Having broken links on your website, expired domains, or social media platforms can hurt your SEO. As an experienced internet marketer, I understand the importance of SEO, link juice, and basic web development skills.
In this blog post, I will show you how to fix broken links using a link shortener, ensuring your online presence stays in tip-top shape.
Fixing 404 Pages Using Link Shortener
How To Find Broken Links
The first step is to identify the broken links. You can use a broken link checker tool like Broken Link Checker, Semrush, Ahrefs or Screaming Frog to find broken links on your website.
Super simple to do with just a few mouse clicks.
Shorten the Broken Links
Once you have identified the broken links, you can use a link shortener tool like Bitly or Pretty Links to shorten the URLs with a better name. By using a link shortener, you can create a new URL that redirects to the original URL, even if the original link is broken.
Replace the Broken Links
After you have shortened the broken links, you need to replace the old broken links with the new shortened links. You can do this manually by going through each page of your website and updating the links.
Alternatively, you can use a plugin like Broken Link Checker to automatically replace the broken links with the new shortened links.
FAQ
How to Fix Broken Links on Expired Domains
Expired domains have a ton of value when it comes to SEO, but sometimes a website that has been left alone for too long will have broken links that are still very valuable.
This is where the new domain owner has to revive these links. Simply by redirecting the broken links after finding them using the methods listed above.
How To Fix Broken Links on YouTube and Other Social Media Posts
If you've shared or posted links in the past containing raw affiliate links, it's time to make a change. Instead, start using a link shortener.
This is because if the source of the raw affiliate links alters their link structure, the links become essentially useless and lead to a 404 page. Reaching out to websites and blogs to request editing of the links one by one can be a daunting task.
However, with a link shortener, you only need to edit the link once and it will automatically update wherever the link has been posted on the internet.