If you have a business profile on the social network Instagram, it is necessary to indicate the website of your company. Sometimes the URL is so long that it not only fails to attract new customers, but also does not fit in the “About” section. In this case, you will need to shorten the link for Instagram using various online services. Besides creating a clickable link, they also offer to collect statistics on clicks. If you are interested, read the article.
How to shorten a link for Instagram
For a good company, it is important to have its own website, which can be indicated in the Instagram profile as an Instagram link. This will increase website traffic and in some cases help to earn money (for example, YouTube monetization based on the number of views). This is what scares many beginners in commercial accounts. If you simply copy the URL address from the browser, it becomes so long and ugly that you don’t want to click on it, fearing for the safety of your device. What to do?
As mentioned above, you need to use special platforms to shorten links. They will save the address in their database and “give” it a new name (approximately 20 characters).
Useful to know. Do not attach URLs to inappropriate content (materials with age restrictions or websites calling for extremism) to the header of your profile. Otherwise, the social network administration will not only block your link, but also impose a permanent ban on you.
The list of the best programs for shortening links
There are many different free services that can help make a website address on Instagram shorter. Let’s look at the most popular ones:
- Is.gd;
- To.click;
- Bit.do;
- Tiny URL;
- Ow.ly;
- U.to;
- Cutt.us.
Is.gd” – это URL-сокращатель, который позволяет сократить длинные ссылки до более коротких и удобных для использования
A link shortener allows you to:
- reduce URL code to a minimum;
- display URLs as QR codes;
- track statistics on clicks.
The interface is very simple. It consists of one input field and one button. All you need to do is:
- Copy the link to the web resource.
- Go to Is.gd.
- Paste the URL into the field and click “Shorten!”.
- Copy the resulting address.
Useful to know. If you want to receive statistics, don’t forget to check the box for “Log statistics for this link”.
To.click” (Russian) – “Нажать” (transliteration: “Nazhat'”) (English) – “To click
The second tool, unlike the first one, is in Russian language – To.click. It can:
- shorten URLs;
- create deep links;
- transform the address into a QR code;
- track clicks;
- link URLs to a domain, etc.
To start working on this platform, you need to:
- Go to the To.click website.
- Click on the “Try for free” button and create a new account. To do this, you need to enter your email address, password, and confirm the registration on the specified email.
Click “Create link” and paste the copied URL code into the field. Confirm and watch the statistics.
FYI. A deep link is a referral (personal) link to a specific page on Instagram, for example, a specific product.
Bit.do
This is a Brazilian utility that has a standard set of options:
- creation of shortened URLs (you can also choose your own “name”);
- registration of your domain (paid: basic – $85 per month; for companies – $250 per month);
- tracking of links and clicks.
You need to work in it in a similar way:
- copy the link;
- paste it into Bit.do;
- come up with a shortened version (if necessary);
- tap “Shorten”.
Done. A short version of the web address and a link to traffic statistics (Traffic stats) will appear at the bottom.
Tiny URL
This is the oldest and shortest software of all listed (it has been working since 2002). Nevertheless, it copes with its functionality:
- reduces url codes;
- allows you to come up with a unique address;
- allows you to see how the transition will look for any user (preview).
To use TinyUrl, you need to follow these steps:
- Copy the page address to the clipboard. To do this, select the text in the Url bar of the browser and press ctrl+c.
- Go to the TinyUrl website and paste the code (ctrl+V) into the empty field.
- Come up with a unique name for the link and enter it in the “Custom alias” field.
- Tap the “Make TinyUrl” button.
That’s it, now you need to save the received address and paste it into the header of your Instagram profile.
Ow.ly
This is a separate tool from the Hootsuite delayed auto-posting platform. To make a link attractive using this tool, you will need to:
- Click on the “Get Started Free” button.
- Enter your name, email address, and create a password.
- Confirm your email.
- Open the Ow.ly extension.
- Paste the copied link.
- Confirm the operation.
- Save the Url code to the clipboard and place it in your Instasety profile.
Note. The free version of Hootsuite provides unlimited access to Ow.ly.
U.to
On this website, there is also one line and one button, so it is impossible to get lost. You can shorten the address using the standard scheme: paste – press the button – save.
However, if you need to observe and analyze links, you will have to go through the longest registration in the world, but it is definitely worth it.
Cutt.us
Its main feature is the ability to shorten multiple web addresses at once with the assignment of an individual “suffix”. To do this:
- Open the Cutt.us website and select the Smart Multi URL Shortener version. If everything is in Turkish, click on the flags in the upper right corner and select “English”. This will make it easier to understand.
- Enter all the links in the “Enter multi URL” window.
- Create a unique code and click on the “Gooo..!!” button.
Use a browser translator to translate from English.
How to use the Goo.su service: instructions
Recently, another popular software for shortening URL addresses appeared – Goo.su. It includes all the basic options that will be needed in this matter:
- QR code generation;
- statistics analysis;
- creation of your own “name,” etc.
In addition, the site has an interesting “feature” – an extension for Google Chrome. So, owners of this browser can even not go to any services – two clicks and it’s done.
Let’s consider the instructions for using Goo.su.
Registration
The first step to register on the URL shortening service is to:
- Go to Goo.su.
- Click on the “Register” button.
- Enter your name, email address, and password.
- Confirm.
Now your personal account will open, where you can find the history of created codes and detailed statistics for each of them.
The process of shortening a link
To make a link more attractive using Goo.su, you need to:
- Copy the URL and open the Goo.su homepage.
- Enter the URL in the field and click on the “Additional Options” button.
- Specify an “Alias” (unique name) and the code type (public or private).
- Click on “Shorten”.
Done. You will now have a mini-version of your web address that you can share on social networks (VKontakte, Facebook, Twitter, Odnoklassniki) and messengers (WhatsApp, Telegram, Skype).
Detailed statistics on links
If you need to track statistics on clicks, log in to your personal account. There you will find:
- the number of shortened web addresses;
- total clicks;
- clicks for today;
- clicks for a certain period (for example, for this month);
- clicks for a certain period for all links.
How to use a browser extension for link shortening
Goo.su has its own extension on Google Chrome and Yandex browser, which allows you to get the desired URL code in just a few clicks. The algorithm of actions is very simple:
- Install the official utility.
- Allow it to access to modify inserts.
- Right-click on the element whose link needs to be transformed, for example, a site from a search engine or an image.
- Select “Shorten Link and copy”.
- Paste the text into the header of your Instagram profile.
If this option does not suit you, you can remove the internet extension from your browser at any time. This is done through the settings of the web browser and the “Extensions” section.
It is not difficult to shorten the link for an Instagram profile. Especially nowadays, the choice of services suitable for this is very large. So you just need to pay attention to any of the ones you like and work with it according to the instructions we have provided.