Start Using URL Shorteners for Click Tracking
Use URL shorteners to track every click – for FREE:
Are You Using URL Shorteners to track Link Analytics?
This is a simple way to track clicks to ANYTHING.
Did you know that you can track links to the number of clicks that a given link has had. It is easy to do using a URL shortener.
Here is a list of just some of the uses in selling travel
2. Specific Website Links
3. Pre-conversion Click Tracking
4. Lead Tracking in Emails
5. Single Campaign Effectiveness with Multiple Messages or Links
1. Cross Platform Advertising Tracking
The best practice is that each URL would track a separate link specifically, but it is possible to keep it simple by tracking a category of links. In other words, It would be best to track every post separately that you made to track effectiveness of your marketing pieces for a given product. This is really complex though. If you don’t have the time, you could still track all clicks coming from your Facebook profile going to your group cruise info link (for example).
You could also track your clicks to a specific product across all of your platforms using one, or a few links.
- Make a shortened URL for one of your products
- Use the link in your marketing, even as a link behind your images
- Get people to that link
- Track Your Results on Google Sheets or Excel day by day
(This step is important, because it will help you increase your marketing effectiveness automatically over time)
2. Specific Website Links
Your page analytics are probably done in your site software, but with URL shorteners, you can track clicks from any image or any link, or any affiliate link.
Have you wondered how many people are clicking on that travel insurance link? Well, now you can track it.
- Put the full URL with your affiliate link to the travel company into the URL shortener
- Use the shortened URL on your site.
- Again, Track Your Results day by day
This is a sample of what I mean by tracking day by day:
3. Pre-Conversion Clicking
How many of your clicks are resulting in purchases?
Suppliers may tell us how many sales, but some don’t do well in telling how many clicks. They certainly don’t do well in reporting where they came from.
Well, Shortened URLs can tell you that info. If you know you sent 1000 clicks to a given booking link and only five people have booked, then you have some real data to deal with. You also have some idea of what worked, and what needs more work. You can tell if a link converts well or not.
4. Lead Tracking in Emails
If you use an email service to send to your list, then you are used to the analytics info that service gives. Constant Contact, Mail Chimp, Aweber, and Lyris all give good information for effective marketing. If you use Shortened URLs, you can get the info at a glance for all of your marketing including this service.
Here is the best thing: With shortened URLs, you can track the clicks from your own email when you send it to a person or to a group. You will be getting the analytics without using the big email services.
5. Single Campaign Effectiveness with Multiple A/B Tests
If you get advanced with your marketing, then you can do easy A/B testing (does this work, or does that work?) with the same marketing campaign.
If you want to test passive language vs direct, you can make two shortened URLs that go to the same link. You can test things like, “More Info, Click Here” vs. “Book Now”, and see the click results immediately.
Ideas for Improvement
- Start using shortened URLs today.
- Track everything you are doing, day by day
- Become a master of your marketing
Find us at the TravelAgentForum 2018 Event. I look forward to meeting you in person
Paris Hotel and Casino
April 8-11, 2018
Click here for registration information
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Jump into the conversation:
Post any marketing question in the comments section in the Travel Sellers Mastermind Group post. We may just make a whole article on it.