Link Shortener

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Automatically shorten long URLs in your WordPress workflows with FlowMattic’s built-in Link Shortener integration. Create clean, shareable fmtk.in short links for social media posts, email campaigns, SMS messages, and marketing materials. Perfect for affiliate marketers, social media managers, email marketers, and content creators who need to transform lengthy URLs into concise, branded short links that are easier to share and track across multiple platforms.

Key Features

Link Shortener provides instant URL shortening using FlowMattic’s own fmtk.in domain with automatic URL validation, error handling, and seamless integration with your WordPress workflows. The integration works with dynamic data from previous workflow steps, making it ideal for automated marketing campaigns, social media posting, and email notification systems. All shortened links use the fmtk.in domain for consistency and brand recognition.

When to Use Link Shortener

Social media automation: Shorten product URLs before posting to Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn
Email campaigns: Create clean, short links for email newsletters and promotional campaigns
SMS messaging: Reduce character count in text messages by shortening URLs
Affiliate marketing: Convert long affiliate links into short, shareable URLs
QR code generation: Create shorter URLs that generate cleaner QR codes
Link tracking: Prepare URLs for tracking and analytics in marketing workflows

How to Use Link Shortener

1. Add Link Shortener to Your Workflow

In your workflow builder:

Click the + button to add a new step
Search for and select Link Shortener from the core integrations
Choose the Shorten URL action

2. Configure URL Settings

URL to Shorten (Required)

Enter the long URL you want to convert to a short link
Can use dynamic data from previous workflow steps
Must be a valid URL format (including http:// or https://)
Supports any web URL regardless of length or complexity

Examples of valid URLs:

https://example.com/products/category/subcategory/item-name?utm_source=email&utm_campaign=spring-sale
https://yourstore.com/blog/2024/01/15/ultimate-guide-to-product-reviews-and-comparisons
https://affiliate-program.com/tracking/refer?id=12345&campaign=Q1-2024&source=website

3. Use the Shortened Link

After shortening, Link Shortener returns the following data:

status: Success or error status
long_url: Original long URL that was shortened
short_url: The new fmtk.in shortened URL

You can use these values in subsequent workflow steps.

Example Use Cases

Shorten Product URLs for Social Media

When sharing new products automatically on social media:

Trigger: New WooCommerce Product
Link Shortener: Shorten product URL
Twitter: Post product announcement with short URL

Create Short Links for Email Campaigns

When sending promotional emails with long tracking URLs:

Trigger: Schedule (Weekly)
Link Shortener: Shorten campaign URL with UTM parameters
Email: Send newsletter with clean short link

Automate Affiliate Link Shortening

When processing affiliate product feeds:

Trigger: API Polling (Product Feed)
Link Shortener: Shorten affiliate tracking URL
WordPress: Create post with shortened affiliate link

SMS Notifications with Short URLs

When sending text message notifications:

Trigger: Order Confirmation
Link Shortener: Shorten order tracking URL
SMS: Send tracking link via SMS with Twillio (saves character count)

Response Data Details

Success Response

{
  "status": "success",
  "long_url": "https://example.com/very-long-url-with-parameters",
  "short_url": "https://fmtk.in/abc123"
}

Error Response

{
  "status": "error",
  "error": "Invalid URL format provided."
}

Important Notes

Security Consideration
Link shortening is intended to provide convenience, not security. Do not use shortened links for:

Sensitive or private content
Password reset links
Payment or financial transaction URLs
Personal or confidential information

Best Use Cases
Link Shortener is best used for:

Public marketing and promotional content
Social media sharing
General content distribution
Non-sensitive tracking and analytics

URL Validation

All URLs are validated before shortening
URLs must include protocol (http:// or https://)
Invalid URLs will return an error message
Empty or missing URLs will be rejected

Troubleshooting

URL shortening fails

Verify the URL includes http:// or https://
Check that the URL is properly formatted and valid
Ensure the URL is publicly accessible
Make sure the URL field is not empty

Invalid URL format error

Add http:// or https:// to the beginning of your URL
Remove any special characters or spaces from the URL
Verify the domain name is valid and properly formatted
Use dynamic data tags correctly if pulling from previous steps

Short URL not working

Verify the original long URL is still valid and accessible
Check that the short URL was successfully created (status: success)
Test the short URL in a browser to confirm it redirects properly
Ensure you’re using the complete short URL including https://

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