As tech companies grow and new ones pop up, new verbs continue to be introduced to our evolving vocabularies. Verbs that started off as company names and that might not be found in Webster’s Dictionary, or will be added because of how popular it has become within the vernacular of english-speaking countries. “Google” it comes to mind first. Want to know the name of a song you’re listening to? “Shazam” it. Want to video chat with your family back home? “Skype” them. But here’s an example you may not be so familiar with; has anyone ever asked you to Bitly a link?
What is Bitly?
Simply put, Bitly is a free online application that allows you to shorten long URLs to as little as 14 characters. However, if you want to use other features that Bitly provides you will have to pay for it.
This tool is especially handy for Twitter users who are limited to only 240 characters per post. But Bitly is more than just a one-trick pony, it also allows you to track click information on your links. Bitly shows you how many people have clicked on your link, the time/date of the click, where they were referred from (email, website, social media) and the global location of the people who clicked on your link.
Why Use Bitly?
It is an easy way to create short links that can be posted anywhere online, used in podcast sponsorships, or even on traditional marketing materials like flyers and posters. The link is easier to read, memorize and follow and is a good alternative to QR codes if you are unable to utilize those for your marketing. Or, you can even use both to ensure that you cover all your bases in order to get the most out of your organization’s marketing strategy.
How to Use Bitly
Using Bitly is simple. Just do the following:
- Visit www.bitly.com and sign-up for your free account.
- Copy any URL you’d like to shorten and paste it in the top-right of your screen
- After shortening your URL, you will be given the option to customize the characters in your Bitly URL (IE: https://bit.ly/customtext) by clicking on the pencil icon, or you can simply copy the standard URL and paste it where it needs to go!
For example, you can have your link be bit.ly/specialpromo
- To check your Bitly Link’s performance you can visit the “Stats” tab in the menu bar.
How to Utilize Bitly to Promote Your Organization
Bitly will help build and maintain brand consistency with branded links, which is incredibly important for your organization. If you choose upgrade your Bitly account to use the other features that Bitly offers, you will have access to fully customize each link, which in turn will help with brand awareness, memorability and increased engagement, while also building trust with your customers and prospects. All of which are extremely important for businesses of any size.
You want to do anything you can in order to gain credibility and boost visibility in your market while inspiring trust and loyalty. Plus, it is always a good idea to distinguish your organization from competitors and establish a strong and consistent customer experience across every channel you utilize for your organization’s marketing strategy.
What’s Next?
Now that you’ve gotten an understanding of Bitly and its core functions, you can add it to your list of tech verbs. Give it a shot! Bitly some links and take a look at how they perform. This tool can be especially helpful when you are creating your next online activity guide for your parks and recreation organization, or when posting registration links for your camp. Instead of copying and pasting links directly to your online registration, take a moment to put them in Bitly so you can get an idea of which classes, programs, camps or events get the most click through.
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