Redirection is the process of forwarding one URL to a different URL. A redirect allows you to send visitors and search engines to a different URL from the one they originally requested.
BL.INK offers the option to use either 301 redirects or 307 redirects for short links.
NOTE:
By default, BL.INK short links are 307 redirects. You can switch the default redirect type from your account preferences page.
The Two Redirect Types in BL.INK
301 Permanent Redirect
A 301 redirect is a permanent redirect that passes SEO ranking power to the redirected page. 301 refers to the HTTP status code for this type of redirect.
307 Temporary Redirect
307 is the HTTP status code that is sent when a document is temporarily available at a different URL. 307 tells search engines that this redirect may change in the future, so they will not index the link and always check for the most recent content. 307 type redirects are handy if the Target URL may change at some point.
So which one should you choose?
It really comes down to individual needs. The perception is that 301 redirects are better for SEO and Page Rank. If SEO is more important, choose 301 redirects. They are called 'permanent' because search engines, like Google, expect that the destination URL will never change. This means that they may cache the URL. However, proxy and caching servers (including most browsers) may cache the destination URL as well, which may not give accurate click counts.
If the URL is expected to change periodically and click counting is more important than SEO, then 307 Temporary Redirects may be the way to go.
For example, a sweepstakes link such as http://b.link/contest in which the giveaway content will change monthly. Or, a link to a special offers page that changes as different promotions run.
For more accurate click tracking, use 307 Redirects in channels with low or no SEO, such as Twitter, emails, advertisements, any site that requires a login, and links in social networking profile pages.
Changing the redirect type on a new or existing link
When creating a new link, the redirect type can be changed from the settings as you create the link. Scroll down to Redirect Types and choose the redirect type from the dropdown.
To update an existing link's redirect type, navigate to Links in the left navigation.
In the table, click on the link to open the Link Details drawer. Click the three dots in the upper right and click Edit Link.
Scroll down until you find the Redirect Type field. Click the dropdown, and select the redirect type. Then click Save.
NOTE:
If you're switching from a 301 to a 307 redirect, it may take some time to reflect the change in your browser because of the caching from the 301 redirect. Clearing your cache or testing an an incognito browser should show the correct destination.
How to update the default redirect type
BLINK offers the ability to choose your default redirect type directly within the My Account page.
To update this setting, click on your name in the upper right corner of the BLINK account, and click My Account.
The account page will open to your account information.
Navigate to Domain Information. For each domain, you may select the default redirect type. Expand the settings for the domain, and find Default Redirect Type. Select the dial for your preferred redirect type in the dropdown menu.
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