What Is Link Cloaking?
Link cloaking is the process of turning long, messy affiliate URLs into clean, branded links that are easier to manage and more trustworthy for your audience.
Link cloaking typically follows the format of yourdomain.com/ followed by a slug (or permalink) that you define, like product-name or brand-name.
For Example:
Instead of using this:
https://www.walmart.com/ip/123456789?affp1=abcdefg&utm_campaign=affiliate&sourceid=website
You can share this:
https://example.com/walmart
This way, it's cleaner, more clickable, and easier to share.
How to Cloak Links with Lasso
NOTE: Click here to learn how Lasso handles Amazon link cloaking.
Lasso cloaks all of your links by default. When you add a new link to Lasso in WordPress, it will automatically add your domain and a default permalink.
However, you can customize the text in the Permalink box at any time. You can even change it after you add the link to your posts, and Lasso will update it for you automatically!
The Permalink can be any combination of letters and numbers. You cannot use spaces to separate words, but you can use -.
How to Uncloak Link in Lasso
Uncloaking Individual Links
You can uncloak any link in Lasso by toggling Link Cloaking off in any Link Details page. Hit Save Changes at the bottom of the page, and Lasso will uncloak that link across your site.
Uncloaking All Lasso Links
1. Navigate to WordPress > Lasso > Settings.
2. Find the Link Cloaking toggle under Link Defaults.
3. Toggle Link Cloaking off.
4. You will be given the option to turn off Link Cloaking for Only New Links or to Override All Links.
Only New Links: Your old links will still be cloaked. Your new links will have link cloaking turned off by default.
Override All Links: Your old links will be uncloaked. Your new links will have link cloaking turned off by default.
5. Pick the option you'd prefer and then hit Save Changes at the bottom of the page.
Lasso will then apply the link cloaking preferences you've chosen.
FAQs
Why Does the Permalink Box Still Show Even with Link Cloaking Turned Off?
Uncloaking links in Lasso means that Lasso won't show the cloaked permalink on your site via Lasso Displays or text links. You can still edit the Permalink field if you'd like to, but it won't impact how your link appears.
You can verify your link is uncloaked by checking the URL at the top of the Link Details page. If it matches your Primary Destination URL, it's uncloaked.
Why Would You Want to Uncloak a Link?
Cloaking links is great because it makes links more memorable and more clear to your readers.
The main reason for uncloaking a link is for external tracking. You may want to add your own tracking to work with your analytics platform.
Another reason is that the link doesn't need to be cloaked because it's already memorable and punchy. This is great for people who are linking to their own products or pages that have clean URLs and don't want an extra redirect.
Need Help?
If you have any questions, please contact us via the chat bubble in the bottom right corner of this page or email us at [email protected]. We're here to help!