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Get more from your URL shorteners with automation

By Nick Moore · November 20, 2023
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URL shorteners are underrated.

Many people use them to do exactly what the term says: shorten URLs. These links are cleaner and smaller and make for easier sharing and clicking. But easier-to-use links are just the start. With URL shorteners, you can drive more click-throughs and make your campaigns more visually appealing. 

But it's still tempting to simply copy and paste a long URL, especially if you have a large batch of links that need to be shortened.

You don't have to manually create those short links, though. With Zapier, you can automatically create shortened URLs every time you publish content, add new products to your site, track links in a spreadsheet, easily monitor who interacts with your links, and more. 

Here are some popular ways to automate your URL shorteners.

Table of contents: 

  • Create short links for your content and files

  • Shorten URLs for your email marketing campaigns

  • Automatically shorten links you store in a spreadsheet

  • Use short URLs in your online store

  • Monitor link activity

  • Share shortened URLs on social media

You'll need a Zapier account to use the workflows in this piece. If you don't have an account yet, it's free to get started. And if these workflows don't meet your needs, you can explore more in our App Directory or within the Zap Editor.

Create short links for your content and files

When you create new blog posts in your content management system (CMS), you can use a Zap to automatically shorten the published link for you. That way, every time you publish content, you can ensure your links are automatically available in a presentable, shareable format. 

Create a new Bitlink each time you post to Wordpress

Create a new Bitlink each time you post to Wordpress
  • WordPress logo
  • Bitly logo
WordPress + Bitly

Create Rebrandly for new WordPress posts

Create Rebrandly for new WordPress posts
  • WordPress logo
  • Rebrandly logo
WordPress + Rebrandly

Create bitlinks for new Tumblr blog posts with Bitly

Create bitlinks for new Tumblr blog posts with Bitly
  • Tumblr logo
  • Bitly logo
Tumblr + Bitly

Create Short.cm for new HubSpot blog articles

Create Short.cm for new HubSpot blog articles
  • HubSpot logo
  • Short.io logo
HubSpot + Short.io

But what about when you save your draft content in Google Drive or other storage systems? For easier collaboration and sharing, you can use these Zaps to shorten the URLs of all your folder links, so team members can effortlessly access, review, and edit documents without having to navigate through lengthy or cumbersome URLs. 

Create shortened urls for new Google Docs documents with URL Shortener by Zapier

Create shortened urls for new Google Docs documents with URL Shortener by Zapier
  • Google Docs logo
  • URL Shortener by Zapier logo
Google Docs + URL Shortener by Zapier

Create bitlinks for new OneDrive files with Bitly

Create bitlinks for new OneDrive files with Bitly
  • OneDrive logo
  • Bitly logo
OneDrive + Bitly

Shorten URLs for your email marketing campaigns

Want to streamline your email campaigns? 

By using any of these Zaps, you can shorten the URLs of every new campaign you create in your email tool. That way, you can make your email efforts more appealing and clickable—and easily share those links across social media platforms and elsewhere. 

Shorten urls for new Mailchimp campaigns with URL Shortener by Zapier

Shorten urls for new Mailchimp campaigns with URL Shortener by Zapier
  • Mailchimp logo
  • URL Shortener by Zapier logo
Mailchimp + URL Shortener by Zapier

Create a new Bitlink each time you send a Mailchimp campaign

Create a new Bitlink each time you send a Mailchimp campaign
  • Mailchimp logo
  • Bitly logo
Mailchimp + Bitly

Add new Flodesk subscribers to segment, then shorten urls with URL Shortener by Zapier

Add new Flodesk subscribers to segment, then shorten urls with URL Shortener by Zapier
  • Flodesk logo
  • URL Shortener by Zapier logo
Flodesk + URL Shortener by Zapier

Automatically shorten links you store in a spreadsheet

If you work in spreadsheets, you can automatically shorten URLs as you add them to a Google Sheet or make updates to existing data.

Create Rebrandly links from a Google Sheets spreadsheet

Create Rebrandly links from a Google Sheets spreadsheet
  • Google Sheets logo
  • Rebrandly logo
Google Sheets + Rebrandly

Create Short.cm links when rows are updated in Google Sheets

Create Short.cm links when rows are updated in Google Sheets
  • Google Sheets logo
  • Short.io logo
Google Sheets + Short.io

Shorten urls for new or updated Google Sheets rows with URL Shortener by Zapier

Shorten urls for new or updated Google Sheets rows with URL Shortener by Zapier
  • Google Sheets logo
  • URL Shortener by Zapier logo
Google Sheets + URL Shortener by Zapier

The more you use your URL shortener tools, the more URLs you're going to have to track. That can become unwieldy, especially as your list of shortened URLs grows.

But with Zaps, it's easy to keep track of all your new links.

Automatically track new links in a spreadsheet to sort and find duplicates.

Add new Bitlinks to Google Sheets rows

Add new Bitlinks to Google Sheets rows
  • Bitly logo
  • Google Sheets logo
Bitly + Google Sheets

Create Google Sheet rows for new bitlinks in Bitly

Create Google Sheet rows for new bitlinks in Bitly
  • Bitly logo
  • Google Sheets logo
Bitly + Google Sheets

Use short URLs in your online store

Shortened URLs also help get you closer to the point of conversion. With Zaps, you can automatically create short links each time you add new products, update orders, or take payments.

Create a new Bitlink each time you add a product to Big Cartel

Create a new Bitlink each time you add a product to Big Cartel
  • Big Cartel logo
  • Bitly logo
Big Cartel + Bitly

Create alias URLs in Shorten.REST for new updated orders in Shopify

Create alias URLs in Shorten.REST for new updated orders in Shopify
  • Shopify logo
  • Shorten.REST logo
Shopify + Shorten.REST

Create branded short URLs for new Quickbooks online payment records via Shorten.REST

Create branded short URLs for new Quickbooks online payment records via Shorten.REST
  • QuickBooks Online logo
  • Shorten.REST logo
QuickBooks Online + Shorten.REST

Monitor link activity

Link shorteners don't just give you shorter links; they give you better ones. You can use tools like Bitly and Rebrandly to track who interacts with your links. Use these Zaps to leverage that data.

Automatically monitor link activity for performance and engagement over time, and set up notifications to alert the team whenever a link hits a certain goal.

Post to Slack for each new domain referrer on your Bitlink

Post to Slack for each new domain referrer on your Bitlink
  • Bitly logo
  • Slack logo
Bitly + Slack

Send a Gmail email whenever a Rebrandly link reaches a number of clicks

Send a Gmail email whenever a Rebrandly link reaches a number of clicks
  • Rebrandly logo
  • Gmail logo
Rebrandly + Gmail

Get Slack notification when Rebrandly links reach a number of clicks

Get Slack notification when Rebrandly links reach a number of clicks
  • Rebrandly logo
  • Slack logo
Rebrandly + Slack

Share shortened URLs on social media

Social media presents one of the best use cases for shortened URLs, especially given length restrictions on posts. With short links, you can preserve character counts on social posts. Plus, you can brand shortened URLs so they're recognizable when other social media profiles share your links.

Automatically share shortened URLs (like events) to your own social accounts.

Post new Bitlinks to Facebook Pages

Post new Bitlinks to Facebook Pages
  • Bitly logo
  • Facebook Pages logo
Bitly + Facebook Pages

Post new Eventbrite events to Buffer with shortened URLs

Post new Eventbrite events to Buffer with shortened URLs
  • Eventbrite logo
  • URL Shortener by Zapier logo
  • Buffer logo
Eventbrite + URL Shortener by Zapier + Buffer

Create Rebrandly links for new Instagram media

Create Rebrandly links for new Instagram media
  • Instagram logo
  • Rebrandly logo
Instagram + Rebrandly

Go beyond the basic benefits of URL shorteners

The advantages of URL shorteners are greater than just shorter URLs.

When you shorten your URLs with one of these apps, you'll drive higher click-through rates and have more data to better inform your strategies. And once you connect these apps via Zapier, you get even more done with less effort—all thanks to automation.

Get more value for the work you put in: when you shorten your URLs, you also shorten your to-do list.

This article was originally published in September 2020. It was most recently updated in November 2023 by Elena Alston.

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