How to cloak affiliate link

32 replies
I'm trying to cloak affiliate links in my wordpress blog but I'm such a technophobe I haven't been able to figure it out.

Anyone willing to help me?

Thanks smart people!

Rose
#affiliate #cloak #link
  • Profile picture of the author abdullah Amir
    i have same question ,, hope someone help us
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  • Profile picture of the author SIDoss
    Didn't know about google shortner service? How about Bitly? How about "Redirect URL" plugin for Wordpress?
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  • Profile picture of the author onSubie
    The free plugin Pretty Links will do that. There are similar plugins.

    Paid/Pro versions often offer tracking clicks and other features.
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  • Profile picture of the author Unregistered
    Probably use PHP or one of those URL shorteners. https://bitly.com/
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  • Profile picture of the author withfusion
    Probably use PHP or one of those URL shorteners. https://bitly.com/
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  • Profile picture of the author Everblue
    Hello Rose Anderson,

    Since you are using wordpress, the plugin Pretty Link is the way to go.
    It is very easy to install and use. It can both track and shorten links in the free version.
    Once you select it, it's self-explanatory.

    For affiliate links, you should also check the "nofollow" box.
    If you have any problems message me, or watch any "how to use prettylink" youtube video.
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    • Profile picture of the author saralees
      Pretty link is good if you are only leaving the links in the WordPress blog. Facebook etc don't allow posting of such links so it depends on the end in mind.... my 2 cents
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      http://schemamarkupplugin.com
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  • Profile picture of the author dags512
    Hi, I personally use the Pretty Link Lite - WordPress Plugin, just go to your WordPress dashboard and select plugins then search for Pretty Link Lite which is a free and easy to use plugin.
    Watch this video on how to use the plugin.
    CLICK HERE to watch video
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    • Profile picture of the author Mattdawg841
      You should use PrettyLink Lite...it's a 100% free wordpress plugin and works extremely well! It's super simple and easy to use and sounds like exactly what you're looking for!

      I hope that helps and good luck
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  • Profile picture of the author harris96
    I personally use Pretty link (WordPress plugin) for my blog and it works great for me.
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  • Profile picture of the author socialsite
    You can use bit.ly for free and it has tracking abilities too. There is also sites like linkbucks and tinyurl you can use. Just do a google search on it.
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  • Profile picture of the author Randall Magwood
    Get your own business domain name, and use a redirect script to cloak your link, and lead visitors to your affiliate offer. If you need the simple script, PM me and i'll give you the same simple one that i use. Same goes for anyone else who wants the redirect script.
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  • Profile picture of the author Brent Stangel
    Hi Rose,

    I agree with Click Magick. They offer a 14 day free trial.

    Prettylink is good for a free solution.

    Brent
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  • Profile picture of the author davejarvys
    Originally Posted by Rose Anderson View Post

    I'm trying to cloak affiliate links in my wordpress blog but I'm such a technophobe I haven't been able to figure it out.

    Anyone willing to help me?

    Thanks smart people!

    Rose
    Is there any point in cloaking if this is for a blog.

    To keep things legal you have to tell your readers that you use affiliate links and earn a commission on them anyway.
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    • Profile picture of the author DeadRooster
      Originally Posted by davejarvys View Post

      Is there any point in cloaking if this is for a blog.
      Absolutely. You will notice a tremendous boost in click-throughs with a link that is readable rather than a jumble of convoluted nonsense.

      There are other reasons, but I think the main one is people are skeptical of scrambled links that offer no clue of the destination. Even if you use anchor text the user still sees it in the bottom of the browser.

      If you don't believe me, try it. You'll see a noticeable improvement in click-throughs.

      Pretty links is a good plugin I've used in the past; however, I personally now use Easy Redirect Script because it offers a lot of extras and can be used on non-WordPress sites.

      It's kind of pricey though.
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  • Profile picture of the author writeaway
    Your best bet would be simple link redirection.

    You can use simple .html files with meta refresh

    Free.

    Easy.

    You don't have to be neurosurgeon.

    You don't have to worry about the WP plugin becoming updated and becoming vulnerable to hackers.
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  • You can use a different domain for that, or a sub-domain or extension on the main domain, such as freeoffer.example.com or example.com/freeoffer. Then you can open up the .htaccess file and do all kinds of editing and add more of them. It's much cleaner when you want to do that and you don't have to bother with third party products or scripts beyond any extra domain you register. You certainly do want to begin with your own main domain of course.
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  • Profile picture of the author T S Chan
    Follow these steps:

    1) Log in to your wordpress site

    2) Click "Plugins" on left navigation bar

    3) Click "Add New"

    4) Search for "redirect affiliate link"

    You'll find a bunch...
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  • Profile picture of the author ousama naami
    i have same question ,, hope someone help us
    Thanks Reply
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  • Profile picture of the author modgerody
    I don't know why so many people are giving such bad advice.

    The smart answer is Download and install pretty links lite plugin, it's free...problem solved.
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  • Profile picture of the author Ellen Chedid
    You can always use free link shortening websites like free plugin Pretty Links, LinkTrack or Clickmeter. However, with free tracking/cloaking services, you generally end up in the spammers box or your emails get automatically deleted. I would highly recommend you use paid tracking services as you get more options and features that will better help you gather information and increase your commissions. I'm currently using Click.org to cloak and track my links. Awesome software. My sales have increased so much since i started using it too.
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  • Profile picture of the author bobsmith924
    Hi..you can use plugins to easily add your affiliate links into WordPress.....
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  • Profile picture of the author kallol360
    Cloak affiliate links is not at a good idea, what I heard from many forum but I don’t know how far its true. If you are using wordpress, search for affiliate cloaking, you will get many. Check the reviews and install it. I do same for my website, which tell about how to earn extra money
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  • Profile picture of the author arshsethi
    The best way is to use a plugin known as 'Thirsty affiliates'. This plugin has both free and paid version.
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  • Profile picture of the author extrememan
    Man, try pretty link Lite. It's free and super quick. It's a WordPress Plugin.
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  • Profile picture of the author T20WC
    you can learn the php
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  • Profile picture of the author razorz18
    Originally Posted by Rose Anderson View Post

    I'm trying to cloak affiliate links in my wordpress blog but I'm such a technophobe I haven't been able to figure it out.

    Anyone willing to help me?

    Thanks smart people!

    Rose
    Use pretty link plugin if your using WordPress. Or you can use shortner url like Bitly or Tinyurl
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  • No plugin necessary. Create a folder called "Likes" or "Recommends" or something similar.

    Copy and paste the code below to create a new file. Replace the link in the file with your link. Name the file something memorable, and it has to have the extension .php on the end.

    Code:
    <?php
     = 'copyandpasteyouraffiliatelinkhere';
    
    
    //do not edit below here
    header ('HTTP/1.1 301 Moved Permanently');
    header('Location: '.);
    exit;
    ?>
    Save that file in the Likes or Recommends folder. Now your url will look like this:

    http://yoursitename.com/likes/traffictravis.php
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  • Profile picture of the author modgerody
    Originally Posted by Bradley J Anderson View Post

    No plugin necessary. Create a folder called "Likes" or "Recommends" or something similar.

    Copy and paste the code below to create a new file. Replace the link in the file with your link. Name the file something memorable, and it has to have the extension .php on the end.

    Code:
    <?php
     = 'copyandpasteyouraffiliatelinkhere';
    
    
    //do not edit below here
    header ('HTTP/1.1 301 Moved Permanently');
    header('Location: '.);
    exit;
    ?>
    Save that file in the Likes or Recommends folder. Now your url will look like this:

    http://yoursitename.com/likes/traffictravis.php
    ^^Once again Bad advice. The OP stated that she is using a Wordpress blog.

    Using your method when the OP is using Wordpress makes absolutely no sense.

    Why would you want to fiddle around with HTML in a Wordpress site everytime you want to cloak a link?

    If the OP doesn't already know how to cloak affiliate links, what makes you think adding code everytime they want to make a new link is a good idea.

    And your statement "No plugin necessary" makes no sense. A Wordpress plugin take 20 seconds to install and you can use it to make hundreds of links easily. The whole point of Plugins is to make processes that normally require coding easier.

    Your way would take repeated logging into the sites files, adding and editing a new HTML file each time you want to make a new link. With multiple links, or the need to create new links every once in a while, its an extremely painful process.

    The absolute only reason any should ever use your method is if they are running an HTML website. If they are running a Wordpress website, you are stupid not to use PrettyLinks.

    Originally Posted by saralees View Post

    Pretty link is good if you are only leaving the links in the WordPress blog. Facebook etc don't allow posting of such links so it depends on the end in mind.... my 2 cents
    ^^ And to that comment you are completely incorrect.

    Pretty links allows you to create URLs that you WILL be allowed to paste on Facebook. I'm not quite sure what you're trying to say, but it's incorrect whatever you are thinking.

    By using Pretty Links, you can take an affiliate URL and cloak it.....making it able to be posted on Facebook because it is your own domain.
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  • Profile picture of the author Popche
    If you want to cloak links with your own domain go with pretty link.
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  • Profile picture of the author Dawn Cansdale
    Just go to your wordpress dashboard plugins - add new - search "link cloaking" instal and activate. Really simple to use. See Chris Farrell on You Tube he shows you how.
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