You pay for Google Ads, Instagram ads, a billboard by the highway and flyers in the nearby mall. The phone rings — but which of these actually brings customers, and which just eats your budget? Call tracking answers that with numbers: it shows which ad each call came from. Here's how Call Tracking by Stream Telecom works, which type suits a small business, what it costs and how to set it up in 1–2 days.
What call tracking is and why a small business needs it
Most small businesses find out where a customer came from in one way — they ask. And they get answers like these:
You can't decide where to invest based on data like that. Call tracking is a call analytics service that automatically identifies the source of every call: the ad campaign, the channel or the specific ad. No surveys, no "I think it was Instagram".
For a small business this matters even more: budgets are tight, and a phone call is often the main way customers get in touch. According to Stream Telecom, call tracking is most useful for companies that receive leads by phone: beauty salons, clinics, service centers, developers and agencies.
How call tracking works: number substitution
Call tracking is built on a simple idea: each ad source shows the customer its own phone number. When someone calls that number, the system knows exactly where the customer came from.
- The customer sees an adFor example, they click a Google Ads ad and land on your website.
- The site shows a different numberThe call tracking script displays 044 XXX-XX-17 instead of your main number.
- The customer callsThe call goes into your phone system, and a manager answers as usual.
- The report records the sourceThe system links the call to Google Ads, the campaign and the website visit.
Nothing changes for the customer: they dial a normal number and reach the same manager. Calls to tracking numbers can be routed to virtual PBX extensions or to external channels, including IP telephony, so the load is shared between departments and branches.
Static, dynamic or combined call tracking
Stream Telecom offers three types of Call Tracking. The choice depends on where you advertise and how detailed you need the analytics to be.
Each channel gets its own permanent number. You need as many numbers as sources you want to tell apart.
- Billboards and city lights
- Radio and TV
- Flyers, brochures, signage
Each website visitor sees a number from a prepared pool, so every call is linked to a specific visit.
- Google Ads and SEO
- Social media ads
- Mailings with UTM tags
Static numbers for offline channels plus dynamic substitution on the website. All your advertising in one set of reports.
- When you have both a website and offline ads
- When you need to compare online with offline
The pool size depends on your website traffic and how many people visit at the same time. Stream Telecom measures your traffic first and then calculates how many numbers you need, so you don't pay for spare ones.
Which advertising call tracking can track
Call tracking is useful for a small business because it tracks not only online ads but offline ones too — where there are simply no other analytics tools.
- Google Adsdown to the campaign, and to the keyword if the ads are tagged
- Facebook and Instagram ads
- SEO and organic search
- Email, SMS and Viber mailings with UTM tags
- Directories, aggregators, partner sites
- Billboards, city lights, transit ads
- Radio and TV
- Flyers, leaflets, catalogs
- Signage and vehicle branding
- Print ads
If you send a Viber or SMS mailing with a link to your website, always add UTM tags. Then call tracking will show how many calls that mailing brought in.
What call tracking reports show
Once Call Tracking by Stream Telecom is connected, your reports show:
- Sources and campaigns — how many calls each channel brought in. The level of detail depends on your ad tagging and the data the ad platform provides.
- Number and duration of calls, with period-over-period comparison.
- Missed calls — to assess the workload and see how many customers from your ads couldn't get through.
- Cost per inquiry — once you add ad spend for the same source and period.
- Deals and sales — when a CRM is connected.
- Call recordings — so a manager can check how the team handles customers who came from ads.
Here's what a report could look like for a small business. Look at the last column: it shows which advertising actually brings calls at a sensible price.
| Source | Budget | Calls | Missed | Cost per call |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Google Ads | 6,000 UAH | 40 | 3 | 150 UAH |
| 5,000 UAH | 20 | 4 | 250 UAH | |
| SEO / organic | — | 25 | 2 | — |
| Billboard | 4,000 UAH | 8 | 1 | 500 UAH |
| Flyers | 1,500 UAH | 3 | 0 | 500 UAH |
Figures are illustrative. Cost per call = source budget ÷ number of calls.
Without call tracking, this salon's owner would most likely think the billboard works well, because "everyone sees it". But the data shows that a call from the billboard costs three times more than one from Google Ads. On top of that, 10 customers couldn't get through during the month. That's not an advertising problem — it's a call handling problem.
Call tracking + CRM + Google Analytics = end-to-end analytics
A call isn't a sale yet. To see which advertising brings not just calls but money, call tracking is combined with a CRM and Google Analytics. That's end-to-end analytics.
| Integration | What you get |
|---|---|
| Google Analytics | Call events are sent to analytics, and call data appears in reports alongside website visits and conversions. |
| Google Ads | Calls are linked to campaigns. Keyword data is available if it's in your ad tagging and the platform passes it on. |
| CRM system | Each call is linked to a deal, and deal statuses and sale amounts can be passed to the CRM. |
| Virtual PBX | Call tracking works with cloud and IP telephony: calls are distributed between managers, recorded and included in the statistics. |
For example, Stream Telecom has a dedicated Call Tracking by Stream Telecom app for Bitrix24. It adds UTM tags and the Google Analytics Client ID to leads and deals, and when a deal closes, it sends a successful or unsuccessful conversion to Google Analytics. This shows which campaign led to an actual payment, not just a call. The full list of systems is on the CRM integrations page.
Take a look at StreamCRM: calls, leads and inquiry sources are stored in one system, with no separate integration needed.
How much call tracking costs at Stream Telecom
The cost of call tracking is made up of renting tracking numbers and a license for each connected number. The final amount depends on the number of numbers and the features you choose.
Stream Telecom number rental for selected sources and the substitution pool
For Stream Telecom mobile operator numbers
Added for each such number used for tracking
A rough example: a salon with a website and two offline channels needs 2 static numbers for the billboard and flyers and a small pool for the website — say, 4 numbers. That's 6 landline numbers × 99 UAH ≈ 594 UAH a month. Stream Telecom will set the exact pool size after measuring your traffic.
The CallTracking feature is already included in the virtual PBX Business (750 UAH/month) and Business Pro (1,500 UAH/month) plans. And new Stream Telecom customers can use a free version of Call Tracking to test number substitution and review reports before buying.
For comparison: if call tracking shows that one channel brings a call for 500 UAH and another for 150 UAH, moving even part of the budget will pay for the service in the very first month. We covered what makes up a telephony budget in our article "How Much IP Telephony Really Costs".
How to set up call tracking: 4 steps
Stream Telecom call tracking can be launched in 1–2 days. The specialists take on most of the work:
- We reserve numbersMobile, landline or 0800 — for your ad sources and the website pool size.
- We install the script on your siteThe number substitution code is added to every page — most easily via Google Tag Manager.
- We configure analyticsWe connect Google Analytics, Google Ads and your CRM and check your ads' UTM tagging.
- We test before launchWe make test calls and check that each one appears in the report with the right source.
We've prepared a step-by-step video guide: how to add the call tracking code in Google Tag Manager. All you need is access to your site's GTM container and the code from your account.
Mistakes that spoil call tracking data
Call tracking gives accurate data only when it's set up correctly. Here's what most often stops a small business from seeing the real picture:
Checklist: is your business ready for call tracking?
- Do you get a noticeable share of leads by phone, not only through forms and messengers?
- Do you advertise in at least 2 channels and want to compare them?
- Is the phone number on your website written as text, not as an image?
- Do you have access to Google Tag Manager or your website code?
- Are your ad links tagged with UTM tags?
- Are you ready to check the report once a month and move budget to the channels that work?
- Call tracking shows which ad each call came from by substituting the phone number.
- Static suits offline ads, dynamic suits your website, and combined gives you the full picture.
- At Stream Telecom, a tracking number costs from 99 UAH/month, and setup takes 1–2 days.
- The most valuable metric is the cost per call from each source. It shows which advertising actually works.
Tell us where you advertise and how much traffic your website gets — we'll calculate how many numbers you need and connect Call Tracking in 1–2 days. New customers can start with the free version.
Call tracking FAQ
What is call tracking in simple terms?
Call tracking is a service that identifies which ad each call came from. Each ad source shows its own phone number, so when a customer calls, the system knows exactly how they found the company.
What's the difference between static and dynamic call tracking?
Static assigns a permanent number to each channel and suits offline advertising: billboards, radio, flyers. Dynamic shows each website visitor a number from a pool and links the call to a specific visit, which suits online advertising. The two can be combined.
How much does call tracking cost at Stream Telecom?
Renting a landline or 0800 tracking number costs 99 UAH/month, the Call Tracking license for Stream Telecom mobile numbers is 125 UAH/month, and Kyivstar, lifecell and Vodafone numbers add 65 UAH/month per number. The final cost depends on how many numbers you need.
Can offline advertising be tracked?
Yes. Billboards, radio, flyers and other offline channels use static call tracking: each channel gets its own permanent number, and all calls to it are attributed to that source.
Can I try call tracking for free?
Yes, a free version of Call Tracking is available to new Stream Telecom customers. It lets you test number substitution and review reports before buying.
How do I install the call tracking code on my website?
The easiest way is via Google Tag Manager: the code is added as a Custom HTML tag with an All Pages trigger. There's a step-by-step video guide in the instructions section of the Stream Telecom website, and if needed, the specialists will install the code for you.
Prices are based on the Stream Telecom website as of November 2026. A manager will calculate the exact cost for your setup: +380 (44) 300 25 25, sales@streamtele.com.
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