How to use personalized URLs to boost your click-through rates

How your links look plays a bigger role in click-through rates than most marketers expect. Generic short links and messy URLs make people hesitate; they look suspicious, unprofessional, or just plain confusing. The result? Fewer clicks and missed conversions.

Personalized URLs solve this problem. These are custom-branded, campaign-specific links that look professional and trustworthy. Instead of generic alphanumeric strings, you get clean URLs that represent your brand and campaign.

The result? Higher click-through rates, better user trust, and campaigns that work harder for your business.

Here’s what personalized URLs are, why they make such a difference, and how to start using them in your marketing.

What is a personalized URL

A personalized URL is a custom short link that includes meaningful, campaign-specific, or recipient-specific information. Unlike a generic short link, a personalized URL reflects your brand and the purpose of the message, for example:

yourbrand.com/offer or yourstore.com/fall-sale

These URLs are hyper-relevant, easily readable, and branded for recognition. That’s the key difference. The right links help you with lead generation, user engagement, and overall response rates.

4 types of personalized URLs for marketing campaigns

Personalized URLs can take many forms depending on your campaign goals:

1. Audience-specific links: Target distinct user groups with URLs like /new-users or /newsletter-subscribers.
2. Channel-optimized links: Customize for specific platforms with URLs like /instagram-deal or /sms-promotion.
3. Geographic or event-based links: Include location or event details like /nyc2025 or /expo-special.
4. Recipient-based links: Create individual URLs like /offer-for-charlie or /jordan-deal for one-to-one campaigns.

Each approach helps you deliver more relevant content to the right people. Generic URLs feel impersonal and suspicious—they’re easy to ignore and harder to trust. Branded personalized URLs increase click-through rates by up to 39% and drive a 25% boost in trust metrics.

The difference is both psychological and practical. A personalized URL signals that you’ve put thought into the recipient’s experience. It feels relevant, professional, and legitimate. People can see exactly what they’re clicking on, which gives them confidence to engage with your

Benefits of personalized URLs for marketers

If you’re sending thousands of links across multiple platforms, things get messy fast. Without personalized URLs, marketers struggle with:

• Link fatigue: Reusing generic links makes them less effective over time.
• Platform blocks: Social networks and SMS carriers flag generic links as potential spam. Branded links signal legitimacy.
• Lost attribution: Generic links make it hard to track what drives conversions or which campaigns perform best.
• Poor branding: Generic URLs don’t reinforce your brand identity or build recognition.
• Trust issues: Generic links look suspicious and get mistaken for spam or phishing attempts.
• Limited analytics: You can’t segment traffic by audience, channel, or campaign without proper link structure.
• Character limits: On platforms like TikTok, Twitter, Instagram, or SMS, every character counts.

Personalized URLs solve these problems by letting you tailor links for different audiences, platforms, and goals. They look professional, build trust, and give you the tracking data you need.

People click branded links because they recognize and trust the source. Clean, intentional URLs also avoid spam filters and platform blocks. 

When you combine personalized URLs with link management tools, you get better performance across every campaign.

How to create personalized URLs that convert

Creating a personalized URL starts with choosing the right custom domain. Use a custom domain (like yourbrand.com) to build trust and maintain consistency. Then customize the back half to reflect your campaign or audience.

Here are a few naming best practices:

• Keep it short and memorable: Avoid long slugs or complex codes.
• Use dashes to separate words: yourbrand.com/spring-sale works better than /springsale2025.
• Be consistent: Maintain a uniform structure so your team and audience know what to expect.
• Avoid random strings: Use keywords that signal intent and reinforce your brand.

Following these practices creates a consistent experience across all your campaigns.

How to incorporate personalized URLs across channels

Here’s a streamlined version that cuts redundancy and improves flow:

Personalized URLs add value to every channel and campaign. Here’s how these links work across different types of marketing:

SMS marketing 

SMS links should be concise, trustworthy, and mobile-optimized. A personalized URL using your own domain ensures better deliverability and engagement. You can even set up dynamic destinations based on user segments.

Direct mail

Create memorable URLs for print campaigns like yourbrand.com/for-sarah. Pair these with QR codes for easy scanning and built-in tracking.

Email marketing

Track clicks at the subscriber or segment level and send tailored content based on behavior. Use click data to personalize follow-up messages.

Social media

Match your links to the platform context with URLs like yourbrand.com/insta-guide or /linkedin-report. This helps you provide relevant resources for each channel.

Print advertising

Whether on billboards or brochures, personalized URLs help measure engagement from offline campaigns. They’re easy to remember and type.

QR code campaigns

Send personalized QR codes in mailers or on event badges. They’re easier to scan and remember when people are on the go.

Influencer partnerships

Give influencers branded links like yourbrand.com/from-alex to promote. This builds trust with their audience while keeping attribution clear.

It doesn’t matter what kind of campaign you create; personalized URLs make for a better experience across the board.

Personalized URLs help you connect with your audience at scale

Modern consumers expect brands to put thought into their experience. Generic links feel lazy and suspicious—they simply don’t work anymore. Personalized URLs offer an innovative, scalable way to build trust, drive engagement, and gain valuable insights from every campaign.

When you put your brand at the front of every link and tailor each URL to match your message, you strengthen your relationship with your audience one click at a time.

Ready to start using personalized URLs? Rebrandly makes it easy to create secure, on-brand, high-performing links for every marketing channel. Start building trust and better results with your links today.