How to Create Branded Short Links in WordPress (Step by Step)
tutorial branded links custom domain url-shortify wordpress

How to Create Branded Short Links in WordPress (Step by Step)

By KaizenCoders

A branded short link is a link that carries your name instead of a generic shortener's. yourbrand.com/deal instead of bit.ly/3xQ9z. It looks more trustworthy, gets more clicks, and reinforces your brand every time someone shares it. The best part: on WordPress you can create them yourself, keep all the click data, and never depend on a third-party platform.

This guide shows you exactly how to create branded short links in WordPress, from your first cloaked link to serving links off your own dedicated short domain.

  • Trust and click-through. Clean, branded links read as safe. Long parameter-stuffed URLs and anonymous shortener domains read as suspicious — and people hesitate before clicking.
  • Brand recall. Every shared link is a tiny ad for your domain.
  • Owned data. When you create links in WordPress, the clicks live in your database — not a SaaS dashboard you rent.
  • Control. You choose the slug, the redirect type, and what happens when a link changes.

What you need

  • A WordPress site.
  • The URL Shortify plugin installed and activated — see Installation.
  • (Optional, for a separate short domain) a domain or subdomain you can point at your site.

Switching from another link plugin? Bring your existing links across first with One-Click Import — it reads Pretty Links, ThirstyAffiliates, Redirection, and more directly, no CSV needed — then brand and track them with the steps below.

  1. Go to URL Shortify → Links → Add New.
  2. Enter a Title (for your reference) and the Target URL (where the link points).
  3. Set the slug — the part after your domain. Keep it short and meaningful: /deal, /guide, /go/elementor.
  4. Choose the redirect type — 301 for permanent links you want to pass equity, 302 for campaign and affiliate links you may repoint later.
  5. Save.

Your branded link is now live at yourdomain.com/your-slug. Full options are documented in Create a Short Link.

Step 2: Choose a slug convention (do this once)

Consistency is what makes branded links feel professional. Pick a prefix system and stick to it:

  • /go/ or /recommends/ for affiliate links
  • /deal/ for promotions
  • /r/ for resources

A convention also keeps your link list tidy and makes tags and reports easier to scan later. See Link Tags for organising at scale.

Using yourdomain.com/deal is already branded. But many brands want a dedicated short domain — like yose.fy or brnd.co — so links are tiny and branded. URL Shortify supports custom domains:

  1. Register a short domain (or pick a subdomain like go.yourdomain.com).
  2. Point it at your WordPress site with the redirect setup described in Custom Domains.
  3. Add the domain in URL Shortify at URL Shortify → Domains.
  4. Create links on that domain — they'll resolve as go.yourdomain.com/deal.

This is the step that turns "short links on my site" into a real branded link system.

A branded link should preview well on social and chat apps. URL Shortify lets you control the Open Graph link preview — the title, description, and image that appear when your short link is pasted into Facebook, LinkedIn, or Slack. Set these so a shared link shows your branding, not a blank card.

Step 5: Turn on tracking and keep the numbers clean

Branded links are most valuable when you can see how they perform.

  1. Confirm tracking is on at URL Shortify → Settings (the Tracking option) — see Link Tracking.
  2. Exclude your own traffic so testing doesn't inflate counts — Exclude IPs.
  3. Filter bots so crawlers don't pollute stats — Filter Robots.

Now every branded click is recorded with referrer, country, and device — yours to keep.

Step 6 (optional): Add a QR code for offline branding

For print, packaging, or events, generate a QR code from any branded link. The QR points at your branded slug, so even offline scans flow through your tracked, branded URL.

Common mistakes to avoid

  • Inconsistent slugs. /go/elementor on one post and /elementor-page-builder-review on another makes your links look ad hoc. Pick a convention.
  • 301 on links you'll repoint. Use 302 for affiliate and campaign links so you can change the destination without redirect-cache headaches.
  • Forgetting to exclude your own IP. Your testing clicks will quietly distort early numbers.
  • No branded domain. Branded slugs are good; a dedicated short domain is the polish that makes links memorable.

Build branded short links on your own domain

Every step in this guide, from cloaked slugs to a dedicated short domain and click tracking, runs inside URL Shortify, so your branded links and their data stay on your site. Get URL Shortify

Conclusion

Creating branded short links in WordPress is a five-minute setup that pays off on every share: more trust, more clicks, and click data you own. Start with a clean slug on your main domain, add a custom short domain when you're ready, turn on tracking, and you've got a branded link system that rivals any SaaS shortener — without renting it.

FAQs

Yes. URL Shortify serves links from your main domain by default, and supports a dedicated custom short domain — see Custom Domains.

They're neutral-to-positive: clean branded links improve click-through and trust, and with the right redirect type they don't harm SEO. Use 301 for permanent links, 302 for links you may repoint.

A self-hosted plugin means no per-click SaaS fees — you own the links and data on your own domain. See Best Bitly Alternatives for WordPress.

Yes — every branded link records clicks, unique clicks, referrer, country, and device. See How to Track Link Clicks in WordPress.

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