Affiliate for WooCommerce plugin helps you to add, manage affiliates, and track performance from a single place – commissions, sales, payout, leaderboard, etc. Earn money without hard work. Increase your brand outreach, and get potential customers.
Affiliate referral links are the backbone of any affiliate marketing program. These links help track referrals, attribute sales, and reward affiliates.
Our plugin generates the links in a structured and reliable way, like https://example.com/?ref=45 or https://example.com/ref/jane-doe.
While the default links are fully functional and customizable, some brands or affiliates may prefer even shorter, cleaner, or more branded versions for specific use cases, such as social media posts, email campaigns, or offline promotions.
A link shortener for affiliate links solves this problem by converting URLs into shorter, cleaner, and more memorable versions. This not only makes links easier to share but also improves click-through rates, tracking, and branding.
It enables more targeted tracking without replacing or interfering with the core referral system.
How do default affiliate referral links work?
↑ Back to topIn Affiliate for WooCommerce (and most affiliate systems), affiliate referral links contain:
- A tracking parameter (e.g., ?ref= or /ref/).
- An affiliate identifier (user ID or custom slug).
Visit this doc to learn more.
Example:
https://example.com/?ref=45(default referral links).https://example.com/ref/jane-doe(when the pretty referral link is enabled).
When a user purchases via an affiliate referral link, the system attributes the purchase to that affiliate, and the affiliate earns a commission based on the commission plans you set.
What is link shortening?
↑ Back to topLink shortening is the process of creating a compact redirect link that points to a longer, original link.
This allows you to:
- Hide tracking parameters or technical details of the link.
- Create custom slugs like
https://example.com/john. - Use branded links that look clean and trustworthy.
- Track link performance independently (clicks, conversions, etc.).
Using a free affiliate link shortener could be a good starting point to test strategies without additional costs.
How to shorten affiliate links?
↑ Back to topThere are many link-shortening services that you can use to create cleaner, more trackable affiliate links.
Below, we’ve shared a few popular options to help you understand what’s available.
Note: This is not an endorsement of any particular tool; feel free to explore and choose the service that best fits your needs.
WordPress plugins
↑ Back to topSince your store runs on WordPress, there are various plugins available that can help you manage, shorten, and track links directly from your site dashboard.
These plugins often allow for:
- Redirecting shortened links to full affiliate URLs.
- Tracking clicks and performance within WordPress.
- Organizing links by affiliate or campaign.
Many plugins offer different features like branded redirects, analytics, UTM tagging, or link grouping. We recommend exploring the available options and choosing the one that best aligns with your needs and workflow.
ClickWhale
ClickWhale is one such plugin that you can use to easily shorten and analyze affiliate links on your site.
Learn more about how to shorten links & create redirects.
Bitly
↑ Back to topBitly is a widely used affiliate link shortener and link management platform that offers both quick link creation and more advanced tracking capabilities, like custom slugs, branded domains, and detailed analytics.
It’s suitable for individual affiliates as well as businesses managing larger-scale link sharing.
Steps to shorten a link using Bitly:
- Sign up or Log In to your Bitly.com account.
- On the Dashboard, click the Create new button (usually at the top-right).
- In the Destination, paste your link.
- Once you hit the Create your link button at the bottom, Bitly will instantly generate a short version like:
https://bit.ly/3xYz45A
You can also customize your links.
Please visit here to learn about all the options.
TinyURL
↑ Back to topTinyURL is one of the simplest URL shorteners available. It’s known for its no-frills approach, letting users quickly shorten links.
Rebrandly
↑ Back to topRebrandly is an advanced link management platform that focuses on branded links.
It allows users to connect their own custom domains and create short links that reflect their brand identity. Rebrandly also offers click tracking, analytics, and teams.
It also offers a free URL shortener & QR code generator.
Linktree (and similar link-in-bio tools)
↑ Back to topLinktree and similar tools help manage multiple links from a single profile.
They’re commonly used on platforms like Instagram, TikTok, or X, where only one bio link is allowed.
These tools let affiliates create a mini landing page with several referral or promo links.
It’s a simple way to guide followers to different offers while keeping the presentation clean and branded.
Tips for managing short links
↑ Back to top- Keep slugs meaningful and consistent (e.g., /jane-youtube, /deal-10off).
- Use lowercase letters to avoid confusion.
- Archive or deactivate old or expired links to maintain relevance.
- Encourage affiliates to test and rotate links to improve reach.
- Use analytics to prune low-performing links and double down on winners.
Examples
↑ Back to top| Original Link | Shortened Version | Purpose |
| https://example.com/?ref=45 | https://example.com/john | General branded link |
| https://example.com/?ref=45&utm=fb | https://example.com/john-fb | Platform-specific tracking |
| https://example.com/?coupon=flat-ten | https://example.com/flat-1o | Promo link with cleaner slug |
| https://example.com/ref/jane-doe | https://example.com/deals | Public-friendly link for print |
How to share shortened links with affiliates?
↑ Back to topYou can share the shortened links with affiliates in multiple ways:
Campaigns
↑ Back to top- You can use Campaigns to share the links.
- You can create specific campaigns for specific affiliates and control the privacy using the Visibility field of the campaign.
You can share the link with affiliates via email. Check this doc to learn more about finding the email of affiliates.
Template override (optional customization)
↑ Back to topOptionally, you can take help from the developer and use the template override method to share pretty links.
Note: This process requires customization.
Different use cases for link shortening in affiliate marketing
↑ Back to topSocial media sharing
↑ Back to topPlatforms like Instagram, X (formerly Twitter), and LinkedIn often limit space or truncate long URLs. Short links look cleaner and are easier to remember or add to bios and posts.
Example: Instead of https://example.com/?ref=45 use: https://example.com/john
Email marketing
↑ Back to topEmails with short links may help in:
- Better delivery
- Higher click-through rates
- Easier insertion into email templates
Influencer and offline campaigns
↑ Back to topCustom short links (like https://example.com/jane-youtube or https://example.com/brochure-deal) are perfect for podcasts, videos, QR codes, or printed flyers.
A/B testing
↑ Back to topYou can create multiple short links pointing to the same destination but labeled differently (e.g., /john-facebook, /john-insta).
Running experiments with a link shortener for affiliate links helps affiliates understand which messages or channels deliver better results.
Affiliate branding
↑ Back to topBranded or personalized short links for affiliates (e.g., /go/john, /deal/jane) may give them a sense of ownership and help build trust with their audience.
Final thoughts
↑ Back to topLink shortening isn’t just about aesthetics – it’s a strategic tool that empowers both merchants and affiliates to increase clicks, track results, and run smarter campaigns.
Whether you’re managing 10 affiliates or 10,000, short and branded links can significantly boost your affiliate marketing results.
By making affiliate links easier to share, remember, and manage, you set the stage for more successful promotions and a better experience for your partners.
Feature request
↑ Back to topHave a feature request or enhancement suggestion for Affiliate For WooCommerce? Submit it from here: Submit a feature request.
