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Using Dynamic Redirects

This is a

Premium Feature

What are Dynamic Redirects

Dynamic Redirects is a premium feature in LinkCentral that allows you to create context-aware redirects based on various conditions.

The following conditions are currently supported:

  • Country
  • Date
  • Time
  • Device type
  • Operating system
  • Cookie
  • Total & unique clicks
  • Login status & user role
  • URL parameter

For example, Dynamic Redirects enable you to create a specific redirect for mobile users in a certain country between a certain time.

How to use

You can access the Dynamic Redirects feature by clicking on the “Dynamic Redirect” button when editing a link. This button is located in the link editor interface and opens an advanced rule builder.


Country-Based (geolocation) redirects

Country-based redirection uses geolocation services to determine the user’s country. LinkCentral supports two geolocation services: CloudFlare and MaxMind.

To enable Dynamic Redirects, you must first set up a geolocation service in the LinkCentral settings. If your website already uses CloudFlare, this offers a seamless way to implement geolocation (instructions here). Alternatively, you can opt for MaxMind (instructions here), a free service that requires you to input a license key in the plugin settings. This key allows LinkCentral to download and use the GeoIP database and keep it up-to-date.

When creating a new rule, you have the option to include a Country variable. You can select one or multiple countries and specify whether the rule should activate when the user’s location matches or doesn’t match the selected countries. This flexibility allows for precise targeting of your redirects based on geographical location.

Example: Redirect users from Canada to www.canadian-website.com.


Date-Based redirects

When creating a rule, select “Date” as the variable type. You can then choose conditions like is before, is after, is on, is between, or is not between and specify the relevant dates.

This allows you to create rules with future dates. These rules will become active when the specified date conditions are met.

Example: Redirect users to www.destination.com between May 2024 and October 2024.


Time-Based redirects

When creating a rule, select “Time” as the variable type. You can choose conditions like is before, is after, is, is between, or is not between.

Time-based redirects use the server’s time zone settings. Make sure your WordPress time zone settings are correctly configured for accurate time-based redirections.

Example: Redirect users to www.destination.com between 09:00 and 20:00.

Device-Based redirects

When selecting Device as a variable, you can create a redirect for desktop, mobile, or tablet users. You can choose conditions like is or is not.

Example: Redirect users on mobile and tablet to www.mobile-website.com.

Operating System-Based redirects

If you select Operating System as a variable, you can redirect users based on whether they’re using a specific OS (eg: Windows, macOS, Linux). Combined with Device-Based Redirects, this allows you to target specific groups. For example, users on an iPhone.

Example: Redirect users on Apple devices to www.apple-landing-page.com.

Cookie-Based redirects

When selecting Cookie as a variable, you can redirect users based on cookies. You can choose between is set, is not set, or has value to match cookies against a specific value.

Example: Redirect users with a vip_member cookie to www.exclusive-offer.com.

Click-Based redirects

You can redirect users based on the number of clicks. Choose between Total Clicks and Unique Clicks, and set one of the following conditions: fewer than, more than, or every.

The every condition allows you to alternate users between multiple URLs. This is useful for link rotation or A/B testing. Read more.

Example: Redirect the first 10 unique users to www.exclusive-offer.com.

Login Status-based redirects

Users can be redirected based on their login status. Choose between Is Logged In, Is Logged Out, and Is Logged In With Role.

For the Is Logged In With Role condition, you can select one or more roles a user should have assigned to be redirected.

Example: Redirect logged in users to www.members-only.com.

URL parameter-based redirects

With the URL parameter variable, you can redirect users based on the existence or value of a URL parameter in the slug (eg: utm_source=facebook). You can choose between is set, is not set, and has value and you can add multiple of the same variables within the same rule.

Example: Redirect www.my-website.com/go/link?utm_source=facebook to www.social-media.com.

Multi-rule redirects

LinkCentral’s Dynamic Redirects feature offers powerful multi-rule capabilities, allowing you to create sophisticated redirection strategies. With multi-rule redirects, you can combine various conditions. Rules are evaluated in order, with the first matching rule being applied. This hierarchical structure enables you to set up complex scenarios, like redirecting mobile users from specific countries to one destination during business hours, and to another outside those hours. If no rules match, the link defaults to its standard destination URL.

Statistics

LinkCentral’s analytics include data for dynamically redirected links. When a Link has Dynamic Redirects enabled, a small icon is shown in the analytics.

FAQ

How many Dynamic Redirect rules can I create for each link?

You can create multiple rules for each link. The rules are evaluated in the order they appear, and the first matching rule will be applied. There’s no hard limit on the number of rules you can create. However, for optimal performance, we recommend keeping the number of rules per link to a reasonable amount.

Can I combine multiple conditions in a single rule?

Yes, you can combine multiple conditions within a single rule. For example, you can create a rule that applies to users from a specific country, using a mobile device, during a certain time range.

What happens if no rules match?

If none of the dynamic rules match, the link will use the default destination URL specified for that link.

Will Dynamic Redirects slow down my website?

Dynamic Redirects are designed to be efficient and should not significantly impact your website’s performance. However, complex rules or a large number of rules may have a minor impact on redirect processing times.

Troubleshooting

When Dynamic Redirects are applied to your link, the button on the Link Editing page appears in dark blue. Ensure this is indeed the case.

If your Dynamic Redirects aren’t functioning as expected, consider the following common issues:

  • Double-check your rules: Ensure you see no fields with empty or unexpected values.
  • Caching: One of the most common reasons that Dynamic Redirects don’t work is because the link gets cached. For example, if someone from Canada clicks the link on a desktop for the first time and the web server caches it, this could cause the link to redirect to the Canadian desktop page every time, even for other users. To solve this, add your custom URL prefix (e.g., /go*) to the exclusions list in your caching plugin.
  • Date and Time Rules: Ensure your server’s time zone settings are correct. Dynamic Redirects use the server’s time, not the visitor’s local time. Check your WordPress general settings (Settings > General > Timezone) and make sure they match your intended time zone. Incorrect server time settings can cause date and time-based rules to trigger at unexpected times.
  • Country-based Rules: For country-based redirects to work, you must have a geolocation service configured in the LinkCentral plugin settings. Without a configured geolocation service, LinkCentral cannot determine a visitor’s country, and country-based rules will not function. Navigate to the LinkCentral settings page and verify that either CloudFlare or MaxMind is properly set up:
    • If using CloudFlare, ensure your website is using CloudFlare’s services.
    • If using MaxMind, check that you’ve entered a valid license key and that the GeoIP database has been successfully downloaded. Read more here.
  • Rule order: Remember that rules are evaluated in the order they appear in the settings. Make sure your rules are arranged logically, with more specific rules appearing before more general ones. You can move rules up and down using the arrow buttons next to the ‘Remove Rule’ button.
  • Premium license: Verify that your LinkCentral Premium license is active and valid. Dynamic Redirects is a premium feature and might not work correctly without an active license.
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