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URLs might seem like a small detail in digital marketing, but they play a huge role in click-through rates, tracking, and overall campaign success. Whether you’re using links in email marketing, ads, or social media, following URL best practices can help improve user experience, boost engagement, and enhance tracking capabilities.
Here’s how to get the most out of your links using advanced tracking, and personalisation strategies:
1. Keep URLs Short and Clean
Long, complicated URLs can look spammy, unreliable and reduce click-through rates. A link shortener helps you create clean, concise, and user-friendly links that encourage clicks.
🔴 Bad Example: yourwebsite.com/store/products/newcollection/spring-sale-2024?utm_source=email&utm_campaign=holidaypromo123
🟢 Better Example: yourwebsite.com/spring-sale or a personalised URL shortener like brand.link/sale
Why it works:
✔ Improves user trust (shorter links look more credible)
✔ Easier to share across platforms
✔ Better mobile experience (long URLs get cut off in SMS or email previews)
2. Use Branded and Custom URLs
A branded URL shortener option lets you brand your links instead of them appearing as they belong to generic domains (like Bitly or TinyURL). This enhances trust and recognisability.
🔹 Example: Instead of bit.ly/3Xy12zA, use yourbrand.link/special-offer
Why it works:
✔ Increases brand recognition
✔ Builds trust—users are more likely to click on a familiar domain
✔ Prevents links from being flagged as spam
3. Track Every Click with Advanced Analytics
A customer tracking tool combined with campaign analytics software allows you to see who is clicking your links, from where, and on what device. This helps refine your strategy.
Key metrics to track:
📊 Click-through rates (CTR)
📊 Geographic location of users
📊 Device & browser usage
📊 Time of day when links are most clicked
🧠 Pro Tip: Use a URL shortener with analytics (like Purl) to go beyond basic click tracking and gain advanced customer insights.
4. Improve Retargeting & Segmentation
Using URL management for digital marketing, you can create segmented audiences based on who clicked which link. This is a game-changer for retargeting.
Example:
🔹 If a customer clicks on a product page but doesn’t purchase, retarget them with a special discount
🔹 If someone engages with a blog post about a specific topic, send them more related content
🔹 Segment users based on location, device, or browsing behaviour for hyper-personalised campaigns
5. Optimise for Email Marketing
Links in email marketing should be short, branded, and properly tagged with UTM parameters so you can track performance.
Best practices for email links:
✔ Avoid long, raw URLs—always use a URL shortener to ensure the link fits on one line
✔ Use clear call-to-action (CTA) text instead of just pasting a link
✔ Ensure your links are mobile-friendly
❌ Bad Example: "Click here: yourwebsite.com/long-tracking-url?utm_source=email&utm_campaign=holidaypromo"
✅ Better Example: "Shop Now: brand.link/holiday-sale"
Final Thoughts
A well-structured URL is more than just a link—it’s a powerful marketing tool. Using a URL shortener, applying advanced tracking, and optimising for personalisation, segmentation, and retargeting will boost engagement and improve campaign performance.
🔹 Looking for a smarter way to manage your links? Try Purl—a personalised URL shortener designed for customer tracking, campaign analytics, and advanced insights.
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