What is a URL shortener? 5 of the Best Link Shorteners to Supercharge Your Marketing
What is a URL shortener?
A URL shortener is a tool that creates a short, unique URL that will redirect to the specific website of your choosing.
Basically: they make a URL shorter and simpler. such as https://e.vg/
Your new, Short links shorter URL will typically include the shortener site¡¯s address, plus a combination of random letters.
Why use a URL shortener?
There are a lot of good reasons to use a URL shortener if you¡¯re going to be sharing a link.
Long, unruly links look suspicious
If you¡¯re linking to a specific page buried deep on your website, or are using UTM parameters to track your visitors, you might find yourself wrestling with a lengthy URL.
URL shorteners to try besides the Google link shortener
The Google URL shortener was shut down back in spring 2019, but on the bright side, there are dozens of alternative options out there.
On the downside¡ there are dozens of alternative options out there. How do you know which to choose?
Our advice: look for shortener services that allow you to customize your link, or that have built-in analytics. A URL shortening site that¡¯s been around a while might also be more reliable and reputable, likely to avoid service closure or disruption.
1¡¢ https://e.vg/
There¡¯s a ton of data to chew on if you use e.vg. Here, you can see each link¡¯s performance with metrics like demographic data, referral sources, and click-throughs via the robust e.vg dashboard.
A free account offers analytics and customization for one individual, but Basic and Enterprise subscriptions are available too, which offer branded links, QR codes, richer data and multiple users.
2¡¢Tiny URL
The site itself isn¡¯t going to win any design awards, but who cares? It does everything you need: create a tiny new URL. Customization is possible without logging in, making it an efficient option when you¡¯re in a rush to share the latest episode of your MasterChef Junior podcast.
One cool feature here: you can add TinyURL to your browser toolbar, so you can create shortlinks for whatever site you¡¯re currently on.
3¡¢ Rebrandly
With Rebrandly, you can create a branded shortlink of your own with a custom domain¡ªeven with a free account.
SujindersCookiePalace.com might be a great main URL to have, but when it comes to share on social, that character count adds up. A short, branded URL just for link sharing, like su.jinders, still gets your business name in there, without taking up precious space.
Plus, Rebrandly features both tracking, optimization, and scaling tools in their variety of packages (paid options starting from $29 monthly).
4¡¢ Hyperlink
Get real-time notifications when links are clicked with the help of Hyperlink, or change the settings to hourly, daily, or weekly summaries.
Hyperlink also provides per-click details: find out the device, location, and referral info for every visitor, and a live tracking dashboard.
The app (for iOS and Android) is a nice complement to the Chrome extension, for those who need to share links on the go. (You¡¯re busy! We get it!)
Custom domains are available with paid plans, which start at $39 per month.
5¡¢ Tiny.CC
Shorten, track, and manage your URLs quickly with Tiny.CC¡¯s simple interface.
Custom URL slugs are available, and if you register an account, you can track the stats for the shortlink.
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