Are you sharing smart links?

If you share “normal” links through social media, you may be missing out on a remarkable opportunity…and that is being able to capitalize on who actually clicks using “smart links.”

Think about it for a second. If you take the time to share a link and someone clicks it, that’s great. You curated content and they found value, at least enough to visit the link you shared.

But what if you could keep track of all those people who clicked through your links? I don’t mean by name–but based on that person browsing history. Through the power of what is now known as retargeting, you could be building lists of all those people who you later can advertise to using sites like Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Google and Twitter.

How To Set Up and Share Smart Links

It is not too hard to do this if you have the right tools.

One of my favorite ways to do this is using a service called GeniusLink. When you create an account, you then have the option to add retargeting links from the sites I just mentioned. Once you do that, you could use a Chrome extension for example to share a link on social media.

Now instead of just sharing a raw URL, the link you share will automatically add to the retargeting lists of whatever services you add in your Geniuslink dashboard. And that means any link you choose to share…not just ones to your own website. You don’t even have to actively share the links on social media either–they could be sitting on your website.

Now where retargeting really gets powerful is not only the ability to target people who clicked through to a specific link—but the opportunity to create Lookalike Audiences in some ad platforms like Facebook. This means you could share links for awhile then instantly expand the potential audience for an offer you want to advertise, just by starting from your initial retargeting list.

I know this can sound a little confusing. But it’s worth digging into it and understanding how this works in order to take advantage of the power of retargeting to get back in front of people who are interested in what you share—and more just like them.

With Facebook as an example, the maximum amount of time that people will stay in a Custom Audience after having visited your website or mobile app is 180 days—or six months!

For practical purposes, you can advertise to anyone of Facebook who looks at your site in that period of time. After 180 days, people who have been in your website’s Custom Audience will be removed unless they revisit the website or mobile app.

However, as mentioned above—at any time, you can create one or more Lookalike Audiences in Facebook (and similarly in other online platforms). These can range in size from 2.2 million to 21.5 million people who are similar to people who already visited your site!

You can create up to 100 pixels with a Facebook business account. There are more advanced features as well, such as the ability to use information that your customers have provided to your business, like their email address or phone number, to match your website’s visitors to people on Facebook.

In addition, you can track key attributes such as purchases made on your website that came from an ad someone clicked, if they happen within a certain number of days after someone viewed or clicked on your ad.

Are you excited to dive in this opportunity to share smart links and build your own retargeting lists?

Click here to try GeniusLink for free. If you do end up signing up for a paid plan, I will get a small referral fee. Thanks and I hope that will get you better results with your links online!