{"id":1128,"date":"2022-06-06T05:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-06-06T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.golinks.com\/blog\/?p=1128"},"modified":"2024-10-01T12:44:20","modified_gmt":"2024-10-01T19:44:20","slug":"golinks-vs-tinyurl","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.golinks.com\/blog\/golinks-vs-tinyurl\/","title":{"rendered":"GoLinks Vs. TinyURL: Which Is The Best URL Shortener In 2025?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

There\u2019s no shortage of instances in our digital world when a powerful URL shortener comes in handy. It doesn\u2019t matter if you\u2019re receiving internal company documents, sharing meeting notes with a colleague, or planning a town hall meeting; you\u2019ll want a solution that makes sharing those links as easy as possible. But what happens when your internal knowledge management needs to evolve past the simple function of turning a long link into a short link? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are plenty of free URL shortener options on the market, so we\u2019re going to help you select the right option for you. Most URL Shorteners focus on two types: internal or external use. Your needs for a URL shortening tool may depend on several factors, which we\u2019ll discuss below. Before diving into the details, let\u2019s review the basics of what a URL shortener is. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/div>\n\n\n\n

What Exactly Is A URL Shortener?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A URL shortener, or link shortener tool, takes a long raw link, shortens it, and directs that link to the intended destination. So instead of a 60 character-long URL, you\u2019ll end up with a link that\u2019s substantially shorter, easier to remember, and is unlikely to result in a broken link after it\u2019s copied. This type of link retargeting is used to customize links so that they are easy to remember and can also be used to track clicks. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n

How Do URL Shorteners Work? <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In simple terms, these tools take an original link and shorten them by using a redirect that still connects a visitor to the desired page. To learn more, check out this in-depth post on how URL shorteners work<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"How<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Now that we\u2019ve gone over the basics let\u2019s take a closer look at two URL shortening services available today to figure out which is the best URL shortener for you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this post, we want to use TinyURL and one TinyURL alternative, GoLinks<\/a>, both URL shorteners have a free and paid version, and in this article, we\u2019ll discuss several factors of these two tools, most notably pricing tiers, integration<\/a>, link management and more features to help you pick the best URL shortener for your knowledge management needs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/div>\n\n\n\n

TinyURL<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

By all accounts, TinyURL was one of the first notable link shortening services founded over 20 years ago in 2002. It was initially used to post shortened links in Usenet newsgroups and then used on social networks like Facebook and Twitter as those platforms grew in prominence. TinyURL is a simple solution that creates permanent short links. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019re looking for simplicity, TinyURL is a great offering, but if you\u2019re looking for a more robust service because your enterprise needs have evolved for using a link shortening service, keep reading!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/div>\n\n\n\n

GoLinks <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

GoLinks was created in 2016 and is an enterprise link management solution for internal knowledge sharing and internal knowledge management. Administrators and individual users can create easy-to-remember, secure short links to share within an organization and between colleagues making sharing of knowledge easy to do. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"GoLinks<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n

GoLinks\u2019 goal is to make all knowledge that your staff uses instantly accessible, so whether it\u2019s a wiki, or a platform, GoLinks integrates with all of the platforms you\u2019re already using, like Slack, Jira, and Google Chrome. By doing this, GoLinks allows staff to stop wasting time searching for resources and instead focus on the task at hand. Go Links are easy to remember; you can even share them visually on a poster in a break room or share them verbally during a conference call. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Companies like Mercari, Impossible, and Confluent use GoLinks as a TinyURL alternative because they want a link shortening service combined with internal resource management.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/div>\n\n\n\n

What Are The Main Differences? <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

While TinyURL and GoLinks share some similar functionality, there are several key differences between the two platforms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Intranet Management <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

One of GoLinks’ greatest assets is its ability to direct personnel to internal company documentation, no matter where those resources are housed. Think of GoLinks as a business\u2019 intranet directory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Employees can create go links to point their colleagues to internal company documents, files, or tools either verbally, through internal channels like Slack<\/a>, or within documents themselves. In addition, they can categorize information in their GoLinks library with tags, making it easy for employees to access information without much searching.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Best<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n

For example, suppose an HR administrator<\/a> wants to share all onboarding resources with a new hire. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Traditionally:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  1. This administrator would email PDF versions of benefits packages, links to an employee handbook, timesheets, and IT documents. These resources are likely to get lost in the recipient\u2019s inbox, not to mention, they can become outdated. <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. There\u2019s not an intranet management feature with TinyURL:\n
      \n
    1. TinyURL simply does not offer an intranet management feature for service users at any price plan. <\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

      With GoLinks: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

        \n
      1. The same HR administrator uses GoLinks and created go links for these resources.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      2. They are now both easily accessible, and memorable. Some examples include go links like go\/benefits, go\/employeehandbook, and go\/IT. <\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n
        \"GoLinks:<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
        <\/div>\n\n\n\n

        HR won\u2019t have to redistribute go links:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

          \n
        1. A creator\/admin of a go link can update a destination URL so if they need to upload a new version they are able to without redistributing a new link. <\/li>\n\n\n\n
        2. They are easily searchable.  The new employee could also find these resources by searching the tag \u201cOnboarding\u201d in their GoLinks dashboard. This search would result in a list of all resources associated with the onboarding process. <\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n
          \"GoLinks<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
          <\/div>\n\n\n\n

          They\u2019re Secure:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

          IT and security teams can rest assured that these links are only accessible by internal personnel and verified through the login process by the company\u2019s SSO provider.<\/p>\n\n\n\n