Understanding which external links are most often clicked on your website will help you understand what kind of information users are looking for. Given the choice between spending time and money to find a different home, or just giving up, the latter won out.[22] Google's url-shortener discussion group has frequently included messages from frustrated users reporting that specific shortened URLs have been disabled after they were reported as spam.[23] A study in May 2012 showed that 61% of URL shorteners had shut down (614 of 1002).[24] The most common cause cited was abuse by spammers.
Bag.gy is a standard link shortener, too, with password protected link options if you want them. How to track Link Clicks with Google Analytics To track link clicks in Google Analytics you’ll need to set up custom events. This can result in URLs that are hundreds of characters long and that contain complex character patterns. You can also create a tracking domain to “gather metrics for all users that are shortening links to your site”. Adjust provides several alternatives for working with trackers for multiple platforms.
Services available include an ordinary, easy-to-say word as the URL with a lifetime from 5 minutes up to 24 hours, creation of a URL which will expire on a specified date or after a specified period, creation of a very-short-lived URL of only 5 characters for typing into a smartphone, restriction by the creator of the total number of uses of the URL, and password protection. Undo Undo Shorten URL @ShortenURL 20 May 2011 More Revision 361: Increased max-version Thanks. They create unique tracking links and give you insight on how to create value out of the sharing data. See the company's blog to learn more about the changes that are taking place. More » TinyURL.com TinyURL used to be one of the top shortening choice in the past, and people still use it a lot today, however it does include a couple more characters compared to others like Bit.ly and Goo.gl.
Facebook has this new colored status background feature that works when your status is short and straight to the point. In 2011, the bit.ly address was set to redirect to bitly.com.[clarification needed] The .ly TLD is controlled by the Libyan government, which has previously removed one domain deemed incompatible with Muslim law.[12] Any shortened URL generated with bitly can also be accessed by replacing that domain with any one of the following: bitly.com j.mp (registered to bitly, and using the top-level domain of the Northern Mariana Islands, a commonwealth of the United States). This method can create some clever domains and also have the advantage of using the domain extension itself as part of the word or words you're trying to convey. Enabling this setting records and displays the following additional link information: URL: Displays the URL that will be tracked. These can be transmitted via one of three parameters on the tracker URL. Understanding which external links are most often clicked on your website will help you understand what kind of information users are looking for.
If you haven’t yet, upgrade from classic to Universal Google Analytics. You could create a complex UTM code structure for a link but then shorten it via Bitly and use the link on a piece of direct mail. At Track Number Of Times This Link Is Clicked? mark the check box to enable link tracking. - OR - unmark the check box to disable it. This is compatible with most web browsers and platforms as long as your bookmarks or favorites allow javascript. You can set your own custom expiration dates with any premium account. One of the reasons why people love using Bitly is that it allows users to create a custom shortened URL. As I said, that reference number is unique to your Instagram post, and 18 quadrillion is easily going to be sufficient for all those food photos people post there. You can use your own short URLs to point to different pages on your site.