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<html><head><title>How do I set up a very basic tracking link?</title></head><body>
<b>How do I set up a very basic tracking link?</b><br />
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If you would like to watch our video tutorial on how to create a basic tracking link, watch the video here, otherwise, continue reading&hellip;<br />
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			<td><b><a href="/misc/video.cgi?name=links" id="video-link-new">How to Set up a Basic Tracking LInk</a></b></td>
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To set up a very basic tracking link all you need to do is enter the &ldquo;Primary URL,&rdquo; which is the URL you want users to be redirected to when they hit your tracking link:<br />
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<img src="//cdn.clickmagick.com/images/user/faqs/faq109createlink.jpg" /><br />
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You can leave all the other settings blank and the system will automatically generate a Link Name and link ID for you by randomly choosing a combination of letters and numbers:<br />
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<code>http://www.clkmg.com/$username/<strong>16sd3r</strong></code><br />
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By promoting this tracking link, your clicks will first come to ClickMagick where they can recorded, then be automatically redirected to the Primary URL.<br />
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In the link above, the <code>/16sd3r</code>&nbsp;part is called a &ldquo;link ID&rdquo; (or &ldquo;rotator ID&rdquo; if you&rsquo;re creating a rotator link), and it will be created automatically if you don&rsquo;t explicitly choose one. More often than not, you&rsquo;ll probably want to choose a meaning link ID, such as these:<br />
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<code>http://www.clkmg.com/$username/<strong>page1</strong><br />
http://www.clkmg.com/$username/<strong>specialoffer</strong></code><br />
etc.<br />
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The link ID must be between 4 and 20 characters and can only use letters, numbers, and hyphens.<br />
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There are tons of additional settings and features when setting up links, but creating a basic link is as simple as entering the Primary URL you want users redirected to, and optionally the link ID if you don&rsquo;t want it to be randomly generated.<br />
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<div class="faq-caution"><b>Caution:</b> When you create a link, you&rsquo;ll be asked for both a &ldquo;friendly&rdquo;&nbsp;Link Name and for a link ID. Both of these must be unique or you will get an error message about trying to create a duplicate entry. If you get this error message, just rename either the friendly Link Name or the link ID.</div>
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<b>How do I set up a custom tracking domain?</b><br />
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If you want to use a custom domain for branding purposes you can easily set that up with ClickMagick.<br />
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Also, if you&rsquo;re planning to use tracking links on Facebook or in email messages, then you need to use a custom tracking domain.<br />
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Setting up a custom tracking domain is super simple. Please see the FAQ below:<br />
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			<td style="box-sizing: border-box;">&nbsp;</td>
			<td style="box-sizing: border-box;"><b><a href="/user/faqs.cgi?answer=140">What is the recommended way to set up a custom domain?</a></b></td>
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