There are quite a few ways to monetize a blog; short links are one of them. Others include affiliate links, selling on space, etc. Most websites use a combination of these methods and use them simultaneously to maximize their income.
So yes, you can earn money on short links. They’re a decent way of earning passive income and are super easy to set up. Some would argue that they’re the most profitable way to monetize a website. All shorteners don’t let you earn money, though. So pick a software carefully.
This article will go over a few topics related to short links, including what they are and why you should use them. We’ll also go over how you can shorten links and make money from them. So keep reading.
What Are Short Links
Short links are exactly what they sound like: they’re shorter versions of long URLs. The short link redirects to the long link, which takes the user to the intended website.
That’s all there is to it.
Why Use Short Links
There are a couple of reasons why people like using short links. Let’s go over each.
1. Short Links Are More Aesthetically Pleasing to Look at
One of the main reasons why people shorten links is because they look better. When you’re tweeting a link or posting it somewhere, it’s better to have it be a few short characters than four lines long.
Moreover, when you’re sending someone a message or making a tweet, you have a limit of 140 characters. So in such situations, it’s crucial to keep links short enough to leave space for a message.
2. Some Shorteners Give Data About Activity on The Link
You generate short links using apps called shorteners. In addition to making links shorter, some of these software come with additional features. For instance, some apps may give you information about how many people clicked on the link. Others may tell you about impressions left by users.
Having access to such trackable data is super helpful for people using social media to earn a living. So if you’re a blogger or influencer, knowing what kinds of content viewers like and interact with can help you significantly improve your reach as you can pay more attention to specific niches.
3. Short Links Can Hide The Target Website
Short links redirect users to the long link. As such, it does not need to include the target destination in its URL. Hence, it can be helpful in disguising the target URL.
4. Short Links Make You Money!
The most important reason to shorten links is that you make money every time someone clicks on them. So even if you don’t care about the aesthetics, don’t have to worry about character limits, and have no interest in hiding the target website, you should still shorten links.
You have nothing to lose. But every time anyone opens the link, you’ll get money in your bank account.
How Can You Earn Money on Paid Shorteners
You can earn money with short links if you add an advertisement layer between the short link and the long link. Once you add the layer and a visitor clicks on the short URL, they’ll see an ad, and then be moved to the destination page.
The middle advertisement layer is the reason you can make money.
Why Short Links Are A Good Way to Earn Money
There are several ways to monetize a website, so you may be wondering what sets this one apart from others.
1. Short Links Don’t Take Up Any Real Estate Space on Your Website
Traditional monetization methods like ads take up space on your website. This is an area you could be using to promote your brand or show off a new product to your audience. Instead, it is being used to show them a short video about socks or a phone cover.
Instead, short links integrate as part of your website and are simply small stops viewers make when moving from one page to another.
2. Earn Money From Leaving Visitors Too
Affiliate links and almost all other forms of monetization require that your viewers are interested in your content. That’s the only way they will follow the sales funnel you set up. However, if they aren’t interested and simply want to leave the page, you won’t make any money from them.
Short links are different because you can make money from leaving visitors too. Your audience doesn’t have a choice in opening the ad. It just happens when they click on a link.
3. Short Links Can Be Used on All Platforms
Short links are also better than a lot of other forms of monetization because you can use them everywhere. Whether you’re making a post on Facebook or sending out an email blast to all your customers, you can include a short link.
Even if they just open the link to see what you’ve sent and make no further effort, you’ll still earn money. This makes short links a great way to make money.
The Best Paid Shorteners
If you haven’t started shortening links yet, pick one of these two software and begin doing so immediately:
- Shorte.st
- Adf.ly
Shorte.st performs slightly better when it comes to earnings. You’ll make more money with it than you will with Adf.ly.
Link Shorteners vs. AdSense
Link shorteners aren’t user-friendly. This makes them low-quality software that isn’t easy to use. So everyone doesn’t like using them. Instead, some people prefer using Google’s advertising software called AdSense.
The issue with AdSense is that Google doesn’t approve all websites. In fact, some sites are even banned after being submitted for review on AdSense. Hence going through the effort of using a link shortener seems better.
Other Ways to Monetize Your Blog
If you think short links aren’t your cup of tea, don’t worry because there are other ways to monetize blogs. You can use any one of them to get the job done. Let’s go over a few easy ones.
1. Sell An Ebook
Selling an ebook is an easy way to monetize your blog. You’ll make money as long as you price it moderately enough so that your followers can afford it.
Moreover, ebooks are a good way to figure out if your audience is interested enough in the niche you’re covering to pay for it. If they aren’t, you should consider readjusting your blog.
You can sell the book directly on your blog or use other platforms. There are several good third-party software, including Amazon Kindle, Podia, and Gumroad, that will serve your needs.
2. Create and Sell Courses
Another easy way to monetize is by creating and selling online courses. If you’re in the fitness and health niche, you can create workout routines or meal plans and charge a one-time fee for access to them.
You don’t need to be an expert to make a course. You just need to have more information than the average layman. As long as you know more than your audience, you have the skills required to teach a course.
3. Become An Affiliate Marketer
Affiliate marketing is one of the most common ways to earn money on blogs. All you have to do is promote other businesses’ products, and you’ll get paid every time they make a sale because of you.
It’s the same thing as working as a salesperson in a store. You have to convince your audience to purchase whatever you’re promoting. If you can successfully convince them to invest in the product, you’ll get a commission.
4. Use Sponsored Posts
Sponsored posts are one of the harder ways to make money. You need a large audience and credibility to pull it off. You’ve probably seen celebrities posting about health shakes or shoes from brands with #ad. That’s what sponsored posts are.
Companies pay people to post about and compliment their products. This exposes them to a large audience and increases the number of people who know about them, leading to sales.
Since the person promoting the product gets paid irrespective of whether sales are made, companies only invest in people they believe will tangibly benefit their sales. Hence only people with large audiences are contacted.
Final Thoughts
You can earn money on short links. Use one of these two shorteners, and you’ll make cash every time one of your viewers clicks on the link:
- Shorte.st
- Adf.ly
Some people who have used them have said that they aren’t the highest quality applications. If you have a similar experience, you can use Google’s AdSense to monetize your blog instead.
Given that submitting a website to AdSense for approval can at times lead to banning if Google disapproves of your content, some people prefer using shorteners despite their issues.
If for some reason, you don’t want to use either, there are a few other ways to monetize blogs. We’ve mentioned four.
