Virtual Questions | Variables are listed under Variables: in the Virtual Question (VQ) presets. A variable with more than 250 different values isn't offered. |
| Data exports | Response-level exports include a column for each variable. In the raw Excel and CSV exports, they appear under the Piping header, alongside any variables your logic sets. SPSS and numerically coded Excel exports include them too. Values keep their original case in exports. These exports require response-level data access on your plan. |
⚠️ Note: Variables are saved once, when the respondent starts the survey. If a respondent returns to finish later—from the same browser or with the same
uuid—they keep their original values, even if they come back through a link with different ones.
Tracking Where Respondents Came From
Besides customer data, you can use a variable to track where respondents entered your List Survey (e.g., social media or your own website). Create a separate link for each channel:
https://aytm.com/rAb3dE9?var_source=Instagram
Make sure the parameter name starts with "var". Parameters that don't—like utm_source= or source=—aren't saved and won't appear in filters or exports. The only exceptions are a few reserved parameters, such as uuid for respondent IDs.
Using Your CRM to Fill in Variables
The examples above assume you're building survey links by hand for each customer segment. aytm doesn't integrate directly with CRMs, but because the survey link is a plain URL, you can use your CRM's merge fields to fill in variable values automatically when you send your messages.
Make sure your CRM encodes merged values that contain spaces or special characters (see Spaces and Special Characters), and send yourself a test message to check that the finished link works.
💡 Tip: You can also add data after the survey completes using the Custom Variable Upload feature. Uploaded variables appear in their own Uploaded Variables filter group. Custom Variable Upload depends on your plan and requires owner or admin access.