shortened links

WeAreGhosts

i keep coming across shortened links on the comps board

i just wanted to ask, what are their purpose?

CheCazzo

A question I've always been too embarrassed to ask so I wait keenly for the answer

hertzyabazas

Do you mean when someone changes the url to 'enter here' or the promoters name?

If so I hate it. Makes searching tiresome IMO and is possibly my second biggest comping gripe.

WeAreGhosts

no, they are usually a short jumble of numbers and letters. i think weeowens talked about one the other day ... just tried to find an example but the search, for me, is always diabolical

putting 'enter here' or something similar is a little annoying cos you can't see the company name. but i dont mind those with the company name in the link.
some people just put 'clicky' and that is v. annoying.

hertzyabazas

ah, I'm not certain but a lot of shortened links are referal links where sometimes they're linked to the person that posts them and they get an extra entry into a competition every time someone clicks on it. As I said I'm not certain.

WeAreGhosts

ah ha, like this :
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/5024392

hertzyabazas

Yes I think so
Maybe someone could confirm this so I'm not feeding you duff information!

One-Eye

3 types of "shortened" links

a) Clicky type such as Sheerluxe or Smooth Radio
These often give neater posts. They do not affect searches. MSE can't display longer links in full anyway. MSE sometimes can't cope with links that end in punctuation and they have to be done this way. MSE can struggle with VERY long links if they are not done this way. Some companies such as Universal Music do not have the company name in the URL and using a clicky can show who is running the comp. Like many other people I prefer these if they are done with the company name.

b) Shortened or Stripped links. These are those such as company.co.uk/win-an-ipad/?source=newsletter&uid=abc@gmail.com which can be shortened to company.co.uk/win-an-ipad/. This removes personal details, referral details, time & date stamps etc. Referral links (where the poster derives a benefit) are against MSE rules. It is always best to use the stripped URL

c) True Short Links. These are those such as bit .ly/16Mxqn3 or goo.gl/Ghv5Ft or tiny url or on.fb which should never be used - they are strictly against MSE rules as they can be used to hide referral links and banned sites. You do not know where they will take you until you click on them. They also make searching difficult.

weeowens

WeAreGhosts wrote: »

i keep coming across shortened links on the comps board

i just wanted to ask, what are their purpose?

It has been much discussed on such as:

here

here

here

here

I posted my comments here,which still stand ie:


Cheers,good luck with it.
I hope it is Ok to ask that you possibly avoid actually posting it as CLICKY though.
It is a lot easy to filter comps via page view if the actual sites name is used as the link rather than words such as "Enter Here" & Click Here" etc.
I tend to post the link as the first line & then shorten the site name eg:

here

here

here

Doing it that way enables members to see the site name without actually opening the thread up.This help when certain sites are not applicable eg I do not enter Saga comps.

weeowens

WeAreGhosts wrote: »

no, they are usually a short jumble of numbers and letters. i think weeowens talked about one the other day ... just tried to find an example but the search, for me, is always diabolical

putting 'enter here' or something similar is a little annoying cos you can't see the company name. but i dont mind those with the company name in the link.
some people just put 'clicky' and that is v. annoying.

Would you be referring to such as these ?

here

here.

weeowens

CheCazzo wrote: »

A question I've always been too embarrassed to ask so I wait keenly for the answer

No need to be embarrassed on here.Just ask & you'll more often than not get an answer that is usually polite & decent.