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Connect a Domain via WordPress Plugin

Gianni
Updated

QUESTION:
"I have a WordPress website/blog hosted on my domain. Can I re-use the same domain name to create branded links?"


ANSWER:
Yes, you can add Rebrandly service on top of your website or blog using our WordPress plugin, so that you can create branded links to route your web traffic which doesn't match any content on your existing website.

E.g. suppose you receive traffic on https://www.mydomain.com/donald/duck route but /donald/duck happens to not exist as a content/page on your website, then the plugin will lookup for an existing branded link mydomain.com/donald/duck and will serve the request via Rebrandly.

NOTE: this guide also applies if you have hosted your WordPress on managed services such as WPEngine.

 

Adding the Domain to your Account

Your domain will first need to be added to your Rebrandly account:

  1. Log in to Rebrandly dashboard.
  2. Launch our wizard to Connect a domain:
    From https://app.rebrandly.com/newdomain, click on "Connect a domain" link
    (Domains > "New domain" button > "Connect a domain" link)
  3. Type the name of the domain where your WordPress website is installed.
    E.g.: "mydomain.com"
  4. Specify that the domain is NOT SPARE, hence it is used for ‘website, blog, ...’
  5. Choose to use your domain name and NOT the subdomain.
    (if this option is not available in your account, contact us)

    Domain-Alias-Rebrandly.png
  6. Click on "Next" button. 
  7. Annotate/copy the alias domain value: this value is specific to your domain
  8. Install and configure the plugin (more on this on the next section)
  9. Wait for your domain setup to be verified.
    You will receive an email when the domain is ready to be used. 

Installing and Configuring the Plugin

Once you have completed connecting the domain to Rebrandly, you can proceed with installing and configuring your WordPress website/blog. Make sure you have permissions to access to the Admin panel of your WordPress installation, and that you are allowed to install plugins.

  1. Login to your WordPress admin panel
  2. Click on "Plugins", from the menu on the left

    mceclip0.png

  3. Click on "Add New" button on top
    (this may vary a bit according to your WordPress version)

    mceclip1.png

  4. Search for "rebrandly redirect"
    mceclip0.png
  5. Click on "Install now"
    mceclip2.png
  6. Click on "Activate"

    mceclip3.png
  7. Once the plugin is installed and activated, navigate to Settings > Rebrandly in your Admin panel



  8. Paste here the value for your alias domain and click on Save

    settings page

  9. Wait for the domain to get verified by Rebrandly (up to 10 minutes),
    you will receive an email confirmation once the verification process is complete.
    Not getting the email? Please refer to Troubleshooting section below
  10. Create a test link in Rebrandly and make sure the redirection works as intended.

 

Troubleshooting WordPress plugin

QUESTION:
I completed the installation of the WordPress plugin more than 10 minutes ago, but my domain is still pending verification.

ANSWER:
Rebrandly only attempts verifying your domain for up to 96 hours.
You will need to contact us in case more than 96 hours elapsed since the domain was added to your account. As an alternative, consider deleting the domain and re-adding it, but mind that the alias value might change after doing that and you'll need a reconfigure in WordPress Admin panel.

 

QUESTION:
My test link doesn't work, why isn't the plugin redirecting it as intended via Rebrandly?

ANSWER:
There are a number of other WordPress Plugins which can interfere with Rebrandly's plugin. Make sure you have not installed any of the following plugins, or that you configured them in a different way:

  • Rank Math: this plugin includes a functionality to manage your 404 traffic. Make sure to set "Default 404" as Fallback Behavior in the plugin settings:

    WhatsApp_Image_2022-02-16_at_09.12.16.jpeg
  • SeedProd: make sure you don't use the "301 redirects for your 404 page" feature
  • AIOSEO (All In One SEO): make sure this plugin is disabled for your 404 traffic
  • Redirection
  • 404Page
  • Custom 404 Pro
  • 301 Redirects
  • Safe Redirect Manager

If you cannot think at any plugin which could possibly be interfering with Rebrandly, please try manually navigating this link (replace <your domain> with your actual domain name):

https://<your domain>/.well-known/rebrandly

This should always respond with a message

Rebrandly was here...

If this is responding with something else, please double-check your setup is correct and verify there are no other network components which could interfere with the redirection or with the 404 behavior. 

We are aware of verification issues with WordPress installs behind CloudFlare CDN setup. If you are using CloudFlare, please contact us for assistance how to get your domain manually verified by us.

 

This article is about:

  • Domain alias for branded links
  • 404 traffic redirect options for branded domain names
  • Use the main domain for branded links
  • Use a domain name for the company website and branded links
  • Your brand on your links - alias domain name
  • Url shortener with the main domain name
  • Rebrandly connectors and plugins
  • Rebrandly and Wordpress

See also:

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