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How to add your branded domain or sub-domains for short links (DNS CNAME)
How to add your branded domain or sub-domains for short links (DNS CNAME)
Héctor F avatar
Written by Héctor F
Updated today

Setting up a domain or a subdomain with your brand for short liniks will drastically improve the results in your campaigns. Here we will explain how to set up your own domain with a short URL in a few steps.

1. Add the URL on Instasent

In the section Settings > Short links, and then click on "Add domain for short links":

2. Define the URL type

Select Subdomain or Custom domain. You must own that domain. You can use the root domain, e.g. myshop.com or a subdomain, e.g. sms.myshop.com. It can't be used by another services. For long urls, consider to buy a shorter option for this purpose, (e.g. myshop.to):

3. Domain details

Select the automatic configuration (recommended) and then write the original URL your short URL will redirect. This URL must be your main domain.

Click on "Next" and configure the DNS/Cname records from your main domain (myshop.com) in your provider (GoDaddy, Namecheap, Dondominio, Google Domains, etc.)

You should use the records provided by Instasent:

In this example, the records would be:

Record type

Host name

Redirects to

CNAME

SMS

check Instasent
(Info disponible en la App)

4. Setting up the DNS records on your domain provider

The exact steps vary depending on your provider: GoDaddy, Namecheap, Dondominio, Google Domains, among others...
However, they all follow the same principles:

If you are using a root domain (e.g. myshop.to):

  • Look for an option called "DNS Settings," "DNS Records," or "Advanced DNS," and update the A records of your domain to point to the IP addresses provided by Instasent (this is not the case we are discussing in our example):

  • Delete other A records: If there are other A records pointing to different IP addresses, delete them and save the changes.

If you are using a subdomain (e.g., sms.myshop.com):

  • This is the case we are discussing in this example. Look for an option called "DNS Settings," "DNS Records," or "Advanced DNS" and set up a CNAME record so that your subdomain points to the address provided by Instasent. In our example:

Record type

Host name

Redirects to

CNAME

SMS

check Instasent

  • Make sure to enter only the subdomain name, such as sms, and not the entire domain, and then save the changes.

Important:

  1. DNS Propagation: Changes to DNS records can take up to 48 hours to fully propagate across the internet.

  2. Remove previous configurations: If there are conflicting configurations, such as other A or CNAME records, delete them.

  3. Review: After making the changes, make sure that the domain or subdomain is correctly configured.

  4. For Cloudflare (or similar) Users: Disable Proxy Mode: Set the CNAME record to DNS only (gray cloud icon) in Cloudflare. This ensures the record behaves as a standard CNAME.

By following these steps, you will have correctly configured the DNS to use your domain or subdomain as a shortened link. Once the configuration is done, return to Instasent to verify and finalize the process.

Contact support


If you have any questions or need assistance during the configuration process, our support team is available to help you resolve any issues that may arise.

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